COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KKTV) – November is Diabetes Awareness Month. Three Colorado women are raising awareness for the disease by running 26.2 miles in New York City.
Sunday, Kelli Deferme, Brooke Stewart, and Megan Conklin ran the New York City Marathon for Beyond Type 1.
“Beyond Type 1 is a global nonprofit supporting Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes. They have fundraising initiatives. Beyond Type Run is the largest fundraising initiative that they do. But they provide education. They provide access. They provide advocacy,” Deferme said.
Deferme and Stewart have Type 1 Diabetes. Conklin’s son Toby was diagnosed a few years ago.
“One of the things about Beyond Type 1 that I have loved so much is they have these very easy-to-understand resource guides for coaches, for grandparents, for friends, for babysitters. And, I’ve used them all kind of to give folks, kind of to give folks a little bit of a primer into how to take care of him,” Conklin said.
They met 55 other runners from across the country who are on the Beyond Type Run team. Running a marathon looks a little different for Deferme and Stewart than for people without diabetes.
“I usually check my blood sugars through my CGM about every mile or two just to make sure,” Stewart said. “My go-to, I love glucose gummies or glucose tabs.”
“I have my phone on me to be able to see what my blood sugar is doing all along the way,” Deferme said. “My husband says it’s like I’m packing for Everest. And so I’ll be wearing a running vest. Hydration is really important. I’ll have one bottle with just water in it. And one bottle with kind of a sugar Gatorade-type mix.”
They hope to spread awareness and prove that you can accomplish great things with a Type 1 diagnosis.
“Every day is different. Every day it might challenge me, but it’s something that, again, doesn’t stop me from living the life that I want,” Stewart said.
All three women talked about the classic signs of diabetes:
Weight loss Increased thirst Increased urination Increased fatigue
If you see these signs in yourself or your child, see your health care provider right away and get a blood sugar check.
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