Tag Archives: insulin

Living Lighter: One Year on the Omnipod 5

By Amber Clour on Apr 5, 2025

It’s hard to believe I haven’t given myself an insulin injection in over a year.

After decades of navigating T1D with multiple daily injections, I took the Podder plunge on February 25th, 2024. Making the decision to start the Omnipod 5 wasn’t easy—there were tons of emotions, a healthy dose of fear, and a big dose of hope. Hope that this device might finally help ease the relentless overnight blood sugar rollercoasters.

I haven’t shared much about this journey—until now. Today, I want to acknowledge and celebrate what a difference this little device has made in my life.

It wasn’t love at first Pod. In fact, I knocked off my very first one within 24 hours. Cue panic.

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Just the Facts #1: Dr. Andrew Bugbee | Diabetes in Animals

By Amber Clour on Feb 1, 2024

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This particular podcast subject, diabetes in animals, sparked my interest after I learned about Quincy, a koala bear at the San Diego Zoo, who was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in 2018, was insulin dependent, and wore a CGM. It made me think – why do animals have diabetes and is it the same as mine? Fascinating!

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Forty Years of Defying Diabetes: A Swinging Journey from Diagnosis to Doctorate

By Cassie Moffitt on Dec 17, 2023

FORTY. Forty years ago today, a worried, but determined grandpa took his sick 17-month-old toddler to her pediatrician. My grandpa flatly told the pediatrician that his granddaughter was sick and he knew she had not just diabetes, but Type 1 diabetes. The pediatrician basically laughed and said, “There’s no way this kid has diabetes—she’s too young,” but my grandpa didn’t quit.

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#140: Elizabeth Vesely | I Went Gung-Ho!

By Amber Clour on May 15, 2023

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It took me months to nail down an interview with Elizabeth Vesely after seeing her Facebook post about taking the polar plunge and it was well worth the wait. In this episode we discuss her misdiagnosis, addressing diabetes denial, and what living life to the fullest while you still can looks like for this T1D world traveler.

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#137: Reverend Mireya Martinez | I’m All About Being Real

By Amber Clour on Apr 4, 2023

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Reverend Mireya Martinez was a panelist on the Crushing: The Burden of Diabetes on Patients session during SXSW in Austin, Texas where she dominated the conversation in my opinion. In this episode we discuss her life as an insulin dependent person living with Type 2 diabetes, healthcare disparities and how she is writing her own story.

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My COVID Free Bubble Has Popped

By Amber Clour on Mar 28, 2023

I tested positive for COVID after living in a bubble for literally four years. I’ve been such a hermit, wore my mask when no one else did, avoided crowds and felt serious social anxiety most of the time, but it finally got me. My COVID free bubble has popped.

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#135: Rachael Dyer & Scott Alexander Ruderman | Pay or Die

By Amber Clour on Mar 1, 2023

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Rachael Dyer and Scott Alexander Ruderman are the directors of Pay or Die, a feature documentary that provides an inside look at how the soaring price of insulin in America is threatening, if not deadly. 

We’ve heard WAY too many stories about people rationing their insulin and this film documents what life is like with this disease and the impact it has on our pocket books. 

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#133: Thapi Semenya | I Need to Take Myself Seriously

By Amber Clour on Feb 9, 2023

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Thapi Semenya is in her final year of law school, is an IDF Young Leader in Diabetes Trainee, a Dedoc voice, a professional advisor for the Luna Project UK and a strong diabetes advocate. We connected on LinkedIn after I read her mindful post about lowering her A1c and what steps it took to get there. 

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ER Visit – You Know Your Body Better Than I Do

By Amber Clour on Jan 5, 2023

I set out to run a few errands and when I returned home I had a weird feeling in my gut that came out of nowhere. I started sweating and had the chills at the same time. I immediately thought COVID, but before I could administer a home test, I began projectile vomiting. 

Rewind a few steps – before I left the house my blood sugar was low so I ate lunch without shooting up (aka bolusing).

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