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| photo by RoadsideGuitars |
It’s been a year. Some days I feel like a 5
watt radio station with a broadcast range of half a block. At least a third of
my regular audience is friends and family. So why bother? Why not let the scores
of articulate, passionate celebrity-level advocates in the Diabetes Online Community (DOC) handle
this soapbox? Some of these folks are followed by thousands. They are involved
at every level from grassroots events to international forums. Why would I
think I could ever help at that level?
I don’t. I’m here for two reasons-- besides
the fact that we need as many voices as possible as this epidemic washes over
us, I’m simply compelled. I would so much rather research and write about
sailing, mobile tech, or astrophysics. But no, I was assigned this topic by the
universe and lo and behold, my research led me off the beaten path. I was just
looking for a way to buy time until some pump or transplant that I thought I
could stomach was developed.
But now it looks like my blend
of a few western and eastern medicine components may have fixed my
pancreas. I know that the timeline for LADA diabetics means it won’t be
confirmed for years. Even then, my case will just be anecdotal.
But I can’t just sit on the possibility that the answer I’ve found to the different question I asked is right. We
still need all the vast power and persuasive support of the DOC. Even if the
battery-powered devices and insulin are not required, diabetics still need the compassion
and encouragement that seasoned advocates provide, to be able to re-design
their lives.
In all things social media, audience-reach and
interaction is key. Unfortunately, just knowing this doesn’t make one well
suited for it. Even if I wanted to, I can’t bypass the community of diabetes
patient advocates. They are the curators of the vast and muddied stream of
information about diabetes. They are rock stars because they have consistently,
over years, listened, opined, and connected the hordes of existing and newly
diagnosed. I’m a communicator, but not at that level. I’m too arrogant and
crusty to dole out the quantity of hugs required for the mission.
So I have to resist my anti-social tendencies
and reach out. It’s a lot to ask these advocates to include even the mere
possibility of the success of my approach in their dialog. I’m sure I appear
like some sort of diabetic Ron Paul out there that’s just cluttering up the
airwaves. My admittedly dramatic headlines are annoying enough that at least one well-known diabetes blogger
has blocked my tweets. That’s OK. The occasional controversial shout-out has
more volume than a murmured amen.
Every single person in our community is important and has a voice that should be heard. Thank you so much for sharing yours here, especially in the context of what is an ever-expanding Diabetes Online Community where so many are telling their stories every single day and week. It's an incredible task that we all have in just connecting with others, whether there's any bigger "advocacy" push or not. But the listed step of reaching out and writing something is worth mentioning and recognizing, and so thanks for what you do.
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