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The goal of Skin Grip is to help everyone in the diabetes community live fearlessly. What does that mean? Will Skin Grip patches cure acrophobia (the fear of heights) or triskaidekaphobia (the fear of the number 13)? Probably not! But Skin Grip is working in other ways to help people with diabetes live stress-free, worry-free lives and we have some tips to help everyone accomplish that.
1) Talk to Someone
In case you haven’t heard, diabetes is a serious health condition. Though most conversations about diabetes begin and end with blood sugar, there’s much more to it. Diabetes can affect our entire body. That’s a frightening thought.
For many, especially people who are newly diagnosed, diabetes can be an overwhelming, distressing condition. The best thing we can do is talk to someone about our feelings. Fear, depression, and burnout all thrive in darkness and isolation. The more we reach out, the less these feelings can harm us.
Sometimes reaching out can mean talking to our endocrinologist about ongoing health struggles and the need for changes in our care plan; sometimes we just need to express ourselves to family, friends, or loved ones. Finding support groups for people with diabetes online or locally can connect us with people who understand our struggles.
Skin Grip’s podcast tries to create this kind of community for all of our clients. Having a space to discuss struggles and challenges and to offer hope, helpful hints, and inspiring stories is one way we use our platform to help the entire diabetic community.
2) Get Educated/Educate Others
Sometimes the things we understand least are the most frightening. The more we learn about them, the less frightening they become. Skin Grip uses podcasts, blog posts, and partnerships with diabetes educators, content creators, and designers to increase awareness for diabetes and its unique challenges.
For individuals who are just receiving a diabetes diagnosis, one of the first steps in any treatment plan is connecting the new diabetic with an educator. The purpose of this education isn’t just to teach people how to give insulin injections on their own, though that’s very important. The purpose is to empower individuals to understand their body, what it needs, and how it can be kept healthy.
Though diabetes is a lifelong condition, with proper maintenance and treatment, there’s no reason people with diabetes can’t participate in any activity. All it takes is a little understanding of how to manage their condition during participation. Reading books, listening to podcasts, and checking in regularly with healthcare providers are all great ways to get informed and stay informed. This is especially true as research changes our understanding of diabetes pathophysiology and effective treatment. As the research changes, new treatment options can become available, such as new forms of insulin, new injectors, and CGMs.
3) Stay on Top of It
Diabetes is a manageable condition, but it requires daily maintenance. We think of it this way: Just like there shouldn’t be any days off from eating, there shouldn’t be any days off from managing insulin/blood glucose. This is where technology can help us. Products like CGMs and insulin pumps can help us stay on top of our blood glucose and keep it in a therapeutic range. Research shows that these devices can improve A1c levels for patients from all walks of life, but they only work if we use them.
Skin Grip supports the use of CGMs by providing users with comfortable adhesive patches for Freestyle Libre, Dexcom G6, and others. We also make hypoallergenic tape for insulin pumps like the Medtronic or Omnipod.
These products come in a wide array of colors and styles so that users can flaunt their style while keeping their devices safe and secure. These patches protect sensors so that users can live without fearing that they’ll fall out, be damaged by the elements, or get lost during any of their favorite activities. This keeps our customers out in the world being diabadasses, instead of at home worrying about getting replacement sensors from their insurance company.
4) Stay Active!
One of the best ways to remember that we can live a fun, badass life is by going out to have fun and be a badass! Whether you like hiking, fishing, cycling, lifting weights, or hitting the pickleball courts, anything is possible when you have the peace of mind that comes from a CGM that’s well-secured. Not only does the activity itself keep your body physically healthy, but playing hard can remind you that you’re still living your life to the fullest.
If you need inspiration for how to go from fearful to fearless, Skin Grip is here to show you the way with our video series on people who inspire us to live life without any limits.
If you are interested in joining the Skin Grip community, you can try our products by ordering a free sample. See the difference in keeping CGM sensors in place. Now, go out and live fearlessly!
