{"id":7550,"date":"2022-09-28T19:53:40","date_gmt":"2022-09-28T19:53:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/greaternyc\/?p=7550"},"modified":"2025-11-06T01:35:26","modified_gmt":"2025-11-06T01:35:26","slug":"october-t1d-champion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/nyc\/2022\/09\/28\/october-t1d-champion\/","title":{"rendered":"October T1D Champion"},"content":{"rendered":"

Meet our October T1D Champion!<\/strong><\/h3>\n

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T1D Champions are invaluable members of the type 1 diabetes (T1D) community who drive research progress, advocate for government action, and provide support to enrich the lives of families impacted by this disease.<\/p>\n

This month, we are honored to highlight Dena Lampert LCSW, CASAC, A-CBT. Dena has been living with T1D for 13 years and since her diagnosis, has committed to supporting those affected by this disease through Breakthrough T1D support groups and her professional work as a therapist. Dena currently owns a group psychotherapy practice in Rockville Centre, New York called Triangle Cognitive Therapy<\/a>.\u00a0 She oversees a group with nine other mental health providers who offer\u00a0individual, group, family and couples therapy to adolescents and adults. Read on to learn more about Dena\u2019s T1D journey.<\/p>\n

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Just prior to my 40th birthday, I woke up one morning and I couldn\u2019t see.\u00a0 I wasn\u2019t blind but my 20\/20 vision had definitely changed on this particular morning.\u00a0 I chalked it up to turning 40 and made an appointment with an eye doctor thinking it was time for glasses.\u00a0 I was told at that appointment that this was not a typical age-related change in eyesight and that I probably have Diabetes.\u00a0 I was pretty shocked as Diabetes does not run in my family and it had only been 5 years since I survived a breast cancer diagnosis and treatment.<\/p>\n

After discussions with multiple doctors, many sleepless nights, anxiety attacks, mood swings and an overall feeling that was just terrible, I was successfully misdiagnosed with type 2 diabetes.\u00a0 For the next 18 months I was prescribed every type 2 medication on the market in various cocktails.\u00a0 Ultimately, none of them were effective for me.\u00a0 My body was wasting away.\u00a0 I felt sick and depressed all the time.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s when I found a doctor who correctly diagnosed me with type 1 and started me with insulin. Now, many of us know that trying to figure out an insulin regimen and managing it is no picnic, however I finally started to feel a little stronger and healthier.<\/p>\n

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Long before I had T1D, I became a clinical social worker.\u00a0 After I was diagnosed, I wondered how the disease affected others emotionally.\u00a0 Did other people struggle with it like I did?\u00a0 What was it like for a child or adolescent to have to deal with all the stress on top of the normal stress of adolescence?\u00a0 So, about 10 years ago, I reached out to the Breakthrough T1D Long Island Chapter, which is now part of the Greater New York City Chapter. I wanted to work with others who had this disease.\u00a0 Ultimately, I worked with the Chapter to find ways that I could run support groups and provide presentations for adolescents and their families\u00a0involved with Breakthrough T1D.<\/p>\n

Additionally, I have had the privilege to work with a number of adolescent and adult clients who have reached out to me for therapy for various reasons, who are also managing T1D.\u00a0 This group of people (and I will include myself) are an incredibly strong and resilient group.\u00a0 We have been forced to live in a constant state of multitasking. Engaging in simple activities always requires extra steps for someone with T1D.\u00a0 For example, when I get in my car to head to work, here are some of the following questions I need answered before I leave:<\/p>\n