Diabetes Doesn’t Stop Us- Tanner Barton

September 2, 2003. Before September 2nd, I was an enthusiastic 8 year-old who was excited to be entering the third grade. I was my community’s up-and-coming swimming star, I enjoyed spending time with my family at summer cook-outs, and I always looked forward to ice cream trips with my sister. I was Tanner Barton.
After September 2nd, my life was instantly turned upside down. After extreme fatigue, unrelenting thirst, frequent urination and multiple nights of wetting the bed, I was taken to our family doctor. I would be feeling like my “old” self in no time, right? Wrong.
On September 2, 2003, I was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes (T1D). I was immediately rushed to Nationwide Children’s Hospital. I then spent the next five nights and six days undergoing rigorous treatments to stabilize my blood sugar while participating in various educational sessions that were necessary for my survival.
My family and I were shocked! How could I be diagnosed with T1D? We didn’t have any family history of the disease, and I didn’t bring diabetes upon myself. This autoimmune disease chose me. At 8 years old, I didn’t even know how to describe T1D! After working with experienced professionals at Children’s Hospital, I had acquired the life-saving knowledge I needed and I was released from the hospital; however, my life would never be the same.
Because my pancreas does not produce insulin, the hormone that regulates the amount of glucose in the blood stream, I am forced to obtain insulin from outside sources. Without insulin shots or an insulin pump, my body wouldn’t be converting this glucose into energy, so I would soon die from a hyperglycemic (high blood sugar) coma. After my initial diagnosis, I was taking at least five insulin shots a day. A year and a half after my diagnosis, I opted for the insulin pump; although, the insulin pump is far from a cure. Using the pump still requires constant carbohydrate counting, constant blood sugar finger pricks, constant insulin deliveries, and most taxing, constant worry. I change my pump site, a catheter inserted under my skin that acts as the mode of transmission for outside insulin, every three days. The injections, the pain and the burden of this disease are exhausting and it would be easy to crown diabetes as the champion; however, I refuse to accept defeat.
Fast-forward 11 years. I am still an enthusiastic 19 year old and I swim for the NCAA Division I Ball State University. I qualified for the Mid-American Conference (MAC) Championships last March, and as a freshman I placed 12th in the 200 Butterfly. I am majoring in Health Science with aspirations of becoming a Community Health Education Specialist (CHES) and Certified Diabetes Educator (CDE). My hard work has led to academic achievement, and as a student in Ball State’s highly acclaimed Honors College, I have been named to the Dean’s List with a 4.00 GPA. I love spending time with my family, and my friends are always an integral part of my life. Now, I can proudly say I am a Type 1 Diabetic, living with the disease for 11 years. While diabetes is a part of me, I refuse to let it define me.
Thanks to Breakthrough T1D, I have grown to embrace the challenge of being a T1D in today’s 21st century. Shortly after my diagnosis when I was nine years old, I became a Breakthrough T1D Youth Ambassador, urging numerous corporations like Discover Financial Services and the Kroger Company, to become partners in the Mid-Ohio Walk to Cure Diabetes. My regional advocacy efforts led to national involvement. When I was 14 years old, I was elected to Breakthrough T1D’s Children’s Congress. As a Children’s Congress delegate, I took Capitol Hill by storm, speaking with legislators about my life with T1D and funding efforts for the imperative Special Diabetes Program. Most recently, I was chosen as the youngest representative to sit on the inaugural Type 1 Diabetes Voices Council. This international council, comprised of 20 individuals representing three different countries, works closely with Breakthrough T1D’s C.E.O. and Board of Directors. We share our personal perspective on the latest scientific research, innovative advocacy efforts and promising organization objectives.
I can say with conviction that I’m doing everything in my power to cure, to treat and to prevent Type 1 Diabetes. This intrusive disease is a 24/7 burden. I would love to eliminate Type 1 Diabetes, thus stopping the onset of diabetic complications. I long to be free from this disease; moreover, we must find a cure so other children and young adults won’t be diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. With your help, we can turn Type One into Type None. Let’s create a world where no eight year-old will have to know Type One Diabetes exists!