The Internet, for all its discourse and chaos, has given the diabetes community a place to root and grow, creating a digital garden of stories and experiences for people to connect with and share. The Children with Diabetes community has been online since 1995 and we've watched as this space has evolved into a real family; there's a lot of emotional support and power here.
For folks who took the poll, it seems like there are lot of lurkers online (lurkers being a term of endearment for people in the community who participate passively -- we love our lurkers), and they were the dominant group. After that, our community shares some of their diabetes experiences, but not everything. The key is that we connect when we do share, and making sure there's a balance between challenges and triumphs is key, because diabetes lives somewhere in the middle.
That makes sense, because if you shared every diabetes thought or experience, you'd be online all day! 🙂
For more on where the diabetes community began, you can check out these resources:
