http://type2diabetestreatment.net/diabetes-mellitus/diabetes-advocate-gets-inspired-for-women/
Finding inspiring stories with diabetes is, well... always inspiring.
Today, we"re excited to introduce a woman actually producing a video series called INSPIRED, aimed at motivating women to do anything and everything (while embracing a love for vintage clothing)! The project comes from longtime T1D Vanessa Belani in Pennyslvania, who works as a hospice nurse by day, and moonlights as a "professional YouTuber" making these fun videos that not only aim to inspire women and proote beauty, but also occasionally embrace diabetes.
Please start by watching this brief video that Vanessa and her husband made exclusively for the "Mine, explaining what she and her video show"s all about:
And now for our chat with Vanessa...
An Interview with Vanessa Belani
DM) Thanks for connecting, Vanessa! We always like to start with people"s diagnosis stories...
I was diagnosed with T1D on October 20th, 2000. I still remember it like it was yesterday.
I literally only had symptoms for less than one week! I went out for Chinese food with my family on Sunday... and starting that night I was really thirsty, and got up about four times that night to urinate. All week long at school I had to leave each class at least once to use the bathroom and go to the water fountain. For the first day or two, my mom thought maybe I had just eaten something really salty when we went for Chinese, but when it continued through the week she knew something was going on.
My mom is a nurse, and she is one of those moms where every symptom means we have something horrible... Haha. She was like, "these are signs of type 1 diabetes!" And I just laughed it off saying, "stop it mom, I"m fine!" By that Friday she had me in a doctor"s office to have my urine checked and a blood sugar test. Sure enough, I was diagnosed with diabetes.
Anyone else in your family with D?
Nope, I"m the lucky one!
What do you do professionally?
By day, I am a hospice admission nurse. It"s very rewarding work, but I definitely have my days where it"s tough. I am also an actress! Because of needing medical insurance, I unfortunately will never be able to pursue it full time -- but I have luckily had my share of commercial jobs and little parts here and there, so I still feel like I get to live my dream part time!
Sounds like you were always interested in entertaining and being on camera...
I"ve been in front of the camera since I was a kid. I used to BEG my grandfather to let me use his camera as a child, and I would force my siblings to be in all my videos with me and I would act and direct the most ridiculous videos... Haha... Super fun to watch now as an adult! As I got older, I started acting in commercials, TV shows, and movies- background at first, then I started getting actual parts in things.
OK, so what"s your INSPIRED series all about?
Inspired is something I started doing because I just really wanted to inspire women especially -- to step outside their comfort zone and not care what anyone thinks of them. This goes for their weight and how they want to dress, inspiring all women to believe that we are beautiful, no matter what society tries to make us believe. I also try to inspire men and women to try new things. Like skydiving -- one of my favorite activities which I do solo at least a few times per month, and sometimes a few times per week! :)
The series is not 100% diabetes, but there are a number of D-related videos, right...?
Yes, I have several Inspired diabetes episodes -- inspiring other diabetics to live a happy, healthy, and fulfilled life despite having diabetes. I have some review videos on the t:slim and Dexcom, and most recently for my 15th diaversary, I also made a diabetes music video that"s ridiculous and funny, and just... crazy. All PWDs should definitely check that one out!
Have you done any video interviews with other D-peeps?
Unfortunately none of these yet, beyond some video work I have done for my local JDRF chapter where I interviewed a few diabetics at our gala this year. It was a Gatsby theme and everyone looked so awesome! Lots of fun!
Can you tell us about the cool INSPIRED fashion show fundraiser event you held in April?
Going along with my inspired theme that we are all beautiful, I decided to have a fashion show in April as a fundraiser for my JDRF walk team. I opened it to anyone who wanted to have the opportunity to walk in a fashion show... No matter their size, height, weight, etc. This was different than a regular fashion show, because there was no designer. It was all about the models themselves -- they were the stars of the show! I had over 45 models. It was a sold out show with approximately 165 guests. All the models, hairstylists, makeup artists and a DJ donated their time for the cause which was amazing. After all my costs for the venue, I ended up being able to raise $2,211 for JDRF.
Right after it ended everyone was messaging me saying, "are we doing this next year? I"m in if so!" So yes, it looks like it will be a yearly thing to raise funds. Next year, I"ll probably get a bigger location, and raise additional funds with a silent auction and raffles.
Any other diabetes advocacy you"re involved with?
I also do a video blog for my local chapter of the JDRF. It"s all about topics we type 1s deal with and I try to do it in a funny way -- which is my personality. No need to be depressed or upset with life. I enjoy everything, and do all the things I put my mind to. That"s what it"s all about in life -- being inspired to do anything and everything you want!
Thanks for sharing your story and that special video, Vanessa! We look forward to seeing what else you produce for INSPIRED and for our Diabetes Community.
Disclaimer
This content is created for Diabetes Mine, a consumer health blog focused on the diabetes community. The content is not medically reviewed and doesn"t adhere to Healthline"s editorial guidelines. For more information about Healthline"s partnership with Diabetes Mine, please click here.
Type 2 Diabetes TreatmentType 2 Diabetes Diet
Diabetes Destroyer Reviews
Original Article
#DiabetesMellitus
No comments:
Post a Comment