Travis Ratermann

I was diagnosed with Diabetes on Dec. 13, 1998, while in the 8th grade. It was hard transitioning to a new life style as 8th grader, especially right at Christmas and the holiday season. When I was diagnosed my blood sugar level was 1175, and I remained conscious. I spent 3 days in the hospital and was reminded that I could not leave until I could give myself my own shots. I said let’s do this and immediately began administering my own shots. After starting out on Humalog 70/30 I was then transferred to mixing my own insulin. Things were more tricky in high school as I had to work around playing high school athletics, eating on time given long bus rides to other schools, that made it difficult. I was able to traverse those years through the help of certain teacher in the school that kept a very vigilant watch on my and always kept sweets in their classroom in case I needed it. College was less stressful but after 2 years into my undergraduate degree I transitioned from shots to the insulin pump. Since those very first days things have been largely great. I have seen the medical advancements over the years as the CGM technology has become more reliable.