denverpost
Leah Healey was logging miles on the Poudre Trail when her insulin pump suddenly detached, abruptly ending that day's run and forcing her to call her husband for a ride. Such disruptions are a recurring frustration for Healey, a Type 1 diabetic who has been training for Sunday's New York City Marathon for 10 months. 'There have been many times where it can be very frustrating and discouraging because you're trying so hard, you're trying to plan for every possible scenario to manage diabetes during a long run,' Healey said. 'And then diabetes just likes to laugh in your face and go, Nope, I'm going to do something completely different today.'
Despite these challenges, Healey will approach the starting line of the world's largest marathon with pride on Sunday. Diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at age 7, she has made it her mission to demonstrate that the condition does not limit an active lifestyle. Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks and destroys insulin-producing cells in the pancreas. According to the Centers for Disease Control's most recent National Diabetes Statistics Report, an estimated 2.1 million Americans have been diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes.
Healey played club volleyball and tennis in high school while managing the disease, including two years as the No. 1 singles player for the Fort Collins Lambkins. Now 29, she admits she once thought people who ran for fun were a little crazy. She is set to compete on the 80-person Beyond Type Run marathon team, a program of Beyond Type 1, a non-profit dedicated to improving the lives of those impacted by diabetes, where Healey works.
The Windsor resident prepared for Sunday's challenge with the Bolder Boulder 10K in May and the Georgetown to Idaho Springs Half-Marathon in August. She was first inspired to train for the New York Marathon after attending last year's race to support the Beyond Type Run team, which includes people with Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes, as well as diabetes caregivers and supporters. 'Watching that race last year lit a fire in my tummy that I could not ignore,' Healey said. 'This just seemed like an extra challenge that I could take on and then ultimately do for an amazing cause: Bringing awareness to diabetes on a world stage.'
Healey's core message is one of empowerment: 'The biggest message I want to get across to people is that you can do hard things even with having diabetes, and you can accomplish anything, because diabetes is not going to hold you back from achieving great things in life or athletics.'
Still Fighting Stigmas
Stories of diabetic professional athletes have helped bring that belief into mainstream consciousness. Brewers center fielder Garrett Mitchell's journey with Type 1 diabetes was the subject of much attention this MLB season, especially throughout Milwaukee's playoff run to winning the World Series. Locally, former Legend High School football star Chad Muma—who played in the Super Bowl last year for the Patriots and is currently on the Texans practice squad—also has Type 1 diabetes. Other notable current pro athletes with Type 1 diabetes include Padres all-star closer Mason Miller, world No. 1 tennis player Alexander Zverev and Ravens All-Pro tight end Mark Andrews.
But even with those examples and many others, diabetics continue to fight public stigmas about the disease, according to Cecilia Jamieson. The Berthoud resident, who has been a certified diabetes and education specialist for several decades, was part of Healey's care team when she was first diagnosed. Jamieson is also running on Sunday as part of the Beyond Type Run team. 'There's still all kinds of misconceptions about why someone has Type 1 diabetes, like people think maybe someone ate the wrong thing or they didn't exercise enough, which is not the case,' Jamieson said. 'Public perception about the disease has evolved a lot, but there's still some stigma, even when you have professional and Olympic athletes excelling with Type 1 diabetes.'
Healey's Goal for Sunday
Jamieson recalls her experiences with Healey when the latter was in elementary school and attended a diabetes camp where Jamieson worked with other young kids. The young Healey would also sell jewelry, and use the proceeds to buy insulin pumps for kids whose families couldn't afford one. Fast forward over two decades, and Jamieson holds Healey up as proof that you don't have to be a professional athlete to embrace an active lifestyle as a diabetic. 'She's a shining example of how people with Type 1 diabetes can do pretty much anything,' Jamieson said.
Healey's goal for Sunday is to finish the race in under six hours, which will require a pace of about 13:40 per mile. Beyond making sure she maintains stable blood sugar levels, Healey's journey to the starting line is also defined by overcoming torn ligaments in her left knee a few years ago, as well as a broken foot. Add in the extra hundreds of decisions that research has shown diabetics make each day about their body, and the road to Sunday's finish line in Central Park was rife with reasons why Healey shouldn't do the marathon.
Instead, Healey focused on why she should, and could, participate in one of the world's most famous races. 'I've really focused on cross-training, listening to my body and recovery, which has truly helped me stay injury-free this entire time,' Healey said. 'Yes, finishing Sunday is ultimately about maintaining stable blood-sugar levels, because the cause-and-effect of going low or going high has so many associated consequences. It could cause me to physically have to stop my run and not continue. Someone who has a functioning pancreas and liver, their body is automatically adjusting to keep their blood-glucose levels stable. So we are truly acting as an organ ourselves with our daily decisions and medical equipment.'
Originally reported by denverpost.