Ryan Dinkgrave's Story

by Ryan Dinkgrave
Royal Oak, Mich.

My name is Ryan Dinkgrave and I am 25 years old.

I was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes when I was 10 years old and in fifth grade.  It is difficult now for me to remember many details of my life before diabetes, which always makes it difficult for me to answer the question, "What do you miss most about not being diabetic?"

What I remember about that time is the way diabetes took my life and turned it upside down. Suddenly I could not do a single thing without considering my diabetes. I could not leave my house without considering every potential problem that could arise from my diabetes. I had to be aware of my diabetes at all times and always ready to treat a low blood sugar or other emergency.

In all, this forced me to be too mature and to grow up too soon when I was very young. I had to be responsible for my own well-being, health and survival. My parents were incredibly supportive and always have been, but ultimately, diabetes is about personal responsibility.

I have been lucky to live in the age that I do – technology has come a long way in my 15 years of living with diabetes. Unfortunately, though, insulin is not a cure. Even the most advanced treatments do not rid one of the constant concerns that result from being a diabetic, nor do they cannot prevent the many complications of diabetes.

In many ways, I have taken this unfortunate development of diabetes and channeled my frustration with it into positive action. I have been able to tell thousands of people about diabetes and why it is so essential that we find a cure. I have even been on national television and before a U.S. Senate subcommittee to talk about life with diabetes.

I feel as though all of those efforts have led up to this point. Today, doctors, scientists, researchers, advocacy groups and other leading experts and organizations have made it clear that embryonic stem cell research may be the greatest hope for a biological cure to diabetes.

The scientific developments, especially over the past 10 years, have made me certain that a cure to diabetes will be found during my lifetime. I never thought that diabetes would take me into the realm of politics and activism. But I spoke up about diabetes because I don’t like it.

Since I was diagnosed, my mother and grandfather have also been diagnosed with diabetes. I don't want my sister to suffer the same fate, and I dread that one day I will have a child and he or she might develop diabetes, too. A cure cannot come soon enough.