100 Miles for Type 1

In 2011, Christian Medina was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. This took many people, especially his family, by surprise since he was young and healthy. However, upon learning more about how diabetes affected even healthy people, Christian and his family began to realize they were not alone.

When they first found out about his diagnosis, Christian’s doctor said he needed to see a specialist immediately since his blood sugars were very high. From then on, Christian would have to check his sugar levels between 4-6 times a day and take a manual insulin shot 4-5 times a day. However, the doctor assured Christian he wasn’t alone.

One day, Christian’s mother received a call from Margie, another mother of a child with Type 1 diabetes. Margie again assured Christian and his mother they were not alone in this process and asked to visit them in a support group. Attending the support group meetings encouraged Christian and his mother and reminded them they were not the only ones going through this, even though it may have felt that way at times.

After receiving help from the support group, Christian’s mother decided it was her time to give back. She called Margie and said she wanted to run 100 miles to raise awareness for Type 1 diabetes.

The first year she did the 100-mile run was in November 2011 during Diabetes Awareness Month. People came out to show their support, and Christian’s mother ran up and down Broadway several times until she reached 100 miles.

While she ran, many people asked her if she wanted to stop or if it was hard. Though it was a difficult undertaking, she could only think of other children like Christian who had to live with Type 1 diabetes every day. If they could persevere, so could she.

Christian admires his mother for her awareness initiative and can also see himself participating in the run in the future when his mother is no longer able to do it to continue raising awareness. Through the 100-mile run, Christian and his mother hope to let others know that even though there will be good and bad times, they do not have to walk through their journey with diabetes alone.