Two Women Who Will Make You Absolutely Laugh With Their Take on Diabetes

You would think there was a good size writing team that would compare to any top sitcom hit on television  You might even think their aspirations were to enter the movie industry or take on the stand-up comedy circuit.  You might even think there is a huge amount of people dancing around comedy central and dancing with ideas to make us all laugh. But one of the most successful sites out there, providing a good laugh (or at the very least a huge smile) is run, in actuality, by two women in college studying english and environment science.

Seriously?

Seriously.

While finishing undergraduate studies and also post-graduate masters program, the two administrators of this hugely successful site are hard at work bringing joy to our day.  Meredith and Kayla met while attending an event with Connected In Motion, which plans fun events for active Type 1 Diabetic adults in Canada.  After crossing paths a few times, they became friends.  Inspired by their own university’s FB page that posted ‘memes’ which is defined as an element of a culture or behavior that may be passed from one individual to another by nongenetic means, esp. imitation.  An image, video, etc. that is passed electronically from one Internet user to another (you knew that though, yes?); the idea was born to create Type 1 Diabetes Memes.

Kayla had the idea and Meredith was quickly welcomed aboard and this site grew exponentially; in fact one could say it exploded.  Not even two years old with 17,000 people liking it is beyond comprehensible, it is downright enviable.

And if you’re someone who has not (where have you been!) yet ‘liked’ this page and you wonder if there is much humor in this world of diabetes we live in; or even if you just need a chuckle and do not have diabetes, you will love this page.  And you should go there TODAY!

The outlook on life by these two women with T1 diabetes is simply stated but at the same time so difficult for so many to master.  They have mastered it, and aren’t we the fortunate ones?  Meredith states, “Kayla and I have the same mindset about our diagnosis with Type 1 Diabetes. Everyone has their bad days, but for the most part we are really positive about it. We like to really appreciate the good things that have come out of it, rather than dwell on the bad. We both also really like to joke about it, because let’s face it, diabetics do some pretty funny/crazy things. It is really satisfying to share our experiences with others and for them to completely relate.”

So on a weekly basis a cartoon or photograph is sent in, or created, and the site challenges members (us) to come up with the caption that best fits the picture at hand.  The best caption is picked by the members of the Facebook page and sometimes a prize is given; but it surely is enough to proudly see your submitted caption added to the photo. I’m sure many just enjoy the wonderful results.

With anything as good as this, expansion continues to increase their visibility now with a Memes Twitter account and also a Tumblr Memes as well.  And as if that was not enough joy, there is an online store where you can see many of these saying on your favorite shirts or tote bags (I, personally cannot wait to see coffee mugs), or whatever you like at their Type 1 Diabetes Memes Store.

I have often stated that it is crucial for so many of us who have diabetes in our world to just “Not do Nothing”.  I have also stated that it does not have to turn into the largest organization in the world; it just has to mean something and if it changes just one person for the better; if it adds one dollar to help someone; if it is one thing you learn that helps you or your loved one to manage diabetes that much-the-better; if you raise one cent to further research; if you undertake one education project; or even if you bring joy to someone who is having a tough day…….SUCCESS.

We should all be very thankful to the enormous amount of work that they bring to Type 1 Diabetes Memes.  Meredith and Kayla reach 17,000 people a day bringing a smile, a chuckle, and all out laughter—-and when it comes right down to it, even in the world of diabetes, laughter is the ballet of life.

I am a diabetes dad.

Please visit my Diabetes Dad FB Page and hit ‘like’.