For me, it’s about having a co-star in my life. The message of this campaign hits so close to home, and it’s about my journey in finally being able to not feel so alone and isolated, but to reach out and ask for help. Sanofi approached me about doing this awareness and outreach campaign, and I was absolutely thrilled to do it. So, you reached out and created a bigger support system… Why did you want to go public like that? I’m not embarrassed about my diabetes, and I just do what I have to do. ![]() But now I don’t hide it, I just inject in front of people on stage and don’t go to my trailer. There tends to be a stigma about being diagnosed with diabetes, especially when you’re an adult - like I did this to myself, maybe I ate too many burgers… I thought maybe my producers and people I worked worked with would think that I couldn’t keep up and do my job, and so I was scared to say anything. ![]() And in that first year, I felt very isolated and scared, and I was filming Weeds so I kept it a secret and would only test and inject my insulin when I was alone in my trailer. It was such a shock when I was diagnosed, because I was fit and in the prime of my life. In that last year, I had all the classic symptoms like blurry vision and weight loss, before a routine blood glucose test at the doctor’s showed I was in the 600s. We shared some laughs about a mutual love for dog-walking as our preferred diabetes exercise (me with my Riley Dog, and Elizabeth with her two dogs Buster and LuLu), and it was also great to hear her thoughts about the Diabetes Online Community… plus what Elizabeth could do with her celebrity status to bring more accurate diabetes awareness to a bigger audience! DM) Can you share your personal story of being diagnosed in 2005?ĮP) Yes, it was 2005 when I was diagnosed, but it came on very slowly over about three years. Obviously, being partnered with Sanofi, she is using their products (the Lantus SoloStar insulin pen) and she tells us she’s using a fast-acting insulin pen, too. Of, course, there was a little “scripted, Sanofi promotional” talk we had to get past, but it was great to get to some real-life stuff beyond the campaign. Her acting and advocacy keeps her quite busy, so we only had about 15 minutes to talk. We had a chance to chat with Elizabeth by phone recently, the day the documentary was published online and the viewing-tracking began. We were fortunate to have a chance to interview Elizabeth about her D-story and more. It was great seeing and hearing her “Type Awesome” husband share his own thoughts on how he helps her, particularly with the emotional and psychosocial aspects of life with D. In the film she talks about how her initial feelings made her keep it a secret and not share with anyone outside close friends and family. The 15-minute film debuted on at the American Diabetes Association Expo in Los Angeles, CA, and it features Elizabeth and her “co-star” husband, cinematographer Julio Macat. ![]() This kind of “diabetes coming out” is the theme of that Diabetes Co-Stars documentary, Strength In Numbers, which emphasizes the message that “you can do this, but you can’t do it alone.” She was diagnosed with LADA (latent autoimmune diabetes in adults) at age 44, after what she describes as a slow onset, and Elizabeth says it took more than a year for her stop hiding her illness. She stars as herself telling her diabetes story, and how she found the courage after her diagnosis not to hide her diabetes but make it a “natural” part of her life. And in November 2012, she teamed up with Sanofi to create a new diabetes documentary aimed at the importance of having a support network when living with the Big D. But not all may realize she’s a type 1 herself since 2005, diagnosed as an adult and once she had already made a name for herself worldwide.
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