Why We Started T1D to 100

My name is Joanne Milo. I’ve lived with T1D since 1965, diagnosed at age 11. It was in the “dark ages” for diabetes management, without all the remarkable technology available to us today, to “control” and “tailor” our insulin needs to our diabetes demands.

About 10 years ago, I was faced with health challenges that required several surgeries.  I started to experience the perils of being hospitalized as a person with diabetes. It was not a good realization. Hospitals took away my control and put me at great risk. I was scared. I worried that I would be helpless and at the mercy of the healthcare system. I worried about what would happen as I got older, became less capable of managing my technology, and lost my support network.

These are fairly normal concerns for anyone who ages, EXCEPT, as a person with Type 1 Diabetes, I have the added burden of managing the disease, including keeping up with technology, coping with insurance and pharmacy orders, determining where I will be able to live, plus all the “what ifs” (What if I lose my vision? What if I fall? What if I can’t take care of myself). SO MANY WHAT-IFS!

A few local T1D friends gathered in my dining room to discuss these concerns, worries, and fears. What could we do, as a group of passionate, caring T1Ds, to identify the needs of those of us aging with T1D? Most of us had been told upon diagnosis that we were not expected to live past age 40.

And yet, here we are, still living, still thriving, and enjoying life, well into our 70s and beyond.

What would we need, going forward, to feel safe, to feel prepared, and to feel relaxed, calm, and empowered? These are just some of the issues that T1Dto100 is here to address.

Do you have other issues and concerns you’d like to share? Or a great story to tell about how you have aged well with T1D? Please contact us at hello@t1dto100.com.

Last updated 09/03/2025.