Today is my # diaversary ; an interesting one. Today, at age 33 I have lived precisely 2/3 of my life with type 1 diabetes onboard. I used to think the worst part of life with type 1 diabetes was all the needles and finger pricks and judgment. But now, 22 years later I realize the worst part is actually time. Diabetes has stolen so.much.time. Initially, it was time away from friends and social activities. Time to prepare injections, time to execute finger sticks (a full 45 seconds in those days!), time to recover from low blood sugars. But now, diabetes steals time even beyond the mechanics of the disease itself. Time to troubleshoot malfunctions and sit on hold with diabetes technology companies. Time to compare insurance plans in detail, down to the preferred networks and formularies. Time to attend endocrinology and ophthalmology appointments. Time for the bloodwork and the associated waiting rooms. Time for lots of extra prenatal appointments and non-stress tests. Time for extr
Today is International Women in Engineering Day (#INWED)! This year marks a full decade since earning an Aerospace Engineering degree, launching my journey as a woman engineer. So, what does it feel like as a woman engineer today, in 2020? It probably comes as no surprise that women are still the minority in most engineering fields, mine included. The real statistics? At my first job out of college , women made up 10% of my group and that percentage came from only one woman: me. There were a handful of other women scattered throughout the rest of the organization but it was probably around 10% at best. I relied solely on men to teach me how to interact with military officers, when to speak up in meetings, how to don and doff flight gear and talk on the radio, how to avoid red-out during aerobatics, how to take engineering notes during night flights, how to setup and run data, how to run a pre-flight and post-flight briefing, how to conduct myself at customer sites, how to layer up an