The Effects of Insulin Pump Usage on Female Self-Esteem and Body Image

So this entire semester, my service learning project was devoted to trying to start a diabetes related non-profit. I finally had an interview with the executive director of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, and all my dreams and hard work kind of combusted. :(

However, for my honors thesis, I created and conducted a survey about the effects of insulin pump usage on female self-esteem and body image. I used my diabetes blog to recruit interview participants. I was WOWED by the results. I was stressing about finding 15 women to participate. I ended up getting over 30 responses for women asking for my survey in less than 24 hours.

This showed me the true potential of the internet to bring people (and in my case specifically diabetic females) together. Additionally, it proved one of the points of this class: The women took the initiative to create media online which advanced their individual level of self-empowerment. Many of the women write their own blogs, or use diabetes blogs as a way of connecting. They found my blog and reached out to me. I spoke to women all over the U.S. and Canada, and they all told me intimate details of their lives.

I finally finished my final draft today, and hopefully I will submit it for publication (not sure where yet). But I could not have done this with out my technological competencies, and the compassion and knowledge of women like myself.