Peer Support Changes Lives

Teresa’s Story

"Around 16 years ago, I phoned Diabetes Victoria to enquire whether there were any peer support groups for adults with type 1 diabetes. At that stage I’d had type 1 for 33 years, and in all that time I’d only met two other people with the same condition.

I had seen a few groups for people with type 2 diabetes on the Diabetes Victoria website, however there were no type 1 groups at the time. I called Diabetes Victoria, and the staff member suggested I start my own group!

Within a few weeks, a number of people living with type 1 diabetes had found the group, and we were under way. Initially, we only met about four or five times a year, but a few years ago I established a regular schedule. We now meet for lunch on the second Saturday of every month at a café in Melbourne.

The members share their experiences of living with type 1 diabetes, as well as offering each other much-needed information, advice and emotional support, both at our get-togethers and outside of these as well.

The peer support staff at Diabetes Victoria have been extremely helpful over the many years that this group has been running. They send me regular updates on new research and technology for type 1 diabetes that I share with the group members, as well as offers of convenor training and other matters of value.

The benefits to me as a member of the group have been getting to know other people living with type 1 diabetes and feeling less alone with this difficult-to-manage condition. I am especially grateful to those members who explained Continuous Glucose Monitoring to me. My blood glucose control has improved immensely since I started using it.

As a convenor, I have been deeply grateful to see how much our members appreciate the group. They are especially supportive and helpful to members who come along for the first time, particularly if they are newly diagnosed. Many of these new members say they've never met another person living with type 1 diabetes before.

This is no substitute for the in-person peer support groups services that Diabetes Victoria has been providing for so long. It is abundantly clear to me that the Peer Support team at Diabetes Victoria provide an essential and valuable service to the diabetes community in Victoria.

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