How to identify your personal diabetes distress triggers with a simple tracking method. Neil explores the research, shares practical insights, and provides tools for managing the mental load of T1D.What You'll Learn• Trigger identification - Simple method to spot your diabetes distress patterns• Tracking technique - What happened, what triggered it, how you felt• Pattern recognition - How to map recurring stress points• Actionable data - Using trigger info to address root causesSimple Tracking MethodWhat was happening? | What set it off? | How did you feel? | Circle your top 2-3 triggers weeklyTake ActionReady to assess your own diabetes distress? Both the T1-DDS-7 (quick) and 28-question (detailed) assessments are available at Neil's website.ResourcesHelpful resources and newsletter: yourbestt1dyear.comSponsorBlue Circle Health offers free coaching and care that fits real life. Sign up free: bluecirclehealth.orgConnectInstagram: @thebetes | TikTok: @the.betes | Website: yourbestt1dyear.comBooks on Amazon: Type 1 Diabetes - One Day at a Time or Type 1 Diabetes - True Stories
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6:28
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6:28
What the 28 Diabetes Distress Questions Show Us
The detailed 28-question diabetes distress scale reveals exactly where stress hits hardest. Neil explores the research, shares practical insights, and provides tools for managing the mental load of T1D.What You'll Learn• Distress categories - Powerlessness, management, hypoglycemia, healthcare, family, eating, social• Detailed assessment - How the 28-question version provides specific insights• Personalized results - Why seeing exact struggle areas matters• Solution guidance - How detailed scores guide targeted interventionsThe 7 Distress CategoriesPowerlessness | Management burnout | Hypoglycemia fear | Healthcare team frustration | Family/friend stress | Eating difficulties | Social challengesTake ActionReady to assess your own diabetes distress? Both the T1-DDS-7 (quick) and 28-question (detailed) assessments are available at Neil's website.ResourcesHelpful resources and newsletter: yourbestt1dyear.comSponsorBlue Circle Health offers free coaching and care that fits real life. Sign up free: bluecirclehealth.orgConnectInstagram: @thebetes | TikTok: @the.betes | Website: yourbestt1dyear.comBooks on Amazon: Type 1 Diabetes - One Day at a Time or Type 1 Diabetes - True Stories
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6:11
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6:11
Marriage & Diabetes Distress // Special Guest Gina Greathouse
The Other Side of Type 1 Diabetes: My Wife Gina on What It’s Really LikeThirty years, three DKAs, countless alarms - and one marriage that somehow survived it all.In this episode, Neil sits down with his wife Gina Greathouse for the conversation everyone’s been waiting for. Together, they talk about what diabetes distress really does - not just to the person living with type 1 diabetes, but to the person who loves them, supports them, and sometimes carries the weight right alongside them.This is the real, unfiltered, funny, heartfelt look at love, marriage, and the mental load of life with T1D.What You’ll Learn• Partner perspective – What it’s really like to love someone with type 1 diabetes• Emotional honesty – The tension between helping and not nagging• Marriage under pressure – How distress, burnout, and fear show up in daily life• How they healed – What changed when Neil began working on diabetes instead of reacting to itBig Takeaways1. Diabetes affects both of you.The distress isn’t one-sided. When T1D moves into a marriage, both people feel it - one physically, one emotionally.2. Communication changes everything.Gina shares how they learned to talk with each other instead of around diabetes, especially when burnout hit.3. Small wins build real trust.As Neil began simplifying his diabetes management, the emotional load for both of them got lighter. Simple daily habits turned fear into confidence.Take ActionReady to assess your own diabetes distress or explore tools that strengthen your support system?Take the T1-DDS-7 (quick) or 30-question version at yourbestt1dyear.com.ResourcesHelpful resources, free guides, and newsletter: yourbestt1dyear.comSponsorBlue Circle Health offers free coaching and coordinated care that fits real life - from mental health support to prescription help.Now available in 16 states across the U.S.Sign up free: bluecirclehealth.orgConnectInstagram: @thebetesTikTok: @the.betesWebsite: yourbestt1dyear.comBooks on Amazon:Type 1 Diabetes: One Day at a TimeType 1 Diabetes: True Stories
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55:57
Diabetes Distress: How to Use Your Score Without Shame
Your diabetes distress score is a tool, not a judgment. Here's how to use it constructively. Neil explores the research, shares practical insights, and provides tools for managing the mental load of T1D.What You'll Learn• Score interpretation - What low, moderate, and high distress scores actually mean• Tools vs judgments - How to use your score as information, not self-criticism• Self-comparison - Why comparing only to yourself matters• Actionable insights - How to identify which questions hit you hardestKey TakeawaysYour score isn't a grade. Distress scores are flashlights to show where pressure points are, not hammers to beat yourself up with.Compare to yourself only. Your distress journey is unique - focus on your own patterns and progress.Take ActionReady to assess your own diabetes distress? Both the T1-DDS-7 (quick) and 28-question (detailed) assessments are available at Neil's website.ResourcesHelpful resources and newsletter: yourbestt1dyear.comSponsorBlue Circle Health offers free coaching and care that fits real life. Sign up free: bluecirclehealth.orgConnectInstagram: @thebetes | TikTok: @the.betes | Website: yourbestt1dyear.comBooks on Amazon: Type 1 Diabetes - One Day at a Time or Type 1 Diabetes - True Stories
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6:06
The 7 Questions That Measure Diabetes Distress
When it comes to diabetes distress, not all surveys are created equal. In this episode, we break down the two main ways researchers measure distress in type 1 diabetes: the T1-DDS7 (7 questions) and the T1-DDS (28 questions). Both tools were created to capture the emotional side of living with diabetes, but they go about it differently.We’ll talk about what each version asks, why shorter isn’t always simpler, and how both can start important conversations about burnout, anxiety, and the weight of T1D management. If you’ve ever wondered how distress is measured — or what your score really means — this episode is for you.What you’ll learn in this episode:The difference between the 7-question and 28-question diabetes distress scales.How each version measures emotional burden, regimen burnout, relationship strain, and healthcare frustrations.Why surveys aren’t a diagnosis, but they are powerful conversation starters.What caregivers and parents can learn from these tools, too.ResourcesHelpful freebies and newsletter: yourbestt1dyear.comSponsorBlue Circle Health offers free coaching and care that fits real life. Sign up free: bluecirclehealth.orgConnectInstagram: @thebetes | TikTok: @the.betes | Website: yourbestt1dyear.comBooks on Amazon: Type 1 Diabetes - One Day at a Time or Type 1 Diabetes - True Stories
Managing Type 1 Diabetes doesn’t have to be overwhelming.
Each 5-minute episode of Your Best T1D Year is packed with practical strategies, mindset shifts, and a little humor to help you feel more in control and less frustrated by diabetes.
Hosted by Neil Greathouse, this Monday, Wednesday, and Friday podcast delivers quick, relatable episodes that make learning about T1D effortless - so you can build small wins that lead to big changes.
📅 New episodes drop every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
🎧 Subscribe now and start making diabetes management feel easier - one small habit at a time.
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