New Website For Teens With Diabetes: Diabetes Teen Talk
By Rachael Lewinson

Diabetes Teen Talk (www.diabetesteentalk.com) is a new website, created by Allison Blass, where teens can come for “friendship, education, and inspiration.”
            Allison, a 20-year-old senior at the University of Oregon, has had type 1 diabetes for 12 years and is on the insulin pump. She is majoring in journalism and minoring in non-profit administration, and she wants to work for JDRF.
            “I would say that my goal in life is to cure diabetes, but honestly, if I joined the medical community I would probably set research back 50 years,” Allison jokes. “I’ll just talk about what other people are doing.”
            Diabetes Teen Talk has inspiring articles and interviews, chats, a message board, links, and more. Teens who visit the site say that it really encourages them to know that there are other “out there” like them, struggling with the same issues they face. They also say they are motivated to take better care of themselves after reading and chatting with other teens on the site.
            Allison is thrilled with the positive feedback and says that she herself also benefits from hosting the website: “My work on the site has helped educate me not only to take care of my physical health better, but it has also helped my emotional health. The times when my whole being is the healthiest are when I’m connected with others.”
            If you want to know more about Allison, you can e-mail her at allison@diabetesteentalk.com