ANNE DOWLING

San Francisco, CA
Age: 38
Diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes at age 14

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS

California International Marathon (2005, marathon PR 3:39)
Boston Marathon (2006)
Ironman distance triathlons: Coeur d’Alene (2007, 2008), Wisconsin (2008), Arizona (2009)
Lotoja Classic Road Race (2009)
Kern County Women’s Stage Race (2010, 7th place, category 4)

MEET ANNE FINDLAY

When were you diagnosed with diabetes?

9/21/1988, just after starting high school at age 14.

How did you/your family feel about diabetes when you were first diagnosed?

I wrote in my journal that day: “I am very shocked about all this and still don’t fully realize it, I think. I am over the worst part, finding out. I am told that there will soon be a cure. I am tired.” I adjusted to the injections, BG checks, diet, etc., and was very strict about my diabetes routine in high school. I stopped sleeping in on weekends so I could get the NPH timing right. I was pretty strict with my regimen compared to my more flexible schedule today. Since my dad also has type 1 diabetes, there was not a huge lifestyle adjustment for our family; although my older brother was curious to see someone measure out food so carefully. My family members have always supported me 100%.

How do you feel about diabetes now?

The most wearing aspect of diabetes for me is probably the nearly constant attention I must have due to the never-ending possibility of going too high or low. The really bad low blood sugars are uncomfortable and can be frightening, and reigning in the BG roller coasters can be frustrating. On the other hand, having diabetes for over 20 years has made me very conscientious about my health, including exercise and diet, and my health is probably the better for it in many ways. Also, being affected by diabetes has brought me into a community of wonderful people. I am grateful for the more advanced knowledge, tools and insulin that help us to live healthier with diabetes and give us more flexibility in our lives.

Why is exercise and competition a part of your life?

Exercise makes me feel strong both physically and mentally and reminds me that, despite having t1 diabetes, I am healthy. Also, I really enjoy the rewards that consistent training brings, and the many friendships that I have developed through the years as a result. The focus required to race helps motivate me to stay consistent with my training but to also be more conscientious of my diet, sleep, diabetes, etc. In particular, road cycling racing is an enticing combination of strategy, fitness, skill, and working with others. Competing pulls strength from me I didn’t know was there. The main reason I train and race, though, is because they both fill me with joy.

What drew you to Team Type 1?

My top passions include racing my bike, learning about exercise physiology as it relates to diabetes and being an active participant in the type 1 diabetes athlete community. I am thrilled to have the opportunity to bring these all together. Also I have been impressed by TT1’s approach to not only participate but also to excel in this very demanding sport. Finally, just racing bikes alone demands an intense focus; trying to manage my diabetes on top of that has been a challenge. I hope that through sharing my experience with teammates, my coach, and others in the t1 community that we can all learn how to reach our full potential as athletes.

What is an athletic achievement that you find especially significant? Why?

Qualifying for the Boston Marathon, and subsequently racing it as a registered participant, were especially significant athletic moments for me. I started running in high school, did my first marathon as a college student in Boston, and worked at my goal of qualifying for 10 years in order to reach it. For my first marathon in 1995, my insulin pump had broken 2 days before when I capsized in the Charles River, and I fought low blood sugar for most of the last half (at least). In subsequent years, I learned through trial and error to better manage my diabetes and to find the training that allowed me to develop the speed and endurance necessary to qualify. And when waterproof pumps became available, I switched over as soon as possible!

If there is one piece of advice you could give to someone who was newly diagnosed with diabetes– what would it be?

Reach out to others in the diabetes community. Exercise. Trust in your own experience while still being open to learning and trying something different. Don’t let diabetes shift you away from your dreams; allow this change in your life to sharpen and focus your drive to succeed. Okay, that is more than one piece of advice!

Tell me about your experience in school as a student with diabetes.

A college story... After my dad got an insulin pump in 1993, I convinced my doctor to prescribe one for me too. He was reluctant, saying that a college student wouldn’t want to wear something conspicuous looking like an insulin pump. At that point in time insulin pumps resembled large pagers. This was in the day that the only people with pagers were doctors and CEOs, so I had some strange looks and plenty of questions. It was a huge improvement from the rigid schedule I was on with twice daily insulin injections (Regular and NPH or Lente) and I felt like my life was much more “normal.”

What has been your favorite TT1 event to date? Why?

I remember following along as TT1 won RAAM two years in a row, and meeting a few of the cyclists at the 2007 JDRF Ride to Cure Diabetes in Whitefish, Montana. It really inspired me to see athletes competing in a sport that I loved, and not only making it through successfully, but winning. Watching the team grow from that to seeing the TT1 team car pull through the start of the 2010 Tour of California in San Francisco has been exciting and inspiring. The November 2010 campaign to bring diabetes supplies to people in Rwanda, and to field a team of pro cyclists with type 1 diabetes in the Tour of Rwanda were also monumental.

Are there any areas of your diabetes management that you are currently working to improve?

Diabetes management is a constant work-in-progress, so I’d probably say something different if you asked me this in a few weeks. With the aid of my CGM (continuous glucose monitor), I am trying to work on the transition between evening and sleep. If I can get to bed with a decent blood sugar, my overnight basal rates are pretty good at keeping it in the right zone. Also, it is really a challenge for me to adapt to changes in my training level. I am working on recognizing the increased or decreased need for insulin sooner so I don’t spend as much time with my blood sugar too high or too low.

What is an athletic goal you have for the short term – say over the next year or so?

I’d like to gain fitness as well as confidence and skill in the peleton and earn my upgrade to category 3 (road).

How about an athletic goal that you have for the long term?

One long term goal I have is to really develop my time trialing and to see how far I could take that.

Thank you for taking the time to talk with us Anne.

Happy to do it.