When Garrett Vogel was 11, his parents thought he had the flu. They gave him Gatorade—lots of it—not realizing he was actually experiencing symptoms of Type 1 diabetes. By the time he reached the hospital, his blood sugar was well over 1,000.

Vogel, an on-air host for Elvis Duran and the Morning Show and a Type 1 diabetes advocate, recalled this moment in a conversation with psychiatrist and researcher Dr. Judith Joseph and Ashley McEvoy, president and CEO of Insulet, which sponsored the event, about how chronic care could better accommodate patients’ daily lives. For Vogel, that starts with recognizing how much emotional work follows a diagnosis. As a kid, he didn’t immediately understand that diabetes wasn’t something that would disappear the next day. His endocrinologist gave him the medical facts, he said, but his parents were left to do much of the emotional “heavy lifting.”

More than three decades later, Vogel said he’s still learning how to live with the condition. Technology has made managing it easier—but so has becoming more comfortable asking questions and talking to other people who understand what it’s like. One of the most important lessons, he said, has been “not being scared to ask questions.” Even strangers living with Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes can find common ground in the daily work of managing diabetes. 

McEvoy, who leads Insulet, the maker of the wearable, tubeless Omnipod insulin pump, said designing better technology requires understanding the details of patients’ days—not simply examining their clinical data. She also stressed that Type 2 diabetes is a chronic, progressive disease, and due to misconceptions, people who have it don’t always receive the same compassion as those with Type 1. “There’s not as much empathy in Type 2,” she said.

Insulet is working on technology for people with Type 2 diabetes that would reduce the number of decisions they have to make. McEvoy described an automated system designed so patients wouldn’t have to administer mealtime insulin doses, manually adjust their dosage, or enter settings. That could make it easier for primary-care doctors—not only endocrinologists—to recommend the technology and oversee patients who use it.

Joseph emphasized that treating a chronic illness means paying attention to what’s happening psychologically, too. Medical environments can feel sterile and frightening, she said, leaving patients feeling as though their doctors don’t truly see them.

“The body is under a lot of stress, especially mental stress,” Joseph said. “It’s hard to heal.” Paying attention to the mind-body connection, she added, can improve patients’ health outcomes.

Online communities can provide another source of support. Joseph described studying people with a rare condition who had felt “unseen” and “invisible” until they found each other on social media. Patients who don’t get the answers they need from one doctor can now turn to people with similar experiences, learn from them, and bring that information back to their health care providers.

Patients aren’t simply receiving care anymore, Joseph said. Increasingly, they’re helping teach health professionals what they need.

She ended by urging people with chronic conditions to reject the idea that illness is somehow proof they—or their child—did something wrong. “Challenge that feeling of shame,” Joseph said.