My Great Ocean Road Journey

There is no more difficult challenge to be faced with than to watch a loved one suffer from a life-altering illness daily.

My wonderful husband Ray has lived with type 1 diabetes for over 45 years. Ray has lived through the progression of medical support for the disease and can vouch for the enormous impact medical research has made to the quality of life of those suffering from the illness.

When Ray was diagnosed with the illness in the late 70’s, the insulin he needed was distilled from a pig’s pancreas and injections were done with hypodermic needles. Fingerpick testing every couple of hours was the only way to measure blood sugar levels.

The advancements that have come about from the incredible efforts of our medical researchers has meant that we now have insulin pumps, non-invasive glucose monitoring, flash monitoring, and so much more that supports a more normal daily lifestyle for those suffering from diabetes.

In admiration of my husband Ray’s love of life, his drive, his creativity and most of all his adventurous spirit, I am participating in the Great Ocean Road Trek, a 100km trek through rain forests, deserted beaches and cliff faces, where all funds raised will be donated to Diabetes NSW & ACT who provide for almost half a million people living with diabetes in NSW & ACT.

My hope is that this initiative will help raise much needed funds and awareness about the disease and its daily challenges; and how, in spite of the difficulties, you can still live your best life with discipline, education, support and hope – just like my husband Ray has and continues to do.

I welcome with gratitude any contributions you may be able to make to support my goal of raising $3500 for vital programs and diabetes awareness – for people like my husband, Ray, and all those continuing to battle this illness daily and their families. Further medical research is the key to getting closer to a cure for our loved ones.

All donations of $2 and over are tax deductible. A receipt will be issued upon donating. Please visit my page to donate https://dnswactgreatoceanroadtrek22.gofundraise.com.au/page/GraceArdenBasaglia. 

Please feel free to also show your support by sharing this link. Helping build awareness is the first step towards our success.

Ciao and Grazie my friends,

Grace

About diabetes

Diabetes is the epidemic of the 21st century and the biggest challenge confronting Australia’s health system. Type 1 diabetes, in particular, is an autoimmune condition in which the immune system is activated to destroy the cells in the pancreas which produce insulin. To put things into perspective:

- 280 Australians develop diabetes every day. That’s one person every five minutes

- More than 120,000 Australians have developed diabetes in the past year

- More than 1.3 million Australians live with diabetes. For every person diagnosed with diabetes there is usually a family member or carer who also ‘lives with diabetes’ every day in a support role. This means that an estimated 2.6 million Australians are affected by diabetes every day

- Total annual cost impact of diabetes in Australia estimated at $14.6 billion

- The complications associated with diabetes include blindness, amputations, heart disease and kidney disease, amongst many other day to day challenges.