Podcast
Reclaim Your Rise: Type 1 Diabetes with Lauren Bongiorno
Hosted by Lauren Bongiorno · EN
Lauren Bongiorno is a Nationally Board Certified Health Coach and the founder and CEO of Risely Health. Featured on the TODAY show and other media outlets, Risely helps people and families impacted by Type 1 Diabetes take ownership over their health so they can transform their life with more freedom and confidence. Lauren has lived with type 1 diabetes since she was 7 years old and has experienced firsthand that when health transforms, so does everything else - our relationships, our time, our career, our families, and, most importantly, ourselves. Each week she will bring you lessons from her own personal diabetes experience, strategies that are key to understanding your body’s patterns, and guests who will speak to everything from advances in technology to all things hormones, exercise, relationships, and mindset. All of this so that over time, you TOO can reclaim your rise.
37episodes
Episodes
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232: From an A1C of 12 to 50-Mile Ultramarathons: Chris Roome on Sobriety, T1D, and Project InsulNation
1w ago00:51:25Tap to summarizeChris Roome was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at 12 after waking up in the ICU, but for years, managing his T1D wasn’t his priority. Through his teens and early adulthood, he struggled with teenage rebellion, addiction, an A1C of 12, and eventually reached a turning point that changed the course of his life.. Within a year of getting sober, his A1C dropped to under 6.Today, Chris has completed multiple marathons, 50+ mile ultramarathons, and founded Project InsulNation, an organization leading backcountry expeditions exclusively for adults living with Type 1 diabetes.In this episode, Chris sits down with Lauren to share how recovery transformed the way he approached T1D, the exact insulin and fueling strategies he uses during ultra-endurance races, the moment his pump site ripped out halfway through a 50-mile trail run, and why he's on a mission to help more adults with Type 1 diabetes discover they're capable of far more than they've been led to believeWHAT WE COVER:What it was like waking up in an ICU at 12, going months without checking his blood sugar, and what finally forced everything to changeThe direct connection between getting sober and getting his A1C from a 12 to under 6 in one yearThe exact fueling and insulin strategy he uses to run 50-plus miles without his blood sugar crashingWhat happened when his insulin pump ripped out in the middle of a race, and how he still crossed the finish lineWhy endurance sports gave him a completely different perspective on living with Type 1 diabetesThe inspiration behind Project InsulNation and why he's creating outdoor expeditions specifically for adults with T1DWhat it looks like to join a Project InsulNation expedition, and who it's forWHAT’S NEXT:🏔️ Interested in joining Chris and Project InsulNation on their August Grand Teton expedition? Learn more and apply at projectinsulnation.com or follow them on Instagram at @project_insulnation.📱 The Risely App is here! Get support for the 180+ decisions you make every day, so you can build confidence with T1D without your life revolving around it. 🧠 Discover Your T1D Archetype! Take the free quiz to understand the pattern behind how you think, respond, and make decisions with T1D. 💻Apply for coaching and talk to our team so you can reclaim the life you deserve with T1D.📧Join thousands of T1Ds reading our newsletter every Tuesday: T1D tips and encouragement, straight to your inbox.Stay connected with us: Email us at: hello@riseyhealth.com IG: @lauren_bongiorno | @riselyhealthTikTok: @lauren_bongiorno | @riselyhealthYT: Reclaim Your Rise SUBSCRIBE & REVIEWIf hearing how Chris went from an A1C of 12 and active addiction to running 50-mile races made you rethink what's possible with T1D, subscribe and leave a review so more people living with this disease can find it.
Transcribe →231. The T1D Endo Crisis: ADA 2026 Insights with Audrey DeGuerrera
2w ago00:49:21Tap to summarizeAudrey DeGuerrera was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in 2022 while working as a management consultant at McKinsey, averaging 80-hour weeks and traveling four days a week. The physical demands were a lot, but it was the mental load of suddenly living with a chronic condition that hit hardest. When she turned to her endocrinologist for support, they offered antidepressants. That's when she started questioning whether the healthcare system was built to actually support people with T1D, or just manage them.Now pursuing her MBA at Stanford's Graduate School of Business and a former Risely coaching client, Audrey attended this year's American Diabetes Association Scientific Sessions and left with a lot of insights and questions she brought to the conversation. In this episode, she and Lauren dig into why 70% of US counties have no endocrinologist, why only 1 in 4 people with diabetes are meeting their care targets, and why insurance companies aren't incentivized to fix any of it. Audrey also shares what's giving her genuine hope, and why she believes team-based care could be the most important shift the diabetes world makes in the next decade.WHAT WE COVER:Being diagnosed with T1D in the middle of 80-hour weeks at McKinsey, and what happened to her insulin needs when she finally leftThe statistics from ADA 2026 that stopped Audrey in her tracksWhy the endocrinologist shortage isn't just a rural problem, and who it's actually affectingThe reason insurance companies aren't built to care about your long-term T1D outcomesThe single change Audrey believes could shift the entire diabetes care ecosystemWhere AI fits- and where it doesn't-in the future of T1D careWHAT’S NEXT:📱 The Risely App is here! Get support for the 180+ decisions you make every day, so you can build confidence with T1D without your life revolving around it. 🧠 Discover Your T1D Archetype! Take the free quiz to understand the pattern behind how you think, respond, and make decisions with T1D. 💻Apply for coaching and talk to our team so you can reclaim the life you deserve with T1D.📧Join thousands of T1Ds reading our newsletter every Tuesday: T1D tips and encouragement, straight to your inbox.Stay connected with us: Email us at: hello@riseyhealth.com IG: @lauren_bongiorno | @riselyhealthTikTok: @lauren_bongiorno | @riselyhealthYT: Reclaim Your Rise SUBSCRIBE & REVIEWIf this conversation made you feel less alone in your frustration with a medical system that wasn't built for you, subscribe and leave a review so more people with T1D can find it.
Transcribe →230. "Yeah, I Ate 6 Crumbl Cookies!" Type 1 Alex on Living With T1D in Your Early 20's
3w ago00:44:43Tap to summarizeAlex Tolwinski… known online as @TypeOneAlexx… built a pretty recognizable T1D presence on social media by doing what everyone told him he couldn’t do: feasting on Crumble cookies, Chinese buffets, and dirty sodas, and posting every blood sugar along the way. But behind the funny viral videos is a guy who spent years feeling completely alone with his diagnosis, and who eventually found his way back through community.In this episode, Alex joins Lauren to talk about what it actually looks like to live boldly with T1D, why he'll never delete a negative comment, and the moment in college that made him realize he didn't have to figure this out by himself.In this episode you'll hear:Why Alex intentionally ate 6 Crumbl Cookies in one sitting, and what happened to his blood sugar afterwardThe terrifying 24 mg/dL and 28 mg/dL lows that led to paramedics, police officers, and complete memory lossWhat Alex says is the hardest part of Type 1 diabetes (and it’s not high blood sugar)How Alex handles the comments that claim he doesn't take care of himselfWhy he answers "what does reclaiming life with T1D mean to you?" with just one wordWHAT’S NEXT:📱 The Risely App is here! Get support for the 180+ decisions you make every day, so you can build confidence with T1D without your life revolving around it. 🧠 Discover Your T1D Archetype! Take the free quiz to understand the pattern behind how you think, respond, and make decisions with T1D. 💻Apply for coaching and talk to our team so you can reclaim the life you deserve with T1D.📧Join thousands of T1Ds reading our newsletter every Tuesday: T1D tips and encouragement, straight to your inbox.Stay connected with us: Email us at: hello@riseyhealth.com IG: @lauren_bongiorno | @riselyhealthTikTok: @lauren_bongiorno | @riselyhealthYT: Reclaim Your Rise SUBSCRIBE & REVIEWIf Alex's story felt like the permission slip you didn't know you needed, subscribe and leave a review so more people find this show.
Transcribe →229. "Who Knew I'd Be Crying Over Pancakes": A Story of DKA, a Brain Hemorrhage, and Finding Your Way Back with T1D (ft. Argelis)
Jun 1600:42:31Tap to summarizeArgelis Milian Robles was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in 2025 — alone, without a car, on the brink of losing her job, and managing celiac on top of it all. And that was just the beginning. What came next tested everything she had. Her faith. Her will to stay. Her relationship with her own body.In this episode, Argelis opens up about the moments that brought her to her lowest point and what it actually took to start building a life she wanted to live… one that includes pancakes, boba, and yellow curry. It's a story about learning to trust yourself when everything falls apart at once.WHAT WE COVER:The Sunday morning church visit that ended in the ICU with a blood sugar of 407What a pituitary brain hemorrhage six months into T1D changed about her insulin resistance, her mental health, and what she wanted for her lifeHow celiac prepped Argelis to drop her A1C from 13.9 to 5.4 in eight months, and why she doesn't recommend itWhy pancakes, boba, and yellow curry became the goals that mattered most in coachingThe two pages Argelis wrote after the brain hemorrhage that changed the direction of her lifeWHAT’S NEXT:📱 The Risely App is here! Get support for the 180+ decisions you make every day, so you can build confidence with T1D without your life revolving around it. 🧠 Discover Your T1D Archetype! Take the free quiz to understand the pattern behind how you think, respond, and make decisions with T1D. 💻Apply for coaching and talk to our team so you can reclaim the life you deserve with T1D.📧Join thousands of T1Ds reading our newsletter every Tuesday: T1D tips and encouragement, straight to your inbox.Stay connected with us: Email us at: hello@riseyhealth.com IG: @lauren_bongiorno | @riselyhealthTikTok: @lauren_bongiorno | @riselyhealthYT: Reclaim Your Rise SUBSCRIBE & REVIEWIf you've ever felt like you were figuring out T1D completely on your own, subscribe and leave a review so more people find their way here.
Transcribe →228. Living With T1D Through Diabulimia, Retinopathy, and the Road Back to Yourself (ft. Angela Gaeddert)
Jun 900:40:03Tap to summarizeAngela Gaeddert was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at nine years old. For 23 years, she showed up to her endo appointments and filled in the gaps on her own. Along the way, she navigated diabulimia during one of the most isolating seasons of her life, and more recently, received a diagnosis of diabetic retinopathy.In this episode, Angela shares how her meal spikes went from 220 to 170, her energy from a 5 to a 9, and her self-love and acceptance from a 4 to an 8. But what shifted most was how she sees herself. She shares what it looked like to recover from diabulimia largely on her own, stop comparing to other T1Ds, and finally look for more support.Tune in for an honest, moving conversation about what it looks like to keep going through the hard parts of this disease, and the reminder that it's never too late to reclaim your rise.WHAT WE COVER:How Angela valued feeling thinner more than her T1D during COVID, and the moment she finally put the pieces togetherWhat it felt like to think "anything under 250 was a win" and why that mindset was so hard to move past aloneThe moment Angela looked up at her husband and her vision had completely changed, and what the doctor said nextWhy Angela felt devastated after her retinopathy diagnosis and how she worked through itHow her meal spikes went from 220 to around 170, and what that shifted in her energy and peace of mindWhat finally made her feel like she’s one step ahead of T1D.WHAT’S NEXT:📱 The Risely App is here! Get support for the 180+ decisions you make every day, so you can build confidence with T1D without your life revolving around it. 🧠 Discover Your T1D Archetype! Take the free quiz to understand the pattern behind how you think, respond, and make decisions with T1D. 💻Apply for coaching and talk to our team so you can reclaim the life you deserve with T1D.📧Join thousands of T1Ds reading our newsletter every Tuesday: T1D tips and encouragement, straight to your inbox.Stay connected with us: Email us at: hello@riseyhealth.com IG: @lauren_bongiorno | @riselyhealthTikTok: @lauren_bongiorno | @riselyhealthYT: Reclaim Your Rise SUBSCRIBE & REVIEWIf you've ever sat in an endo appointment and left feeling like there had to be more, you're not alone. Subscribe and leave a review so more T1Ds can find the support they deserve.
Transcribe →227. Perimenopause, Midlife Changes & Getting Diagnosed With Type 1 at 55 (ft. Coach Sue May)
Jun 200:47:11Tap to summarize“I had no idea adults could get Type 1”. Sue May spent more than 20 years as a health coach supporting women through fertility, IVF, perimenopause, and menopause. But in her 50s, her own life took an unexpected turn when she was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes after missing symptoms like extreme thirst, rapid weight loss, and exhaustion, eventually discovering her blood sugar was over 500.As someone who had spent her career helping others navigate major health transitions, Sue suddenly found herself overwhelmed, under-supported, and trying to make sense of a diagnosis she never saw coming.In this episode, Sue shares what it was really like to be diagnosed later in life, the emotional weight of learning to manage an entirely new condition, and how finding the right support completely changed her experience. She also opens up about the overlap between type 1 diabetes and perimenopause, why so many women are left without answers during hormonal shifts, and what it looks like to advocate for yourself through seasons of change.Tune in to gain a deeper understanding of adult-onset type 1 diabetes, the impact hormones can have on blood sugars, and the reminder that even the most unexpected diagnosis can become an opportunity to reclaim your rise.WHAT WE COVER:How Sue navigated being diagnosed with T1D in her 50sWhy adult-onset type 1 diabetes is far more common than most people realize, and early signs to watch forWhat it means to stay flexible when life, hormones, and diabetes are constantly evolvingSue’s reminder that women are not “crazy” when they notice midlife changesHow Sue turned an unexpected diagnosis into a new purpose and a deeper way of serving othersHow finding community helped her stop feeling alone and start feeling empowered in her diabetes journeyWhy reclaiming your rise starts with putting yourself first and trusting your ability to adapt through every seasonWHAT’S NEXT:📱 The Risely App is here! Get support for the 180+ decisions you make every day, so you can build confidence with T1D without your life revolving around it. 🧠 Discover Your T1D Archetype! Take the free quiz to understand the pattern behind how you think, respond, and make decisions with T1D. 💻Apply for coaching and talk to our team so you can reclaim the life you deserve with T1D.📧Join thousands of T1Ds reading our newsletter every Tuesday: T1D tips and encouragement, straight to your inbox.Stay connected with us: Email us at: hello@riseyhealth.com IG: @lauren_bongiorno | @riselyhealthTikTok: @lauren_bongiorno | @riselyhealthYT: Reclaim Your Rise SUBSCRIBE & REVIEWIf Sue’s story helped you feel less alone in navigating a later-in-life diagnosis, subscribe and leave a review so more adults with T1D can find this support.
Transcribe →226. Pregnancy With Type 1 Diabetes: Meg’s Real-Time Story of Insulin Resistance, Fear, and Letting Go
May 2600:45:50Tap to summarizeIn this episode, Meg Bomley shares her T1D journey from being diagnosed at 18 years old and spending eight years on MDI without a CGM, to becoming someone who feels deeply empowered in her body and her diabetes.Meg first came on the podcast in 2022 after graduating from Risely coaching. At the time, she had just come out of a season of constant lows, burnout, and feeling completely overwhelmed after switching to a pump without the support she needed.Today, she’s back as a nationally board certified health coach, and 35 weeks pregnant with type 1 diabetes, one of Risely’s top coaches.The majority of this conversation is the reality of navigating pregnancy with T1D: the nausea, insulin resistance, fear of highs, changing carb ratios, and learning to trust yourself in this season.WHAT WE COVER:Why Meg resisted pumps and CGMs for nearly 8 years after diagnosisThe “biggest disaster ever” that happened when she first switched to a pumpWhat finally helped her stop feeling resistant, overwhelmed, and burnt out with diabetesHow coaching helped her uncover mindset blocks that had nothing to do with insulin or carb countingThe first sign Meg noticed that told her her insulin resistance was changing after getting pregnantHow she managed nausea, vomiting, insulin on board, and eating mostly carbs during pregnancyThe difference between taking 5 units for oatmeal pre-pregnancy vs. 16 units during pregnancyWhat it’s actually like mentally to watch yourself take “large amounts of insulin” every dayWHAT’S NEXT:📱 The Risely App is here! Get support for the 180+ decisions you make every day, so you can build confidence with T1D without your life revolving around it. 🧠 Discover Your T1D Archetype! Take the free quiz to understand the pattern behind how you think, respond, and make decisions with T1D. 💻Apply for coaching and talk to our team so you can reclaim the life you deserve with T1D.📧Join thousands of T1Ds reading our newsletter every Tuesday: T1D tips and encouragement, straight to your inbox.Stay connected with us: Email us at: hello@riseyhealth.com IG: @lauren_bongiorno | @riselyhealthTikTok: @lauren_bongiorno | @riselyhealthYT: Reclaim Your Rise SUBSCRIBE & REVIEWIf this episode helped you feel less alone or more prepared for pregnancy with type 1 diabetes, subscribe and leave a review so more T1Ds can find this support.
Transcribe →225. Managing T1D as a Disney Performer: Rafael's Story of Burnout, Fear of Lows, and Finding Freedom
May 1900:33:16Tap to summarizeRafael Pepen was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at 17, right in the middle of rehearsing for his very first musical in the Dominican Republic. Without access to a CGM or carb counting education, he learned to manage largely on instinct. Years later, he moved to the US, pursued his dream of performing professionally, and eventually landed at Disney, where he now performs five high cardio shows a day.In this episode, Rafael sits down with Lauren to talk about what it actually looks like to manage T1D in a life that never slows down. He shares the months of burnout, panic attacks around lows, and constant roller coaster blood sugars that led him to seek coaching, and what shifted on the other side of that.WHAT WE COVER:What it was like to be diagnosed at 17 in the Dominican Republic with limited access to education, CGMs, or carb counting guidanceThe unique challenge of managing T1D across five high cardio shows a day and why it is a completely different beast from a traditional performance scheduleThe moment things started to unravel at Disney and what five months of daily lows, panic attacks, and burnout actually felt like from the insideWhat shifted when Rafael started working with a Risely coach and the tools that made the biggest difference for his day to day managementThe emotional side of T1D that most people never talk about, including what it felt like to cry during a low and the moment that started to changeWhat Rafael is still working toward and the one thing he wants most from his relationship with diabetes going forwardWHAT’S NEXT:📱 The Risely App is here! Get support for the 180+ decisions you make every day, so you can build confidence with T1D without your life revolving around it. 🧠 Discover Your T1D Archetype! Take the free quiz to understand the pattern behind how you think, respond, and make decisions with T1D. 📊 Diabetes burnout is real, and it can show up in ways you don’t always expect. Take the Diabetes Distress assessment and see where you score.💻Apply for coaching and talk to our team so you can reclaim the life you deserve with T1D.📧Join thousands of T1Ds reading our newsletter every Tuesday: T1D tips and encouragement, straight to your inbox.Stay connected with us: Email us at: hello@riseyhealth.com IG: @lauren_bongiorno | @riselyhealthTikTok: @lauren_bongiorno | @riselyhealthYT: Reclaim Your Rise SUBSCRIBE & REVIEWIf Rafael's story made you feel less alone in the harder seasons of T1D, subscribe and leave a review so more people living with this disease can find it.
Transcribe →224. I already corrected… why am I still high, and what should I do?
May 1300:21:10Tap to summarizeIn this solo episode, Lauren breaks down one of the most common and frustrating T1D scenarios: correcting and still running high. She starts by validating why it's so hard, and how it’s not necessarily because of the high itself, but because of the "boomerang decision" it creates. Lauren walks through the exact decision framework she uses with clients at Risely to think through this scenario clearly. From checking your insulin timing and ruling out a site issue to widening the lens on what else might be driving resistance. The goal isn't just to fix the high. It's to build the muscle of thinking through situations like this so they get easier every time. She also shares how the Risely app's Decision Domains feature brings this kind of framework to life, with voice notes and written breakdowns for the real scenarios T1Ds face every day.WHAT WE COVER:Why correcting and staying high feels so frustrating and why the gap between what you expected and what happened is the hardest partThe urge to rage bolus, why it backfires, and what to do insteadChecking the timing of your correction and understanding your insulin action windowWhy ruling out a pump site issue comes first, and how to know when changing your site is worth it even if you're not sure it's the problemWidening the lens to consider fat, protein, stress, illness, and sedentary days as hidden drivers of insulin resistanceHow to use movement to activate insulin on board before reaching for moreWhen to look at your correction factors versus treating this as a one-time scenarioHow decision frameworks reduce the energy drain of T1D over time, and how the newly launched Risely app brings this to life through Decision DomainsWHAT’S NEXT:📱 The Risely app is here! Get support for the 180+ decisions you make every day, so you can build confidence with T1D without your life revolving around it.🧠 Discover Your T1D Archetype! Take the free quiz to understand the pattern behind how you think, respond, and make decisions with T1D.📊 Diabetes burnout is real, and it can show up in ways you don’t always expect. Take the Diabetes Distress assessment and see where you score.💻Apply for coaching and talk to our team so you can reclaim the life you deserve with T1D.📧Join thousands of T1Ds reading our newsletter every Tuesday: T1D tips and encouragement, straight to your inbox.Stay connected with us: Email us at: hello@riseyhealth.com IG: @lauren_bongiorno | @riselyhealthTikTok: @lauren_bongiorno | @riselyhealthYT: Reclaim Your Rise SUBSCRIBE & REVIEWIf this episode gave you a clearer way to think through the next time you're stuck high after a correction, subscribe and leave a review so more people living with T1D can find it.
Transcribe →223. Insulin Sensitivity and T1D: Why It Shifts and What to Do
May 500:14:14Tap to summarizeAbout a month ago, Lauren went through a two week stretch of crazy work hours, disrupted sleep, missed workouts, and a few sick days. Her time in range started slipping and she had to figure out how to navigate it in real time.In this solo episode, she walks through exactly what happened, how she recognized her insulin sensitivity was changing, and the three options she always considers when life throws her off routine. Because waiting for perfect conditions to come back is never the answer.WHAT WE COVER:The first sign Lauren noticed that told her her insulin sensitivity was dropping The three options available when your insulin sensitivity changesHow Lauren used a hybrid of all three approaches to get her time in range from 65% back up to 80% during a chaotic two week stretchThe difference between temporary insulin resistance and a long term foundational shift in your sensitivity and how to know which one you are dealing withWhat factortends to creep up when you are out of your routine and how it impacts your insulin sensitivity more than most people realizeHow hormones, sleep, stress, illness, and exercise all play a role in shifting your sensitivity and what to do about each oneWhat parents of children with T1D need to know about insulin sensitivity changes during pubertyWHAT’S NEXT:🧠 Discover Your T1D Archetype! Take the free quiz to understand the pattern behind how you think, respond, and make decisions with T1D.🏋️ Join our upcoming free live workshop to discover smarter, more strategic way to work out with T1D, while staying in range. Two timessessions available on Tuesday, May 12th.💻Apply for coaching and talk to our team so you can reclaim the life you deserve with T1D.📧Join 20+ thousand T1Ds reading our newsletter every Tuesday: T1D tips and encouragement, straight to your inbox.Stay connected with us: Email us at: hello@riseyhealth.com IG: @lauren_bongiorno | @riselyhealthTikTok: @lauren_bongiorno | @riselyhealthYT: Reclaim Your Rise SUBSCRIBE & REVIEWIf this episode gave you a clearer way to think through what is happening with your blood sugars when life gets in the way, subscribe and leave a review so more people living with T1D can find it.
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