Wondering what to get your fellow diabuddy for Christmas?
Look no further. You’ve come to the right place and I’ll list some of our favorite brands, goodies, and creative ideas to get you wrapping that perfect gift for your Type 1 diabetic friend or family member. Even if you’re a procrastinator with certain things like us, these gift ideas are sure to brighten their day for any special occasion throughout the year.
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| 1. The Typeonderful Shop, Pancreas Badge, $5.00 | 2. T1dLife, T1d Won’t Stop Me double-sided alert keychain, $12.55 | 3. T1dLife, T1d Alert iphone SE Tough case, $39.00 (prices vary per style case) | 4. Vitalize Mints, Watermelon carb-free mints, $3.99 | 5. Sugar Medical, Audrey Omnipod Supply Case, $36.99 | 6. Sugar Medical + Omnipod Purple/Turquoise Tie-Dye Gel Skin, $12.99 | 7. T1dLife, T1dTruth Referral Cards, $28.95/100pk | 8. Warriortats, Type 1 diabetes Butterfly medical alert temporary tattoos, 5 for $5.00 |
T1d Accessories
We’re very thankful to have partnered with some amazing brands in the T1dCommunity such as the following:
Sugar Medical – Diabetes supply cases, bags, charms and Omnipod gel skins in fun prints to help keep you organized. Use code type1diabetic_life15 for 15% off a single purchase on sugarmedical.com. Free U.S. shipping on all orders.
Warrior Tats – creative and fun temporary tattoos alerting others that you are Type 1 diabetic and insulin dependent. Available in a variety of designs and easy-to-apply my four year old T1d, Coral, can do it “all by [her]self.” This is actually an item I have been dying to design and produce myself and I’m happy to support a fellow small business owner who beat me to it!
The Typeonederful Shop – handmade artisan badges, bookmarks, keychains and hair bows inspired by a mother’s Type 1 diabetic princess. Shop small and support this creative shop on Etsy. Free shipping for orders over $25.00 with code FREESHIP25.
Each of the above brands including Vitalize Mints (below) were featured in our #t1dlifeholidaygiveaway’s on Instagram. Please give them a follow as well to show your support. Much appreciated!
T1d Books
I’m only going to list the top three must-have books of all the ones I’ve read so far. These books have helped us and continue to help us the most even to this day. All can be found on Amazon:
Think Like a Pancreas by Gary Scheiner, MS, CDE – Written by a T1d himself in a practical straightforward language that everyone should be able to understand. Some main points of interest include short and long-term health benefits to good glucose control, how and what hormones affect BGs, the glycemic index or GI of certain foods, simple vs complex carbs, and a great list of resources towards the back of the book.
Pumping Insulin by John Walsh and Ruth Roberts, 6th Ed – is literally the diabetes “bible” to understanding and managing the necessary technical aspects of controlling glucose levels even without a pump or CGM. It is the only book that has helped us fine-tune her pump settings (referring to both Animas Ping and Omnipod) for basals, ISF, I:C ratios and more. If you don’t know those terms, then you definitely need to buy this book. We don’t depend on any d-nurse or her endo for making proper and safe adjustments to her insulin needs and haven’t since weeks after her diagnosis. Who has time to call their diabetes educator or endo in the middle of the night when BGs are skyrocketing or plummeting dangerously? Not us! Get this book! Add it to your Amazon shopping cart now.
Taking Control of Your Diabetes by Steven V. Edelman, MD and Friends, 4th or 5th Ed – also a T1d himself, he advocates and motivates others to find the strength to TCOYD. This is a frank and empowering book and also details diabetes complications, prevention, diabetes burnout and how to get back on track. Definitely get this for yourself or a diabuddy who could use the extra push to hunker down and take care of themselves. He inspires others to seek self-education and become self-reliant. We owe to ourselves and children living with this disease to become independent and always continue researching on our own and not rely on social media for quick answers [my words – not his, but I share his blunt honesty and ideals].
DIY T1d Treat Basket
Place some good glucose snacks for highs and/or lows in a beautifully handcrafted basket or canvas tote for that special diabuddy of yours. Fill it with treats from some of our fav brands like the following:
Vitalize Mints – sugar free and carb-free mints made with xylitol (artificial sweetner) that taste like candied crystals in a wide assortment of delicious flavors. Our favorites are watermelon and the all-natural assorted fruits. We usually have to buy them in bulk since Coral enjoys eating them soo much. Visit their site and select a three pack
custom assortment for your diabuddy or self. Be sure to use our special promo code VITALIZET1DLIFE15 at checkout for 15% off your entire purchase. Offer good for one-time use only. Free shipping on all U.S. orders!
Skinny Pop – the lowest carb popcorn we can find anywhere and low glycemic index (GI) so we can bolus Coral with Fiasp as she starts to eat it. Find it at Costco, Ralphs, Sprouts, Whole Foods or Target. Or just visit them directly on their website. Our favs are the Popcorn Puffs in both the Cinnamon and White Cheddar flavors and the Microwave Popcorn (they come in cool pop-up boxes you just stick right in the microwave).
Yum Earth – all natural gluten free treats great for preventing lows. Find it at Sprouts or check
where to buy. We love all their fruit snacks, lollipops, gummy bears and licorice.
Premier Protein – our go-to for ultra low carb/high protein shakes for pre-karate or gymnastics sessions or before bed so she has stable BGs ALL NIGHT LONG. We typically give Coral 2oz Vanilla Premier Protein with 1oz Fairlife milk before brushing teeth on nights where she was super active during the day (builds insulin sensitivity by that night) or refused to eat enough protein and fiber during dinner. This shake combo saves us some decent sleep and sanity with sometimes minor increases to basal due to the protein which rises BGs gradually over sometimes 2-5 hours.
Results vary per individual so definitely measure, check BGs as needed and log all necessary info to track your needs. New foods are always an experiement, so please use good judgement and be diligent in your own care. Always seek medical advice from your own practitioner. I am not a doctor.
UnReal Chocolates – the lowest carb scrumptious peanut butter and almond butter chocolate treats we’ve ever found! As always, at Sprouts – our fav grocery store. They have a variety of different treats and we especially love all their chocolate cups. Most are made with dark chocolate which has a lower GI than milk chocolate – which wrecks havoc on Corals BGs hours post-prandial. Each cup has about 7g carbs. Definitely visit their site for more details and stock up! There isn’t enough in one bag. Sign up for their newsletters and save 10% on your first purchase.
More Good Glucose Snacks can be found here.
Diabetes Tech Accessories
For the Apple lover, here are some of our fav accessories for iPhones and Apple Watches (most found on Amazon, get Prime if you don’t have it already):
T1dLife – T1dAlert and F*ck Diabetes mobile phone cases starting at $29.00. Find one for your or a diabuddy’s iphone or Android device
here.
Apple Watch bands – I really love my generic made in China Milanese loop band and so must have a lot of other people since it’s no longer available on Amazon, but here’s a similar style by Tirnga with great reviews in a variety of colors for Series 4, 3, 2, and 1 in all sizes from $8.99. This Inteny Sport Band is also really stylish and affordble at only $10.99 for Prime members. If you prefer genuine leather, here’s a nice one from Marge Plus. For those who like a sporty wrist band, check this one out by Iyou.
Apple Watch portable charger – I’m so glad I finally bought a portable charger for my Apple Watch Series 2 since I’m lucky if it lasts 24 hours. Find one like this Sumato Watchbox or one to suit your needs better. I like this one because you can charge both the removable insert (which charges your Watch) and place it in the stylish case when on the go. Great for traveling, $66.95 + 7.00 shipping.
iPhone Screen Protector – protect that iPhone of yours since it is a medical device when pairing it with a Dexcom CGM. Find any to fit your model smart phone with at least four star ratings and over 500 reviews on Amazon like this one here.
*NOTE: I, Typeonediabetic-life.com, am not affiliated nor do I receive any commissions whatsoever for any of the tech accessories listed above other than my own original designs sold on Zazzle.com/T1dLife. I simply did a quick search on Amazon to find the most popular items with the best reviews to save you some time. Shop at your own risk. Haha.
Shop T1dLife
Please kindly visit our
Zazzle shop for all sorts of home goods, apparel and accessories to spread aloha and T1dawareness. I design it on Illustrator, Zazzle prints and ships it. Select royalties will go back towards gifting T1dfamilies and hosting local meetups in Los Angeles. Much mahalos for your support.
Here are some of the latest items available that you can customize using Zazzle’s design tools by selecting among a variety of sizes, styles and colors. Be sure to take advantage of Zazzle’s daily discount codes listed at the top of their site and enter during checkout to save 25% off or more on select items. Happy Holidays and happy shopping to you all!
If you’re a vendor and would like to be featured in any of our gift guides in the future, please email typeonediabeticlife@gmail.com with your brand name and type of products offered. We will do our best to respond at our earliest convenience. Like when toddler tantrums and T1d aren’t being a-holes.
Mele Kalikimaka [Merry Christmas in Hawaiian],
The Deng Ohana
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