Where Will YOU Wear Em'?

Let's backtrack a bit, shall we?

Only a few  months ago The Blue Heel Society  was born. This is  more than an excuse to rock a fab pair of Blue shoes (who  needs an  excuse, right!?), but a mission.

"The mission of The Blue Heel Society is to deliver a clear, united voice via organized assembly within our own affiliation, and also at local and national gatherings, events, conventions, and other venues, helping to dispel myths, offer education and to champion the needs of people affected by diabetes.

We choose to stand up, be seen, and be heard in our Blue Heels."

Each  one of us live a different life, different form of Diabetes, Diabetes management, and views. Its up to us individually to advocate, and make Diabetes known, but to do so as a community.

United.

We are  here.

Now listen.

Whether you're a person with Type 1, 2, LADA, gestational MODY or any other form of Diabetes, the parent of one of the above, caregiver, friend, endo,  CDE, or someone who wants to get involved, your voice counts.

As do your feet.

So we want to know, what are you doing to spread awareness in your community?

Where did you wear your Blue shoes? 

What is on your agenda in your hometown to bust some D myths and look fab while doing it?

We each have our own platform, from the housewife to the stockbrocker to the football player, each our own connections, circles, and therefore an individual avenue to advocate and spread awareness.

If we each take one (BLUE) step forward, the possibilities are endless......

So what will YOU do today?

Send us a video....of you...yes.....YOU....doing what YOU do....in your FAB blue shoe......for all the world to view. Keep it clean...keep it real....show us how it can feel!! Give us your best catwalk....in those heels!!

Submit your 1 minute or less videos ( we will edit out sound or the what nots) to: 

YOU@blueheelsociety.org 

Who are you?? Fabulous. Let us show the world. Be creative and have fun!! GO!! And while you are at it.......


We are still accepting emails for *The REAL Chefs of the DOC Cookbook"!! We have hundreds of recipes submitted and we want yours too....email your submissions along with your nutritional info and who you are...and your connection to the DOC to:

 recipes@blueheelsociety.org 

Rock it Dolls!!

WHAT? You....you don't like my shoes??

This shoe goes with everything! So....why is everyone looking funny at me?

As it turns out....this may or may not surprise you....it appears this blue heel may clash with your more *earth* friendly counterpart. Scandalous.

So...I wanted to discuss why a trusted blue shoe...sturdy and reliable suddenly comes under attack by a more *new age* style that fits into our new modern lifestyle and pokes fun in the face of traditional fashion.

Diabetes *yet again* has a cure.

*PALM TO FACE*

Be true to you. DO NOT let anyone dissuade you from advocating for not only yourself but for your family....which as we in the DOC know....is vast. If you see a sale that is too good to be true....chances are...lambs....it is.

We are in this fight for the right reason. It is a sin to see the scavengers literally feeding off the hopes and dreams of our loved ones entering into the diabetes world.

We are family....and with that...we can leave our shoes at the door.

Do You Have These Blue Heels In Size 10? Mens.

Most of the time I get to talk diabetes in a very natural and comfortable setting for me - with my bike, when training or racing.  I am surrounded mostly by guys who also love the sport of cycling, attempting new races, testing new bling titanium and carbon parts, reading maps, dodging wildlife, dealing with weather, and wrestling with my BGs along the way.

The day before World Diabetes Day, with the launch of The Blue Heel Society, that changed.

A bit.

It's definitely not that the BHS community is unkind.  Quite the contrary.  All involved, from the co-founders to all the folks awesome enough to post pics of Blue shoes, are the most thoughtful, encouraging, non-judgmental, and courageous people I've ever encountered.

It was just that instead of being surrounded by Trek Superflys with big knobby tires and 100mm of suspension travel, I find myself immersed with delicate Choos and Loubutins with a 5" heel.

At first it was intimidating to say the least.  I was completely out of my element.  I didn't even know the vocabulary. A Dolly Shoe?  A Peep Toe?

Oy.

Then there is the whole looking for Blue shoes, and trying to capture photos and talk to people about them, while out in public.  A little bit of a social mine field to say the least.

As time progressed, I began to fit in a little bit with this group made up of mostly women from all walks of life.  I learned the buzz words, and opted into conversations about shoes, diabetes, diets, and insulin to carb ratios with them.  Heck, I think I even noted once when Nordstrom had a sale.

If you stop and think about it, the social aspect is really JUST like when you or a loved one first get diagnosed with diabetes.  You are nervous.  Not sure what questions to ask or who has the answers to them.  Haven't learned the diabetes vocabulary.  Not even sure what styles you like - MDI? Glucophage? Pump? Retinopathy? CGM?

After a while you begin to find your footing.  You make close friends in the Diabetes Online Community.  You find organizations like the Blue Heel Society and Type1Rider.

You learn.  You feel safer.  You become more sure of yourself.

And, in the end, your realize that although all who deal with diabetes, in any capacity, are very diverse, we are all very much the same.

So yes.  Blue Heels.  Size 10. Men....

- Tony

Those heels can't run, if you are Blue....

It is her calling. She holds that heel in her hand.
It is her passion. She smiles, knowing more than anyone...it is far from just a shoe.
It is the sound of the heart that broke at the utterance of that word: Diabetes. Her heart.
It is the winds that blows her through it.... On the days when her heart was too heavy to rise.
God only knows how....she carefully navigates that life sentence. No judge, no jury, no pleas.

She doesn't run. She can't.
Warrior women stand....they stay.

She collects her thoughts.
She has begun. She listens, heals, conquers.

Her love. Her fight. Her family. Her spirit. Her journey.

Warrior women. Mommies. Sisters. Lovers. Wives. Family.

We are standing. We choose. We stay. We fight. We wear our Blue Heels for you.

*this is for you.

The D mama at 3 am...again. For yourself, unfaltering. For that wife who watches the battle from her pillow....
for the sisters, both literal and in spirit. YOU don't run. YOU are BLUE.

Do these shoes make my heart look big??

It occurs to us that many of you are out and about on the hunt for the elusive perfect...blue....shoe...for...you.

Who are you shopping with?
What are you telling them?
Are you making it a family affair?
Mother-daughter time?
Girls? Are you taking your special loved one with you?
Fellas...shopping for your lady friends?

You see...that is the beauty of the Blue Heel Society....it is an all encompassing campaign. You need not do anything except show love for someone who lives with diabetes. AND...you get some fabulous blue kicks out of it.....

Tell us your story....how did you and your husband/girlfriend/child/sister/bestie find the perfect blue shoe??

The point all along is to share something unique and special with someone you love. That is what we get to do every day....with you. <3

Our First BHS Inaugural Gala...

‎"Meet up" is now in the planning stages for our Inaugural Blue Heel Society gala and lambs, we have set a date!

Saturday, February 4, 2012 in Boston Massachusetts.

We have all the delicious details in the works, and will be posting them directly when we secure our location!

IT IS A MUST ATTEND EVENT DOLLS!!

Stay tuned!!!

If the shoe fits.....

Shoe shopping is exhausting. How much do they cost? It takes time to find the right style. Do they have your size?  How does it fit? How does it look from the side?  How practical is this heel?

It's a lot like work. They are both four letter words and cause a cramp in your day if you have the wrong ones.

That is what makes this organization so unique. It's the dream shoe. IT. FITS. ALL. OF. YOU. That one perfect compliment to every outfit.

This isn't your grandmother's "Society"...and I am sure your uncle had an affiliation with a "Society" once too....THIS is the NEW BLUE MOVEMENT.....Our campaign is about changing that perception. We are making people TALK about Diabetes in a whole new way. It makes no matter your "type" just as it makes no matter what "type" of shoe you wear....(just make it blue).

We are going to talk about Diabetes. All of it....the good and the bad. And we are talking "types" too. This isn't a blog designed to choose teams. We are Team BLUE! And we are on a mission.