April Accelerated
Join our #BlueCircleWorkshops led by and for people living with diabetes, every Sunday, 5PM IST - free and open to all! This Sunday join another episode of Meethi Baatein on our Facebook community, Diabetes Support Network India where we celebrate top contributors like Ajay!
We have several upcoming events in the next few weeks, join us! Stay tuned for upcoming physical events in your cities & don't miss the chance to meet other friends & families with diabetes! Any questions? Ask away on our Facebook community, Diabetes Support Network - India and head to the 'Events' section on the group to RSVP for events you want to share or attend!
We share all important information and updates on our social media handles, so ensure you join our Facebook community , follow us on Instagram , Twitter , YouTube and Facebook. Here's a quick low down on all that happened in April 2023 at Blue Circle Diabetes Foundation.
We had a whopping 20 online and offline events in April 2023 - of which we had 14 physical meets in Pune, Hyderabad, Jalandhar, Jodhpur, Ahmedabad, Kanpur, Nashik, Lucknow, Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi, Indore, Jaipur, Bengaluru and phew, Nagpur - see the photos below!
Glimpses from our offline meets
Our coffee catch-up Jaipur was definitely fun!
We had an enjoyable coffee catch-up with friends in Bengaluru!
Our Pune friends clearly had a good time over tea and coffee with friends! Stay tuned to our Facebook community, Diabetes Support Network - India for updates in all cities.
Photos from the coffee catch-up in Ahmedabad!
Photos from the coffee catch-up in Kolkata!
Our Delhi friends having fun at the #BlueCircleRun and walk. Stay tuned for the next one!
All smiles at our Hyderabad #BlueCircleRun and walk!
Photos from the Lucknow chai pe charcha!
Photos from the coffee catch-up in Jalandhar!
Kicking off the Indore chai pe charcha!
All smiles at our Mumbai #BlueCircleRun and walk!
#BlueCircleWorkshops (online)
Blue Circle Workshops are online weekend workshops, led by people living with various types of diabetes. By the people and for the people with diabetes! These workshops are free and open for all, even non diabetics. We started these workshops in 2020 and have conducted over 200 educational, informative & fun workshops yet. Join in, have fun and learn new things. Sign up as a member and follow our social media platforms on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter & YouTube to know of upcoming workshops. Be a part of our awesome Facebook community too!
Commercial Closed Loop Pumps (780G) Workshop
Indrayani (T1) moderated this discussion on commercial closed loop pumps in the Indian market, the Medtronic 780G. She spoke to actual users, Avyaya (T1) & his mother, Komal & Advika (T1) & her father, Karthik about their experiences & the pros & cons. #BlueCircleWorkshops are free, online workshops on diabetes by and for people living with various types of diabetes.
Click the post below to view the workshop video on Facebook (you can also view on YouTube here) -
Want to know the basics of insulin pumps? See this video on how to apply a pump infusion set (patch). Want to know why some prefer MDI to pumps? Read this blog to know why.
Intermittent Fasting Workshop
Join this interesting panel discussion on Intermittent Fasting with various types of diabetes. The panel will be moderated by Rohan (T1) & will have Megha (T1), Ashutosh (T2) & Nupur (T1) all of whom do IF themselves too. #BlueCircleWorkshops are free, online workshops on diabetes by and for people living with various types of diabetes.
Click the post below to view the workshop video on Facebook (you can also view on YouTube here) -
Life as a T1D Fighter Workshop
Snehal (T1) was in conversation with Kris who was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes when he was in the military, then became a firefighter and eventually an entrepreneur! #BlueCircleWorkshops are free, online workshops on diabetes by and for people living with various types of diabetes. Join us every Sunday at 5PM India time!
Click the post below to view the workshop video on Facebook (you can also view on YouTube here) -
Mindfulness and Diabetes Workshop
Snehal (T1) will be in conversation with health enthusiast, actor and T1 Aishwarya about mindfulness & diabetes & how to incorporate it. #BlueCircleWorkshops are free, online workshops on diabetes by and for people living with various types of diabetes. Join us every Sunday at 5PM India time!
Click the post below to view the workshop video on Instagram.
Meethi Baatein
24th Facebook Live of our series called Meethi Baatein to celebrate top contributors of our community on Facebook. Sanskruti was in conversation with Sanjay, who lives with type 2 diabetes, see the video here.
In the News
The Weekend Leader a news publication & pioneer in positive journalism, spoke with Nupur Lalvani, founder of the Blue Circle Diabetes Foundation. Read the full article here.
Blue Circle Diabetes Foundation was featured in this article by T-Hub about 5 ways community initiatives build engagement. Read the full article here.
NCD Diaries
The #NCDDiaries by the NCD Alliance are a community based, multimedia story telling project where people living with Non Communicable Diseases can share lived experiences to drive change through a public narrative framework. Listen to Snehal's podcast diary here.
Diabetes Care journal
Rohan's artwork is on the latest cover of the prestigious Diabetes Care scientific journal published by the American Diabetes Association. This makes it the first cover art from outside the United States. Read more about the artist here and about the journal here.
13th World Congress of Diabetes India 2023
Nupur was invited as faculty to be on the committee for the paediatric diabetes interest group leadership team at the 13th World Congress of Diabetes India 2023 in Indore where she represented the voices of people living with various types of diabetes.
The aim of the 3 day conference was to ideate, analyse and share inventive, feasible and implementable ways to encourage and disseminate knowledge, education and research to make high-level of care available to people with diabetes.
#LowCarbBreakfast #RecipeContest
Congratulations to all our winners, you will receive your low carb Ador Health hampers soon and big thank you to everyone who participated and cheered on. Stay connected on our Facebook community Diabetes Support Network - India for more contests. Happy cooking and sharing!
Success Stories
Found the community helpful, have a success story to share? E-mail us on support@bluecircle.foundation and we'll be happy to feature you!
Letter for Schools
Whether newly diagnosed or not, it's an anxious time for parents of kids with type 1 diabetes. Please feel free to click this post on our Facebook community, Diabetes Support Network India which will take you to a downloadable and editable letter for schools. Edit it with your child's specific details and share a signed copies with the child's school principal, teachers, etc.
You are welcome to email us on support@bluecircle.foundation if you face any issues or you would like us to organise a diabetes awareness programme at your school or organisations.
See the post below for an important announcement regarding schools and universities. Click the post below, go to the comments section to read or download each circular issued by the NCPCR - National Commission for Protection of Child Rights.
Buddy Project Helpline
The Buddy Project Helpline started during Covid19 and continues to be a diabetes & mental health support system & helpline, free of cost and open to anyone with any type of diabetes & their caregivers.
Read more about the helpline & to use the helpline, download the Blue Circle Diabetes mobile app on Android or iOS. Also read about the Blue Circle Diabetes app and all its features here.
The Buddy Project Helpline is our mobile app based psychosocial helpline for diabetes and mental health. Trained volunteers living with diabetes (type 1, type 2 & caregivers), speaking 7 different languages are here to listen to you without judgements. If you feel lost, depressed, anxious, panicky, suicidal or generally upset, please schedule a call with us. These are tough times but remember you are NOT alone, your community stands with you.
How to call the Buddy Project helpline
Image: screenshot of how to navigate the Buddy Project helpline on the app
Open the Blue Circle Diabetes app > Buddy Project > Schedule tab > pick a buddy of your choice > Schedule a call (once you schedule you'll see it under the 'Meetings' tab > 10 minutes prior to the call, you'll receive an app notification/reminder > To join the call, open the app, go to Buddy Project & under the 'Meetings' tab, press the 'Join' button (video is off by default, can switch on as per preference)
#BlueCircleCamp memories
Click the video below to see memories from the #BlueCircleCamp Pune last year. See the full photo album here.
Lovely and fun memories, right from Ketaki's foot tapping Zumba class to Ovi's dance on BTS music, her mom Aarti's lovely singing, Charudatta's evergreen dance moves, Pratik's guitar set to Rhea's compering.
Click the video below to see memories from the #BlueCircleCamp Mumbai last year. See the full photo album here.
Lovely and fun memories, right from Ketaki's energetic Zumba class to Khushboo's compering and interesting chats with Aishwarya and Rakesh to Roshni's graceful dance & Gilmerio's guitar performance.
Diabetes Humour
Life with any type of diabetes is not easy. Here's a little diabetes humour to brighten up your day. Click the posts below & like, share & comment!
Looking for a partner? Marriage & Diabetes
We understand that a lot of people with diabetes face tremendous difficulties in finding the right partner and getting married. We have received a lot of requests over the years to facilitate a platform to this end. Here's our small effort in that direction. If you'd like to find a partner, or are a parent who would like to introduce their child looking to get married, please introduce yourself on our private Facebook community, Diabetes Support Network - India.
Blue Circle Store- Relaunched!
Check out the adorable diabetes merchandise from the Blue Circle Store and order them now!
Blogs
Read our blog here. We write about everything from recipes to people's stories, technology and everything diabetes!
App update
Some of you gave us feedback that you are unable to download the app on the latest version of Android. Happy to inform you all that the issue has been fixed and you can now download on the newest version of Android too. Any questions? Ask on our Facebook community, Diabetes Support Network - India
Download the Blue Circle Diabetes mobile app :
Android: https://bit.ly/36MvYa7
iOS: https://apple.co/3nEFB3D
Know more about all the app features: https://bit.ly/38bjfk9
Donate
India's first app, made by diabetics & for diabetics. If you have found the app helpful & would like to help, consider making a small donation of Rs 99 per month: https://www.bluecircle.foundation/donate
Download the Blue Circle Diabetes app on Android and iOS. Click here to read about the app & its features.
Thank you to our wonderful community for helping us making the app better for you! We look forward to your generosity to help us rewrite the app ground up! Use the 'New Feature Idea' button on the app to tell us what features may make the app better.
#SugarDetective
BE A #SugarDetective
Come be part of our new campaign! Help spread awareness by sharing hidden sugars in packaged foods. Like Sherlock Holmes said, "you see, but you do not observe". Let's observe what's in our food and share! Put up posts on your social media platforms and use the hashtag #SugarDetective & #BlueCircleDiabetesFoundation (also tag us!) You can also share the post on our Facebook community, Diabetes Support Network - India. Once a week, we'll feature a randomly selected Sugar Detective across our platforms. Hurry!
Connect with us and participate!
Join our award winning Facebook community, like and follow our page, subscribe to our YouTube channel, follow us on Instagram and Twitter too! If you would like to share and contribute content upload it to the Blue Circle Diabetes app and don't forget to check out our website and Buddy Project helpline too!
SUPPORT BLUE CIRCLE DIABETES FOUNDATION
We need your help and support to continue to grow, expand and touch the lives of countless people in the diabetes community. Every little bit helps us in sustaining this endeavour. Our NGO is registered under Section 80G of the Income Tax Act, India.
Click here to donate