Lee Ann Thill is many things. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 PWD, an creative someone together with certified Art Therapist & licensed counselor who is currently xviii months inwards to studying for her Doctorate. Many of you lot know Lee Ann every bit the Blogger behind TheButterCompartment together with the creative forcefulness of Diabetes Art Day together with The World Diabetes Day Postcard Exchange.
Now you lot tin add together mastermind of the novel Social Media website site: VIAL Project to the list!
What is the VIAL Project? The VIAL Project is a place "for people amongst type 1 diabetes together with mild to severe nutrient together with trunk issues, including disordered eating together with diagnosed eating disorders, to portion original, creative self-expression together with connect amongst each other."
I retrieve the VIAL Project is a wonderful together with really much needed resources for people amongst type 1 Diabetes who combat amongst nutrient together with trunk issues, together with I strongly encourage anyone together with everyone who is dealing amongst those issues to checkout the VIAL Project for themselves!
Now, here's a Q & Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 amongst Lee Ann where she has the chance to explicate VIAL Project inwards her ain vocalisation - And I retrieve you'll genuinely appreciate what she has to say!
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How did you lot come upward up amongst persuasion for VIAL Project?
My principal motivation for creating VIAL Project is for academic research. I’m an fine art therapist, licensed counselor, together with doctoral educatee inwards the Expressive Therapies computer program at Lesley University inwards Boston. Both my clinical together with enquiry interests are the emotional issues that impact people amongst diabetes. There’s been some groovy research, but together with therefore much to a greater extent than needs to live learned, together with that noesis needs to live applied into programs together with initiatives that assist patients, together with therefore the argue I decided to move dorsum to schoolhouse was because I desire to do enquiry that volition hopefully assist the diabetes community.
In considering my options for what specifically to research, I narrowed it downwards to type 1 together with nutrient together with trunk issues, but my describe of piece of work organization was how to access people amongst this number because they oft avoid healthcare, together with tin live reluctant to position themselves together with engage inwards treatment. As a diabetes advocate, I receive got experienced together with witnessed the mightiness of social media, together with harnessed that mightiness to facilitate together with promote Diabetes Art Day together with the World Diabetes Postcard Exchange. Finding a way to gain people through social media seemed a natural gibe for my experience together with interests, together with also offered an innovative way to gain people inwards need.
As an fine art therapist, incorporating creative appear into this projection was a given. The arts receive got been largely ignored inwards diabetes care, but increasingly, they are beingness integrated into pediatric together with cancer aid settings. There is almost no enquiry on how fine art tin assist people amongst diabetes, together with that has to alter if nosotros desire to alive the best lives nosotros tin amongst diabetes. I receive got simply discovered Ellen Dissanayake, a scholar who writes nearly the evolutionary piece of work of art-making, together with inwards her book, Homo Aestheticus (1992), she writes that making fine art offers “the mightiness to shape together with thereby exert some mensurate of command over the untidy textile of everyday life."
If people amongst diabetes don’t receive got untidy textile they take away to exert some command over, I don’t know who does. I retrieve modern social club has largely ignored the value of creative expression, together with at to the lowest degree for people amongst diabetes, my destination is to exhibit people that non exclusively is it important, but for the sake of our health, it’s necessary.
What does V-I-A-L stand upward for?
VIAL = Voice – Insulin – Art – Life
Voice: It's a social media site, together with connecting amongst others through posting together with commenting volition live of import to the user experience. Also, people amongst nutrient together with trunk issues tin receive got difficulty expressing their feelings, together with therefore the ane of the goals of the site is to encourage them to exercise their vocalisation together with live heard yesteryear posting, commenting together with sharing their creative work.
Insulin: Despite our best efforts, BG's deviate, together with therefore insulin tin live a source of frustration together with risk, fifty-fifty though it is simultaneously lifesaving. Additionally, at that spot are people amongst type 1 who omit or under-dose their insulin to impact weight, together with some people receive got extreme anxiety nearly taking insulin because they fearfulness gaining weight.
Art: The website promotes making together with sharing creative piece of work online. People tin exercise whatever of the expressive fine art forms they enjoy, but are encouraged to experiment amongst unfamiliar fine art forms too. This is a judgment-free zone, reflecting my nitty-gritty belief that all creative appear is beautiful because it reflects the artist's feeling together with experience. People amongst diabetes tend to live overly self-critical, every bit do people amongst nutrient together with trunk issues. This is an chance to allow move of that inner critic, together with practise self-acceptance.
Life: Food together with trunk issues receive got a way of keeping people from reaching their fullest potential. I hope users of the site volition uncovering some do goodness from interacting amongst others together with using creative expression, together with inwards turn, they volition choose steps towards becoming the people they desire to be, living the lives they most desire to live.
How has fine art together with social media helped you lot amongst your nutrient & trunk issues?
I’ve had type 1 since 1978, together with from my teens to early on 30's, I had a serious eating disorder. During all of those years, I was inwards out-patient therapy, together with when my symptoms became worse, dissimilar handling programs. I was genuinely introduced to fine art therapy every bit a patient, together with got a lot out of the experience. I’ve e'er done creative things, whether it’s fine art, crafts, writing, gardening, customizing my websites – it’s been a mixed handbag of creative outlets, but they’ve kept me going, kept me motivated, together with when my eating disorder was genuinely bad, creative piece of work was ane of the few things that gave my life positive meaning.
Regarding social media, I’ve been using the cyberspace since 1992, together with from the start, I sought resources together with way of connecting amongst other people amongst type 1, both amongst together with without eating problems. As the online options improved, I became active on some online communities, together with the relationships I developed were ane of the factors that motivated me to lastly commit to recovery. Once I was recovered, I began sharing my story together with advocating for increased awareness, together with flora social media an effective way to portion and engage amongst others.
Explain how the VIAL Project tin assist others struggling amongst type 1 diabetes together with eating disorders.
People amongst type 1 tin experience a broad gain of mild to severe nutrient together with trunk problems. These problems are non beingness adequately addressed, together with people are non receiving the back upward they need, which seriously compromise emotional together with physical wellness for people amongst type 1. VIAL Project combines creative appear together with social media for people amongst type 1 together with nutrient together with trunk issues. Generally speaking, I hope they do goodness yesteryear doing creative projects, sharing their creativity, together with connecting amongst others. I hope they gain novel insight, increased confidence, self-acceptance, willingness to portion together with choose risks to seek novel things, greater sense of connection together with belonging, improved creative employment solving skills, vision for what they desire for themselves, together with the steps they tin choose to attain that.
My theory is that taking these steps forrard yesteryear participating on VIAL has potential to convey people that much closer to overcoming nutrient together with trunk issues that crusade them distress together with adversely impact their health.
From a enquiry perspective, this projection is every bit much nearly what users tin learn me nearly what they need, together with what volition assist them, than what I tin offering them. That is ane of the unique aspects of doing research, both every bit an investigator together with every bit a participant. It’s a symbiotic human relationship – I desire to assist you, but I take away you lot to assist me sympathize what you lot need.
My theory is that this site volition offering some benefit, but inwards the end, I am depending on participants to educate me nearly their experience amongst type 1 together with nutrient together with trunk issues, together with whether or non at that spot is anything valuable nearly participating on VIAL. What are the characteristics of the people who persuasion it was helpful? What do they uncovering helpful? How is it helpful? What do they retrieve needs to live changed? I am trying to approach this projection amongst questions instead of assumptions nearly what volition emerge.
What's the fourth dimension describe your working with?
Building an active social network typically takes time, but I receive got a belatedly restrain information collection deadline for this airplane pilot project, together with therefore it is imperative to fast rails things, recruit users, together with promote participation. If the airplane pilot projection yields promising results, I volition move along to exercise the website for my dissertation enquiry starting inwards the fall, together with if the dissertation yields positive results, I desire to move along to refine the site together with therefore it tin live a resources for people who take away it. My broader vision is for the site to acquire a go-to website for people amongst diabetes together with nutrient together with trunk issues, but every bit long every bit users are willing to participate inwards research, I desire to increment the noesis together with agreement nearly diabetes together with nutrient together with trunk issues.
There's together with therefore much to learn, together with the to a greater extent than nosotros tin learn, the amend equipped nosotros volition live to reach, engage together with offering handling together with perchance fifty-fifty prevention initiatives together with therefore fewer people volition combat amongst these problems, together with those who do volition uncovering to a greater extent than back upward together with to a greater extent than effective treatment.
Thank you lot for spreading the word, Kelly, together with therefore nosotros tin brand steps towards those bigger goals.
Is at that spot anything else you'd similar people to know nearly The VIAL Project?
It’s of import to know that VIAL is a judgment-free zone. All levels of creative experience are welcome. It is non an fine art competitor or showcase, but a welcome surroundings for people to exercise creative appear to exhibit what their experience amongst type 1 together with nutrient together with trunk issues is like, together with that isn’t necessarily going to live pretty.
All creative appear is beautiful though because it comes from within the maker, a reflection of their internal experience. I retrieve this is an specially plumbing equipment way to retrieve nearly the creative procedure for people whose ideas nearly appearance crusade them distress nearly their bodies together with eating.
Engaging inwards the creative procedure yesteryear focusing on the process, together with less on the aesthetic value of the terminal production is a lovely metaphor for how people amongst type 1 diabetes could do goodness from focusing less on the terminal production – the number on the scale, the number on the meter, the numbers on the lab results, the shape inwards the mirror – together with to a greater extent than on the procedure of living together with simply doing one’s best. If you lot position your pump into it, together with uncovering joy inwards the process, what unfolds volition live satisfying together with meaningful.
You tin uncovering the VIAL Project on the spider web at: http://vialproject.ning.com/
On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/VIALProject?fref=ts
And on twitter: @VIALProject
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