Reclaim Your Rise
with Lauren Bongiorno

Dylan Leonard is a filmmaker, lifelong athlete, and person with type 1 diabetes who has spent the last decade traveling the world, often in remote and high-stakes environments, while navigating the day-to-day reality of blood sugars, supplies, and unpredictability. In this conversation, Dylan shares how his early diagnosis at 15, shaped a mindset that became his anchor: “I’ll figure it out.” That belief carried him through near-miss travel moments, years on MDI without community, and the often invisible shame of managing diabetes while trying to feel “normal.” What shifted for Dylan was not just upgrading tech. It was discovering community, finding the right support, and realizing he was uniquely positioned to serve the version of himself who once felt alone and uninformed. That is what led to Breaking Limits , a multi-year documentary project highlighting athletes with type 1 diabetes and the experts who support them. This episode is a powerful reminder that education, tools, and community can change everything, and that your next chapter with T1D can be bigger than your fears. WHAT WE COVER: Running out of low snacks in a foreign country, tech failing mid-trip, and insulin chaos abroad — Dylan shares the scariest travel moments he’s faced with Type 1. Diagnosed at 15 and convinced his basketball dreams were over — the moment Dylan had to decide if diabetes would stop him or fuel him. For 10 years Dylan managed Type 1 with finger sticks, MDI, and zero diabetes community — until one turning point changed everything. From hiding his diabetes on dates and during college recruiting… to publicly sharing his story with the world. The untold story behind the Breaking Limits documentary — the setbacks, funding struggles, and why Dylan is determined to release it free on YouTube. WHAT’S NEXT: 🎥Help Support Dylan’s Film . Donate and share to spread the word. 📸Follow Dylan on Instagram ✍️Sign up for our Live Challenging Foods Workshop 💻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 | @riselyhealth TikTok: @lauren_bongiorno | @riselyhealth YT: Reclaim Your Rise SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW If Dylan’s story helped you rethink what is possible with T1D, subscribe and leave a review so more people can find these conversations.

Loren was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at 18, right as she was starting college. What followed were 15 years of highs and lows, not just in her blood sugars, but in her relationship with herself. From struggling with diabulimia in her early 20s to feeling anxious, burnt out, and alone, Loren shares what it was like to look “fine” on the outside while silently fighting her diabetes behind the scenes. In this episode, she opens up about the moment she realized she couldn’t keep living that way, when travel, friendships, and even future motherhood felt overshadowed by diabetes. Through coaching, she stopped dieting, shifted her focus from calories to patterns, lowered her A1C from 7.4 to 6.8 in three months, lost 10 pounds as a byproduct (not the goal), and rebuilt her relationship with food and insulin. Most importantly, she stopped seeing diabetes as the enemy and started seeing it as something she could navigate with confidence. This conversation is about more than numbers. It’s about healing your relationship with diabetes so you can stop fighting yourself and start reclaiming your rise. WHAT WE COVER: Loren’s 15-year journey with T1D, including diabulimia and hidden burnout The emotional toll of masking diabetes while feeling anxious and alone Why traditional therapy didn’t fully address the root issue How shifting from calorie counting to carb awareness changed everything The specific tools that helped her lower her A1C from 7.4 to 6.8 in 3 months Letting go of diet culture and rebuilding a peaceful relationship with food Traveling with confidence (and no blood sugar chaos) Preparing for pregnancy from a place of empowerment, not fear WHAT’S NEXT: ‼️Finally eat pizza and ice cream without the blood sugar roller coaster: Join our free live workshop . 💻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 | @riselyhealth TikTok: @lauren_bongiorno | @riselyhealth YT: Reclaim Your Rise SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW If Loren’s story helped you feel less alone, especially if you’ve been trying to “figure it out” for years but still feel stuck, subscribe and leave a review so more people with T1D can find conversations like this.

For decades, people living with Type 1 diabetes have asked the same question: what would life look like if my body made insulin again? In today’s episode, Lauren sits down with Katie Beth Hand (13 years with T1D) and Chris (diagnosed at 10 months old, living 35 years with T1D), two of only ten participants selected for the first cohort of the Eledon clinical trial at the University of Chicago. As Patients 9 and 10, they received an islet cell transplant alongside the investigational therapy Tegoprubart, designed to prevent the immune system from attacking transplanted cells. Now, for the first time in decades, they’re watching their blood sugars rise and come back down on their own, coming off basal insulin, dramatically reducing boluses, and navigating what it means to trust a body that suddenly responds differently. This is not hype or a guaranteed cure, but it may represent one of the most significant shifts in Type 1 diabetes research in over 30 years. WHAT WE COVER: What daily life looked like before the trial How they found the Eledon trial and what screening week in Chicago involved What actually happens during an islet cell transplant Why Tegoprubart may change the future of islet transplantation Mixed Meal Tolerance Tests, C-peptide, and what their data shows The transition off basal insulin and how they are “protecting” the new islets The emotional side: “Do I still say I have Type 1?” Current Blocks to Scalability and what the Islet Act Is Support Links: 💻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. 🧑‍🧒‍🧒Our 8-week family group coaching program starts on March 25th. Enroll now to get the early bird discount that ends 2/28 Stay connected with us: Email us at: hello@riseyhealth.com IG: @lauren_bongiorno | @riselyhealth TikTok: @lauren_bongiorno | @riselyhealth Watch the full episode on our Youtube: Reclaim Your Rise SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW If Katie Beth and Chris’s story helped you feel seen, especially if you’ve been doing the work but still feel stuck in fear, burnout, or unpredictable lows, subscribe and leave a review so more people can find these conversations.

In this episode, Abby Cooper (Risely’s Director of Coaching and a parent of a child with type 1 diabetes) sits down with Jessie Bennett, a mom of two in California whose 13-year-old son, Samuel, was diagnosed with T1D two years ago. Jessie opens up about what the first year really felt like: survival mode, numbness, and the constant, invisible fear of low blood sugar that can hijack your body and your mind. Together, Abby and Jessie talk about why this episode is intentionally different, because the goal is not to wait until everything feels “fixed” before you get support. Jessie shares what shifted through coaching: building a simple “order of operations” toolkit, learning to slow down the spiral, and redefining progress as being able to live even when fear still shows up. WHAT WE COVER: What the first 6 to 12 months after a child’s diagnosis can feel like, and why it’s normal How fear of low blood sugar shows up physically, emotionally, and in decision-making The “invisible” anxiety parents carry, even when they look calm on the outside Why coaching is not about erasing fear, but changing how you live alongside it A practical toolkit for making decisions: insulin on board, trend, and “I have what I need to handle this” Redefining progress when you’re still in the middle, without rushing yourself to a finish line KEY TAKEAWAYS: 1️⃣ Fear is protective, but it comes with a cost. The goal is not to shame it away. It is to stop letting it run the whole day (or night). 2️⃣ Real change comes from experience, not explanation. Tools, repetition, and safety-building moments are what rewire confidence. 3️⃣ Progress you can’t measure still matters. Letting your child go play at 110, trusting the plan, and staying regulated, those wins change your whole family. WHAT’S NEXT: 💻Learn more about our T1D parent coaching. 📧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 | @riselyhealth TikTok: @lauren_bongiorno | @riselyhealth YT: Reclaim Your Rise SUBSCRIBE & REVIEW: If Jessie’s story helped you feel seen, especially if you’re making progress but still feel fear hanging around, subscribe and leave a review so more people can find these conversations.