Episode 344 - Doing Well with Diabetes: Kerry Murphy

Episode 4 of Doing Well with Diabetes Season 2 features Kerry Murphy, wife and mother to multiple people with type 1 diabetes and founder of Follow T1Ds, who explains how her long, layered exposure to T1D—from her sister-in-law and husband to her niece and daughter—pushed her from terrified observer to frontline advocate. She describes the collision between modern diabetes tech (CGMs, pumps, data-driven care) and school systems still operating on 1990s protocols, culminating in nurses refusing to follow CGM data during the school day. After discovering Department of Justice rulings that treating CGM follow as a reasonable ADA accommodation applies nationwide, she built Follow T1Ds around three demands: follow T1D CGMs, follow parent input, and follow federal law. The conversation covers how parents can move from raw fear and frustration to strategic advocacy, why labeling kids “non-compliant” ignores context and equity, and why school nurses are often the only line of real safety for some students. Kerry’s long-term aim is systems change so that parents don’t have to become de facto lawyers and policy experts just to keep their kids safe at school. Chapters 00:40 – Kerry Murphy and Follow T1Ds 01:47 – Kerry’s Deep Family History With Type 1 Diabetes 04:58 – Screening Her Sons, Avoiding DKA, and Early Symptom Hindsight 08:32 – Watching From the Sidelines, Then Becoming a Caregiver Herself 09:38 – Kindergarten Clash: Modern Tech vs 1990s School Protocols 14:27 – DOJ/ADA Rulings and the Three Pillars of Follow T1Ds 23:22 – How Parents Navigate Fear, Gaslighting, and Hard Conversations With Schools 30:32 – “Non-Compliant” Kids, Equity, and Why School Nurses Must Step Up 38:21 – Long-Term Vision: Systems Change So Parents Don’t Have to Be Lawyers Resources: https://followt1ds.org/ Kerry’s Instagram