Hi there! My name is Zoe Cook and shocker… I’m type 1!
Let me give you the real quick rundown:
- Diagnosed April 16, 2009 at age 10 (just passed the 10 year anniversary, whoop!)
- Currently on an OmniPod with Loop
- Also using Dexcom (Fun fact, I had the original first edition Dexcom and am now a Dexcom Warrior!)
Alright… now that we’ve got that out of the way, let me tell you a little more about the rest of me besides my lacking pancreas. Here are all the things I am:
A kiwi!
I was born in New Zealand to an English mother and Dutch father. They were backpacking around the world when they ‘paused’ in New Zealand for 5 years and had kids. My mom actually developed Type 1 at the age of 28 after getting the Hep. B vaccine so she could travel. After being diagnosed she was told to come off of all of her medication and BOOM, my brother arrived. 13 months later, so did I 🙂
An athlete!
I have always been into sports. Before high school, I swam, did gymnastics, karate, and played soccer. One I got to high school I settled into competitive tennis. I partially tore my knee so stopped playing during my senior year. My freshman year at UT I played handball and ran my first half marathon in January. My sophomore year at UT I started playing rugby. I currently still play for the Texas Women’s Rugby team. Hook ‘em!
A future doctor!
I have always wanted to go into medicine, ever since I told my parents I wanted to be a doctor at the age of 3. I’m now studying psychology as my undergrad, hopefully going to medical school in two or three years. I’m also an EMT and founder of the UT Community Emergency Response Team (CERT). I also work at two hospitals and research at our medical school. (I’ll spare you all the details, but if you can’t tell, I LOVE medicine…)
That about covers it for the basics about me. You’ll hopefully learn more about me as I write for Better Living Technologies and their blog. I’m super excited to get to know more of you as we continue to grow.