Copy of Nick’s TestimonyBelow is the testimony, Nick gave for the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs about diabetes research.
Good morning. My name is Nick Jonas, and I’d like to thank you for having me here today. I’d like to share my story of living with type 1 diabetes, and talk about the need to fund research to find a cure.
First, I would like to thank you, Senator Collins, for chairing this hearing and for being such a champion for all of us with diabetes. Everyone here today for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation’s Children’s Congress is grateful for your leadership on the Senate Diabetes Caucus and your commitment to people with type 1 diabetes. We are lucky to have you pushing for policies that will bring us closer to a cure.
In one way, or another I have spent most of my life performing. I’ve been writing songs since I can remember, and I love sharing my passion for music. As a little kid, I sang in the choir in my dad’s church, and then performed on Broadway. As the Jonas Brothers, my brothers Joe, Kevin and I have written songs, made albums and toured the country, playing our music for people all over America.
It was during a concert tour in 2005 that I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. My brothers were the first to notice that I had lost a lot of weight – fifteen pounds in two weeks. I was thirsty all the time and had a bad attitude, which isn’t like me at all because I’m a really positive person. It would have been easy to blame my symptoms on a hectic schedule. But my family knew I had to get to a doctor.
The normal range for blood sugar is between 70 and 120. When we got to the doctor’s office, we learned that my blood sugar was over 700. The doctor said I had type 1 diabetes, but I had no idea what that meant. The first thing I asked her was, “Am I going to die?” She assured me that I wasn’t going to die, but that I’d have to manage this disease for the rest of my life. We went right to the hospital where I spent three days, including a crash course in getting my blood glucose levels in control and living with diabetes.
It hasn’t been easy, but diabetes technology has really helped me to manage my diabetes. At first, I took insulin shots, but it was just too hard on the road to give myself shots. I switched to a pump, which has been great. Since then, my average blood glucose levels have come down, and I’m able to use the pump to better estimate how much insulin I need based on the carbs I eat. I am also considering a continuous glucose monitor, but for now, I still prick my finger to check my blood sugar. I do that up to 12 times a day, including right before I began this testimony.
While technology has made it much easier for me to manage my diabetes, technology is not a cure. Insulin is not a cure. Like everyone here today, I know that the promise of a cure lies only in research. I am grateful that Congress renewed the Special Diabetes Program last year, which has helped researchers make important discoveries into what causes type 1 diabetes. This vital program has also funded research to test new drugs and therapies that could treat or cure patients with type 1 diabetes, and may even lead to an artificial pancreas one day. I ask that each of you join me in supporting the renewal of the Special Diabetes Program next year so that the researchers can continue their work on a cure for our disease. My life depends on it. All our lives depend on it.
After I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, I wrote a song called A Little Bit Longer about dealing with diabetes. I’d like to submit a copy of the full song for the record, but I’d like to read one of the verses, which explains my outlook on life with diabetes:
All this time goes by
Still no reason why
A little bit longer
And I’ll be fine
Waitin’ on a cure
But none of them are sure
A little bit longer
And I’ll be fineDiabetes has changed my life. But I know that I’ve benefited from the government’s investment in diabetes research. With the help of Congress, I’ll only have to wait a little bit longer for a cure.
In the meantime, I’ve decided not to let diabetes slow me down. In just the last two months, my brothers and I launched a new TV show, released our third album and began a world concert tour. My approach to managing diabetes is to focus on simple wins — little things I can do each day to achieve my goals. Over time, these everyday victories can make a big difference in your life — just like every research advancement moves us along on our path to a cure. While on that path, I want to be a positive face for diabetes. I want to show kids with type 1 diabetes – like all the kids sitting with me today – that they can live with diabetes and still make their dreams come true.
Thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today, and thank you for your commitment to diabetes research. With your help, a little bit longer and we will all be fine.
Source: Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, Bekah
Nick is truly and inspiration to me, i want to find a cure for diabetes i want to help!
omg.. =’)
“With your help, a little bit longer and we will all be fine.”
he is an amazing boy…
his mom and dad must be very proud of him…
OMJ nick i am crying right now u are so inspiring
He’s truly amazing.
I love him with all of my heart.
He really has grown up, he’s no longer a little boy anymore.
He’s grown up to be a strong, mature, inspirational man.
If only there was a way to help…
Imagine the courage it must take to go before all those people, twice his age like he’s done.
If perfection could be explained, Nick Jonas would be the only way how.
*I meant to also add, how proud I am of him.
With all he does, he still has to death with diabetes every day.
And he pulls through it each day without a complaint.
I only wish I was the one who had it(diabetes) instead of him….
He brought me to tears. He is such an amazing guy. It’s hard to believe that he is only 16 when you watch him do something like this.
i wanna cry right now.
this kid is so inspiring,
he makes any bad situation seem like a good thing, and thats why i love him :)
i thought i had diabetes it was scary i had like the same symtoms as nick lose of weight, thirsty and bad attitude i was so scared to tell my parents i went to my best friend who has diabetes i was like could u test my blood sugar i think im having symtoms of diabetes so she did and my blood sugar was like 60 and normals 70 she said i had a low blood sugar but its nothing to worry about u dont have diabetes u just have a low blood sugar it was because i was staying up really late and wasn’t eating normally cause i was super busy she just told me to rest a while so i did and just relaxed and we had a sleep over the next day she checked me again and my blood sugar was normal she got me to eat a good meal haha that was scary though
I am so proud of him, he did amazing. I couldnt tell that he was a little nervous, but who wouldn’t be? It is so amazing that he still makes the time to do something so important even while they are on tour. This is why so many people look up to him.
I am so proud of Nick. I would never be able to get up in front of people, like Ashley said, twice his age and share his story. The amount of courage he has is amazing. That speech was truly inspirational, as is everything he does. Like all of you who commented on this video, I want to help. Nick Jonas is a hero in my eyes. He’s so strong. I hope he knows that we are all here for him. I wish there were some way to make it easier for him…but he never ever complains. It’s honestly amazing, and I thank God for Nick Jonas every single day.
OMG this makes me wanna cry, he is so inspirational.
I feel so proud of him and i don’t even knwo him, just imagine how is parents feel.
i love Nick and i just want to help him out, he’s a special man who i love with all my heart
wow im crying. he is such an insperation to everyone.
And they ask me why i love Nick Jonas….. =’)
I’m proud of him, proud of being his fan, he’s such a special person. He doesn’t seem like he is 16 he is a MAN a mature and special man; he’s an inspiration for so many people.
I wish I could have diabetes instead of him, he doesn’t deserves it but he still strong and trying to find a cure, he’s really THE BEST.
That’s why I love him and I wish I could help him in some way.
Wish Nick the best and keep rocking our world <33
iim sO prOud of hiim!!!!
everybOdy asks me why i lOve hiim, nd thiis is oNe of the miiliOns of reasOns why i lOve hiim with all my heart!!!
thanks 2 hiim im nOt afraiid abOut diiabetes anymOre,cuz my grandpas had iit sO, its posible that i could have it 2!
he’s the best guY iin the whole wide wOrld dOnt u think??
i wOuld dO anythiing 4 hiim!!
i just saiid it but………..
IM SO PROUD OF HIM!!!!!!!!
yeah, he’s has to be the president One day
I cried!
This is one of the many reasons i love nick jonas. I am literally in tears after watching this speech. He is such an inspiration to everyone with diabetes, and anyone who is going through a hard time. I am sosososo proud of him, for helping, and sharing his story. It took alot of guts to talk in front of all those people all older than him, and he delivered it well, and it was a beautiful speech. Nick, never change, you are amazing, and i will forever, and always be a fan!
Márcia, there is a place you could join in on facebook about all his updates and why us fans think he really isn’t 16. and michelle, yes he has to be one day.
OMG I love him
That was so insperational
He is so strong and such an awesome guy
Alot of people out their hate him for no intire reason
I hate people like that
He is such an inspiration
I was scared of diabetes, cause my grandma has it and my parents once said that I could get it someday(based on how i ate)but Nick shows that anyone can deal with anything as long as they set their hearts to it
Hes my hero and I love him so much
I almost cried when he said
“A Little Bit Longer An We Will All Be FIne”
GOD BLESS HIM!
Watching this, it almost makes me wish I had Diabetes, because in my eyes Diabetes has been a blessing to him because it motivated him into reaching his dreams, it gave him a push so that he can challenge life itself, and show that he is strong enough to face this. It has also been a blessing to us, his fans, who see hope and inspiration every second, every time we see him or hear his voice, it’s like a wakeup call, a voice of reason that makes you rethink of all the challenges you’ve given up when they weren’t even that challenging. It makes me wish I had Diabetes, because then I’d have a reason to fight and a cause to stand up for, it’d give me the opportunity of touching people and help them cope with their hardships, but then again, we don’t have Diabetes, but we still remain touched by him, inspired even, he fought not only for himself, but for us as well, for those who have diabetes and those who don’t, for those who are going through rough times and those who are taking life for granted, which make me come to the realization that I don’t have to have Diabetes so I can fight, I can fight for life, fight for everything I believe in, embrace the days as the come and never give up, because I know that there are people going through more than anything I’ll ever go through and they are still going on. God bless you Nick, you are our fire.
Salma,
You shouldn’t wish for diabetes when people with diabetes are trying to cure it to begin with. Honestly, you can just support and fight just as hard for a cure without it.
That was my conclusion (:
He is an amazing MAN. =)
oh my damn
he’s gonna make me cry
The man has a way with words…
But why in the written stuff does it say third?
i was trippen out from that.
I thought he said third but then i watched the vid and he sure enough said forth. =] love him
There is really nothing left to say. Nick Jonas is … incredible. All that he has done in his life, all that he is doing, all that he is… is nothing short of a miracle. He has come so far, fought so hard, and will still fight for all that he so rightfully deserves, all that every child with diabetes deserves… a cure.
The cure is out there, somewhere. And, as if all that he has done to inspire and encourage the children of this world wasn’t so far beyond incredible, Nick Jonas will fight. He is always fighting. Everyday.
One day, one day… he will win his fight.
And I hope, as do we all, that that day will come soon.
Man he has helped me through my diabetes so much! Can’t believe hes only 16!
Brought me to tears, 1 boy 1 song, a milion people inspired!- so true…
xox
Oh and to everyone wishing they had it DON’T it is alot harder than people think.
xox
nick you are amazing!!!!
jonas brothers = amazing boys!!!
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