Advocate
AMANDA DEANS:
ALL ABOUT THE PEOPLE We continue our journey around the motu, meeting each region’s Youth and Type 1 Coordinator. In this issue, we meet Whakatū Nelson local, Amanda Deans.
Amanda Deans with her husband Jonathan and children, Tate and Lucia.
I
t’s not unusual for a region’s Youth and Type 1 Coordinator to also be a parent of a child with type 1, and Amanda Deans is no exception. After her son’s diagnosis, Amanda says she jumped right on board with getting involved with the then-Nelson branch, joining in with all the activities and support on offer. After a year of involvement, and becoming well-known around the branch, she says she was approached by the volunteer team to see if she’d like to take on the newly vacated role of area coordinator. ‘I jumped at the chance’, she says. Before Amanda had anything to do with diabetes, she worked as a food safety microbiologist, doing a number of food safety tasks, including testing food before it was released to the public, or for export, to microbiological safety standards. When children came along Amanda’s work/life balance needed to change. ‘It wasn’t an easy job to have with young children.’ Asked what she most enjoys about her job as Youth and Type 1 Coordinator, she quickly replies, ‘The people. It’s all about the people, not just the children with diabetes but their entire families.’
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DIABETES WELLNESS | Spring 2024
She says she and the volunteers have great relationships with the wider whānau. ‘We are expanding our reach to adults with type 1 diabetes in the community as well, forming some really great relationships there.’ Amanda has been Youth and Type 1 Coordinator for Whakatū for nearly four years, her region covering the Nelson Tasman district and beyond. ‘We’ve recently expanded to Marlborough, and people from the West Coast are invited to our events. Technically, they fall under Canterbury, but some will choose to come to the Nelson camp, some will choose to go to the Canterbury Camp. We’re
here if they need us.’ Growing up in Westport gives Amanda her passion for making sure isolated communities don’t miss out on support. INTRODUCTION TO DIABETES
Amanda understands what it’s like to be faced with having your child suddenly diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. ‘It was such a shock. We had our suspicions but never expected them to be confirmed. ‘Tate had really classic symptoms. He got thirsty and he started using the toilet more, and while we didn’t notice him get thinner we did notice he didn’t gain any weight. But the
