Being a Division I track & field athlete is hard. Being a Division I track & field athlete and a Type 1 diabetic takes hard to a whole new level.
Grace Daun, a sophomore high jumper on the Illinois State track & field team, was eight years old and in the third grade when she first found out she had diabetes. Finding out at such a young age, she had no idea what it was, what it meant and how it would change her life.
"I really didn't know what diabetes was at all," Daun said. "I knew my grandpa had it and that's actually how I found out I had it. He noticed the symptoms I was having and told my parents that I should probably go to the hospital and get checked out."
It was at the hospital, where Daun received four IVs and was attached to multiple machines, where what her grandpa had suspected was confirmed – Daun had Type 1 diabetes.
Diabetes is when your pancreas doesn't produce insulin and you need insulin for the breaking down of carbohydrates. A normal person's pancreas would produce insulin and regulate your blood sugar when you eat anything, but Daun's doesn't do that. It's because of this that Daun has to take extra steps to make sure her blood sugar stays between 100 and 120. If it's not, she feels super sick.
"My pancreas doesn't work at all, so I have to monitor my blood sugar by pricking my finger before meals," Daun said. "I don't really have to take shots like most people do because I have an insulin pump and a continuous glucose monitor called a Dexcom, which is the big thing on my arm that everybody sees when I work out or compete."
If it wasn't for the Dexcom, no one would probably notice that there is anything different about Daun. Even as a Type 1 diabetic, she doesn't let that impact her success or slow down her progress. In fact, her diabetes might event play a positive role in her life as a Division I student-athlete.
"I think it's been super positive because it has given me a routine and a schedule which helps me a lot," Daun said. "I make sure I eat three meals a day, so I have the proper energy to go to practice fully energized. I think just becoming more mature at a younger age has really helped and has also helped with my athletic performances."
During her time as a Redbird, Daun has found great success even with a shortened track & field season last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In just two indoor seasons, Daun has finished as the Missouri Valley Conference women's high jump runner-up twice, taking second to only her teammate both times. The two-time All-Valley performer currently is tied for the sixth-best mark in Illinois State indoor track & field history, clearing 1.76 meters (5-9.25 ft.) at the MVC Indoor Championships at the end of February.
All of this success did not come without challenges, however.
"Working through the struggles of your bad days is the most difficult part of having diabetes and competing at this level," Daun said. "I do not like to see myself as different than anybody else so if I go to a meet and my blood sugar is high or low, I just have to work through my body and what it's telling me. Some days I do have to stop and take a recovery day or a mental health day because it can be so deteriorating."
Even with these struggles and challenges, Daun has come out stronger because of her diabetes.
"Overall, I think it just makes me a stronger person, being in tune with my body more and listening to my body at such a young age and just knowing myself more," she said.
As for what's next for Daun, she'll be competing in her first collegiate outdoor season this weekend at the Ole Miss Classic on March 26-27. With the support of her parents, coaches and teammates, there's no doubt that Daun will accomplish whatever she puts her mind to this season and throughout the rest of her track & field career at Illinois State.
