Your Best T1D Year

SHOW NOTES:
You slept seven hours. By any reasonable measure, that should be enough. You woke up feeling like you slept four. You weren't imagining it.
This episode breaks down sleep stages -- light sleep, deep sleep, REM -- and explains exactly where type 1 diabetes disrupts the sequence. The most important stage, slow-wave sleep (NREM Stage 3), is where your body does its deepest repair work: growth hormone release, cellular recovery, immune restocking, brain waste clearance. T1D adults get measurably less of it. Not because of anything you're doing wrong, but because T1D interrupts sleep architecture in ways that are documented in the research and that most T1D people were never told about.
This is Week 6 of the While You Were Sleeping Challenge. This is the episode that explains WHY you're tired even when the hours were there.
In this episode:
  • The 90-minute sleep cycle and what each stage actually does for your body
  • Why slow-wave sleep is the stage that matters most -- and why T1D adults get less of it
  • How every alarm, partial arousal, and cortisol spike sends your brain back to Level 1
  • The difference between "not enough hours" and "disrupted sleep stages" -- they feel the same but aren't
  • How to check your deep sleep percentage if you have a wearable
This Week's Challenge: If you have a wearable that tracks sleep stages, check last night's deep sleep percentage. The average for most adults is 15-20%. Just know your number.
Helpful resources and newsletter: https://yourbestt1dyear.com
Connect with Neil: TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@the.betes Instagram: https://instagram.com/thebetes Facebook: https://facebook.com/neilgreathouse LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/neil-greathouse-a607b912 Website: https://yourbestt1dyear.com
Books on Amazon: Type 1 Diabetes – One Day at a Time: https://a.co/d/6UHooWJ Type 1 Diabetes – True Stories: https://a.co/d/dfIlyI1

What is Your Best T1D Year?

Managing Type 1 Diabetes doesn’t have to be overwhelming.

Each 5-minute episode of Your Best T1D Year is packed with practical strategies, mindset shifts, and a little humor to help you feel more in control and less frustrated by diabetes.

Hosted by Neil Greathouse, this Monday, Wednesday, and Friday podcast delivers quick, relatable episodes that make learning about T1D effortless - so you can build small wins that lead to big changes.

📅 New episodes drop every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

🎧 Subscribe now and start making diabetes management feel easier - one small habit at a time.