Tyson Sunnerberg

My T1D Story

My name is Tyson Sunnerberg, I am co-owner and head personal trainer of Type One Fitness, a non profit fitness facility with a mission to help T1D families. We are located in Norwell, MA. I have been a trainer for 18 years and founded Type One in 2012 and Type One Fitness in 2022. I live in Hanson with my wife and 3 kids.
In May of 2001, at 21, I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. I was a junior at UMASS Amherst, about 6 weeks after a major shoulder surgery. The symptoms started with frequent urination and then increased thirst. Rapid weight loss followed and then came the vomiting my breakfast. Some blurry vision and laying on the couch in a house full of 21 year olds celebrating the end of a school year. WebMd pointed directly to T1D. My mother said no way and reached out to my orthopedic surgeon to see if this was somehow a response to the surgery. It wasn’t too long after that she called back and told me to have a roommate take me to the local hospital. Cooley Dickinson baby!! The registering nurse asked all the questions and said it was diabetes and since it’s not in my family, said “you must have got the short straw”. My maternal grandmother had a thyroid issue. My blood sugar was 498 (not bad but definitely had ketones). Three days later, I missed my sisters college graduation, my mom came up and cried like crazy, and I had learned more about math, science, health, exercise and nutrition than I had in my previous 21 years. . Then I went home and had a summer of learning all there was to learn. I worked, and worked out. Determined to not let my diagnosis slow me down.
Fast forward. I became a personal trainer because of diabetes. I had completely changed my life and thought process around. I started a non profit that does obstacle races to raise money to help fund a research project for a cure.
I had my kids enrolled in a family history study, starting in 2013, to see if they carried autoantibodies for diabetes. Only my youngest did. All of them. Damn.

Then October 13th, 2017 happened. Elyse, then 5. A few bathroom accidents one week. Check the blood sugars. HIGH. Stomach drop. Tears. Luckily no other symptoms. Got to the hospital where they confirmed what I knew. No ketones though. Luckily with my knowledge and the lack of ketones, she got some Lantus and we were able to go home and sleep, then go to Children’s Hospital for a weekend of learning. Again, lucky for no hospital admittance. Wife and I have heads spinning, even though I know everything the doctors are spewing. I had passed on many traits to my daughter, this one I wasn’t happy about but it wasn’t my fault. I didn’t hate diabetes when I had it. Now, I despise it.
We are both doing well. I started pumping in 2010 with the Omnipod, transitioned to Medtronic in 2014 and am currently on a Tandem/Dexcom just like Elyse.
My goal for her is to never feel out of place, or different. But at the same time teach her that being different is ok. My other job has been to help my wife realize that the only thing consistent with diabetes is that it’s inconsistent, and we can’t control the numbers all the time, we just do our best.

At the end of the day, I don’t let diabetes control me

I’m not happy I have it, but it put me in the position I am today. With work and, ultimately, my family. I want a cure, but more so now that my daughter has it. I also have been put into the position of knowing what it takes to have a child with T1D.

The community support needed to get through school, friendships, field trips, insurance, and many other unforeseen situations. This has allowed me to be a resource for individuals and families that are just trying to get through it all, and hopefully my daughter will follow in my footsteps and be a mentor in the T1D community.

-Tyson