Sean Busby - Riding on Insulin
Sean Busby is a professional snowboarder living with Type 1 diabetes (T1D). He travels to remote corners of the world on snowboarding expeditions. While training for the 2010 Olympics, Sean endured a complicated diagnosis of T1D. He has since founded Riding On Insulin, a nonprofit organization that hosts action sports programs for children, teenagers, and adults living with T1D. Sean’s mission is to inspire children and teens to pursue their passions despite diabetes.
“Aside from insulin, being around others who have Type 1 diabetes is the greatest management tool I’ve found,” Busby said. “My advice is to find a diabetes camp and spend time with others who are living with the same struggles and successes. Through shared experience, we find the strength to thrive despite diabetes.”
Locally, Sean hosts an all-day camp at Wachusett Mountain Ski Area in Princeton, MA, every February for young people with T1D and their siblings.
In 2014, Sean became the first person with T1D to snowboard the backcountry of all seven continents.
His story & photos are displayed on our Diabetes Wall of Honor on the second-floor hallway of the Ambulatory Care Center (ACC Building), leading to the adult diabetes clinic. The collection of inspirational success stories is adjacent to the patient waiting area. Honorees include Nick Jonas, professional athletes, Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, and Mary Tyler Moore.