Josh Kapp

== Profile ==

Name: Josh Kapp
Age: 23
Years with T1D: 5 years
Age at Diagnosis: 18
From: San Jose, CA
Years climbing: 5 years
Favorite type of climbing: Bouldering
Goals: I’d like to get as strong as possible while finishing up college and hopefully send some hard problems around the country.
Contact: [email protected]

== Bio ==

Climbing and diabetes are both equally important in my life and developed fairly synchronously when I was 18. Around the time I was graduating high school I began to have some strange symptoms such as fatigue, weight loss, and extreme thirst, which I attributed to having an active lifestyle and mostly shrugged it off. After about a month of symptoms and lifestyle changes, due to the symptoms, I agreed to see a doctor. The doctor’s visit was relatively short, I was diagnosed with Type-1 Diabetes, gave me an injection of insulin, and scheduled a follow up. The diagnosis depressed me but the relief of having the symptoms disappear was amazing.

I was pretty depressed following the diagnosis because in general I ate well and had an active lifestyle my whole life, basically I felt I didn’t deserve it and that my life was ruined. However about a month after the diagnosis I came across some climbing videos and thought it was the greatest thing I’ve ever seen, I was inspired as I watched the control and strength of the climbers. I ended up going to a climbing gym near my home and was instantly hooked. I found everything about climbing incredible and climbed as often as possible, and every day I was able to watch myself strengthen physically and mentally.

Climbing has made me realize that diabetes isn’t an inhibitor in my life, and the only thing that is going to hold me back from accomplishing something is in my head. After 5 years of diabetes and climbing I finally feel like I am getting a handle on both, but I love the fact that I am learning every day.

Diabetes has had a domino effect that changed everything about my life, I became a motivated individual that included working hard to get into college, something that I never imagined I could do. I want other people with diabetes to realize that anything is possible and being diagnosed with diabetes isn’t the end of life as you know it but the beginning of a life that can include anything imaginable. Climbing and diabetes gave me the confidence and motivation to be an individual I am proud of and want to be, and I don’t think I’d give up either one of them for anything.