Nick Jonas opens up about 21 years of living with type 1 diabetes: “scared to death”

When it comes to living with a serious condition, Nick Jonas is about as public as it gets. The pop star and actor has stepped up again, this time penning a particularly frank letter for a diabetes awareness campaign that's got fans — and plenty of others — talking. If you've missed it, this one's got a bit more heart (and specific detail) than your usual bit of celebrity PR fluff.

Hello, old friend. How long has it been? Twenty-one years. Twenty-one years, and you haven’t changed a bit. It’s funny how often we talk.

The letter, part of Dexcom's 'A Letter to Diabetes' initiative for National Diabetes Awareness Month and World Diabetes Day, sees Jonas writing directly to the condition he's been dealing with since he was thirteen. He's thirty-four now, and the whole thing reads more like a conversation than a confession.

Managing the Unrelenting Routine

Jonas doesn't sugar-coat (no pun intended) the grind of living with type 1 diabetes. He admits it means constant, often tedious self-management: playing watchdog to his own blood glucose via his phone, fussing over every bite because there's always a carb count to consider, and fiddling with his insulin pump for every meal. According to Jonas, there are hundreds of these 'little decisions' every single week — and together, they add up to what he calls a real, full-on relationship between his body, mind, and devices.

Every few minutes, honestly, staring at my phone to see where my glucose is. Reaching for my pump to bolus because I’m about to eat something with 17 carbs. Those are just a couple of the hundreds of little decisions I make every week.

One of the standout sections? When Jonas compares his unpredictable health swings — days when everything is in sync, and those when nothing behaves, no matter how careful he is — to the complicated dynamics of family. Sometimes supportive, sometimes frustrating, but always irreversibly part of his life.

Why Speak Out Now?

Having a platform isn't something Jonas takes lightly, judging by the letter. He spells out his motivation clearly: he's not just venting. It's about showing newly diagnosed kids (including those scared out of their wits in hospital beds) that someone out there is handling it all and still managing to chase their dreams. When he says he keeps telling his story, it's for the young ones with their own recent diagnosis, so they don't feel completely out on their own.

Finding Connection and Community

He doesn't gloss over the impact community has had on his experience. Back at school, Jonas often felt on the outside — like no one else was quite living the same reality. That started to shift when he began opening up about it and actually meeting others managing type 1 diabetes as well. It's a detail anyone who's felt isolated will get straight away. Jonas goes so far as to say that it was these conversations, more than anything else, that gave him a sense of belonging.

• Nick Jonas was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at 13
• He's now 34, reflecting on 21 years with the condition
• The letter is part of Dexcom's awareness campaign
• He credits connecting with others for helping him feel less alone
• He's determined to keep speaking up, especially for young people just diagnosed

In closing his letter, Jonas thanks his autoimmune foe for the tough lessons — the kind nobody asks for but that he reckons he's learned from all the same. He promises to keep telling his story, hoping it helps someone else feel just a bit less alone with their own battle.