{"id":1513,"date":"2025-04-17T13:52:10","date_gmt":"2025-04-17T13:52:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/curiousdrive.com\/?p=1513"},"modified":"2025-04-22T11:57:29","modified_gmt":"2025-04-22T11:57:29","slug":"michelle-trachtenbergs-cause-of-death-should-be-a-warning-to-us-all","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/curiousdrive.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/17\/michelle-trachtenbergs-cause-of-death-should-be-a-warning-to-us-all\/","title":{"rendered":"Michelle Trachtenberg\u2019s cause of death should be a warning to us all"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\t\t\"Michelle\t<\/div>
We now know Michelle Trachtenberg’s cause of death (Picture: Gilbert Flores)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

When I heard that Michelle Trachtenberg died of diabetes<\/a> complications<\/a>, my heart sank.<\/p>\n

On February 26, the 39-year-old actress, best known for her roles as Dawn Summers in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Georgina Sparks in Gossip Girl, and figure skater Casey in Ice Princess, was found \u2018unconscious and unresponsive\u2019 by police in Manhattan.<\/p>\n

Now it has been determined that she died ultimately as a result of her diabetes mellitus, the City Office of Chief Medical Examiner told Deadline<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The coroner\u2019s office initially said her cause of death would remain undetermined as her family blocked an autopsy on religious grounds, but a toxicology report shed some light on the circumstances. <\/p>\n

While we don\u2019t know which type of diabetes Michelle was impacted by, the gut-wrenching circumstances surrounding her death hit me hard both as a type 1 diabetic and a lifelong fan of her work, having watched her star in Ice Princess when I was seven.<\/p>\n

I was diagnosed with the autoimmune condition in 2015, after months of symptoms. <\/p>\n

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The 39-year-old died in February (Picture: Michelle Trachtenberg\/Instagram)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I was so exhausted that I\u2019d come home from school every day and collapse into bed. I inexplicably dropped two dress sizes almost overnight – for which I was complimented and asked what diet I was on by an unassuming friend – and I had a constant, insatiable thirst.<\/p>\n

Initially, my doctor dismissed my worries and diagnosed me with oral thrush.<\/p>\n

Realising that a friend had previously experienced identical symptoms, it was only when my mum took me to the GP and demanded that they test my blood sugar that I finally received answers.<\/p>\n

And as a somewhat na\u00efve 17-year-old who thought I\u2019d live with a bill of clean health forever, I was shocked to be told I had a serious condition. <\/p>\n

From the GP\u2019s surgery, I went straight to the hospital, where the specialist told me that if I came in any later, I might not have survived. I cried, counting my blessings.<\/p>\n

And reading the circumstances surrounding Michelle\u2019s death has left me reflecting on what it means to live with a condition that can be so relentless.<\/p>\n

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I wear an insulin pump and CGM to monitor my type 1 diabetes (Picture: Eleanor Noyce)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In the 10 years since I was diagnosed, it\u2019s become increasingly apparent to me that people living with diabetes \u2013 in all their forms \u2013 are too often the butt of jokes.<\/p>\n

We\u2019re constantly misrepresented in the media, judged for our lifestyle choices, and interrogated about our medical history.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve been asked whether I \u2018was given too much sugar as a child\u2019, if I have the \u2018good type or the bad type,\u2019 and I\u2019ve had strangers on public transport question whether my insulin pump is a \u2018nicotine patch.\u2019<\/p>\n

And at the same time, I and countless other diabetics have had to listen to repeated jibes about our condition over the years \u2013 like gags about one particularly sugary treat giving someone instant diabetes,\u2019 or the infamous \u2018Diabeetus<\/a>\u2019 meme that\u2019s circulated on the internet for decades.<\/p>\n

Well diabetes is not, never has been, and never will be funny. It\u2019s a lifelong condition, and for type 1 specifically, there\u2019s still no cure.<\/a><\/p>\n

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Fans had previously raised concerns she looked \u2018sick\u2019 (Picture: Michelle Trachtenberg\/Instagram)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Shortly before her death, Michelle, who never went public about her diabetes and underwent a liver transplant last year, was publicly interrogated<\/a> over her appearance.<\/p>\n

Posting a selfie to Instagram in January 2024, she wrote in her caption: \u2018Fun fact. This is my face. Not malnutrition no problems. Why do you have [to] hate? Get a calendar.\u2019<\/p>\n

Fans had previously raised concerns she looked \u2018sick\u2019.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve also had people comment on my appearance due to diabetes, and now that we know that Michelle\u2019s cause of death was complications from the condition, we\u2019ve been given a reminder that this condition should be taken seriously, and continues to take precious lives like hers. <\/p>\n

And it\u2019s devastating.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\tWhat are the symptoms of type 1 diabetes?\t\t\t<\/h2>\n
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Diabetes UK urges the importance<\/a> of looking out for the symptoms of type 1 diabetes, which it labels the 4Ts:<\/p>\n