Bears Quarterback Jay Cutler Tells His Diabetes Story

Rising star reveals emotions around diagnosis and how he's managing diabetes in the NFL

CHICAGO - As NFL quarterback Jay Cutler fought through illness during the 2007 season - constantly fatigued, losing 35 pounds, in what was later diagnosed as type 1 diabetes - he thought he might be dying.

That's one of the revelations we hear from the Pro Bowl quarterback in a series of new Web videos about his life with diabetes, launched today on www.chicagobears.com. The videos are also available at www.touchdownsfordiabetes.com and www.jaycutlersix.com.

Produced by Eli Lilly and Company (Lilly), a worldwide leader in diabetes research, the "Jay Cutler on Diabetes" webisode series takes us inside Cutler's life with diabetes on and off the field.

Episodes 1-3 were released today in conjunction with the Chicago Bears. The videos are part of Cutler's work with Lilly on the Touchdowns for Diabetes camp scholarship program (www.touchdownsfordiabetes.com).

Future episodes will be launched in November during American Diabetes Month and will focus on Cutler's efforts to connect with kids and families affected by diabetes. Lilly's award-winning documentary film crew began shooting the videos in January, when Cutler and Lilly kicked off their national offseason tour of children's hospitals.

In the episodes released today, Cutler describes being sick but not knowing what was wrong as he played through his first season as a starting quarterback in the NFL (then with the Denver Broncos).

"I kept it a secret for a while - obviously a lot longer than I should have," Cutler says in the videos. "I thought it was something I was just going to bounce back from. A part of me just didn't want to know...I didn't know if I was going to continue to be able to play football."

Cutler also talks about how he learned to manage the disease while becoming an elite NFL quarterback - and how he wants to connect with kids.

"It's there every day, no matter where you go. You wake up with it, you go to sleep with it. Over time, you get used to it, and it becomes part of you. I'm not to that point yet," he says.

"I'd like to use my story to be able to inspire kids that get diabetes. They think it's the end of the world, they think can't have dreams, do what they want to do. But that's entirely false."

To view Episodes 1-3 of the "Jay Cutler on Diabetes" series, visit www.chicagobears.com, www.touchdownsfordiabetes.com or www.jaycutlersix.com.