He began to miss the fun he used to have performing.
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One of his friends even carried around extra small bags of snacks in her backpack, just in case Clarke ever went low or wasn’t being quite as responsible as he could’ve been.Ī few years later, Clarke was in college at Missouri State University, feeling like all he was doing was working and going to school. He did, however, have a strong support network between his family and friends, which helped make it just a little bit easier. And adding in all the social pressures and the pressures that come with school and trying to fit in obviously did not help,” he said. “ It’s weird being young and trying to navigate diabetes. But after trying sports and not being able to really find his community there (complicated by the fact that he had diabetes), he got involved in musical theater and performing and really hit his stride. “I was one of those people, especially at that age – 15 or 16 years old and just entering high school – that tried everything to fit in,” said Clarke. However, being a young, queer teenager with diabetes isn’t exactly the easiest thing in the world. Thankfully, his care team was able to get him to a hospital and get his glucose levels down. “They checked my blood sugar, and it was 721,” he said. It wasn’t until one morning when he was in the shower getting ready for school – feeling really tired and out of it, so much so, he said, that he couldn’t even get out of the shower – that his mom finally took him to an urgent care clinic. No one in his family has type 1 diabetes, so they didn’t recognize these symptoms for what they really were. My mom actually thought that I had fallen into the wrong crowd and that I was just being rebellious because of the way I was acting.” “You know, that time in your life is already kind of stressful because of hormones, and some of the symptoms of type 1 are drastic mood swings and having to urinate a lot. “I was diagnosed when I was 15 during my freshman year of high school,” he said. Like many others with type 1, Daya Betty, whose real name is Trenton Clarke, was diagnosed as a teenager in 2009.
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Drag queens have been key members of the LGBTQ+ community for decades, but now, thanks to “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” people of all backgrounds are being introduced to drag.Īt six feet, five inches (yes, that’s before heels), Daya Betty – whose name is intentionally a play on the word “diabetes” – stands out not only for her height and for her glam, punk-rock ‘80s aesthetic, but also because she is the first queen in 14 seasons of the show to have type 1 diabetes. Anyone of any gender can be a drag queen, and it doesn’t always mean dressing up to look like a woman. However, “drag” itself is really just an art form, one without rules. These performers may lipsync to songs, do stand-up comedy, or dance – often in gay and queer bars. When many people think of a drag queen, they often picture a gay man who dresses up in wigs, makeup, and costumes to portray an exaggerated version of a woman in a performance. The winner receives $100,000, a year’s supply of makeup, and the title of America’s Next Drag Superstar.
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The 25-year-old queen, who has made her diabetes diagnosis part of her drag identity, hails from Springfield, Missouri, and was recently cast as a contestant on the latest season of “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” a reality TV show that has drag queens competing in challenges that include comedy, fashion design, singing, dancing, and more. In either case, we are referring to the same person.ĭaya Betty is a captivating sight. When referring to Daya Betty, Clarke’s stage persona, we use the pronouns she/her/hers. 7 on VH1.Įditor’s note: When referring to Trenton Clarke we use the pronouns he/him/his. Daya Betty, a 25-year-old drag queen from Springfield, Missouri, is showing the world that diabetes doesn’t have to stop you from doing whatever you want – including wearing a corset! Watch her compete on Season 14 of “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” premiering Jan.