A bit of Inspiration

Yesterday I received an email from the doctor that was sent out to all of his patients. It was just reminding us that sometimes it is not about making Diabetes the fight but about working together to manage it. This was a bit of inspiration for me. I have been blessed with an amazing team at my daughters school that works with me every step of the way and are really out to make things as simple as possible. I realize not all Diabetes families are this lucky and have to really push to get their kids what they need in order to manage their Diabetes at school. But keeping a good rapport with the school staff is very important.
He quoted Prof Abdul Kalam, former President of India, "You have to dream before your dreams can come true". I thought of this quote in terms of we have to try before we can expect to succeed. If we approach a situation with a positive outlook and strive to settle issues in a pleasant manner it often works. However if we take an angry, my way or the highway, approach it sets a negative tone and the issue may become worse. I am not one to sit back and be taken advantage of but I have learned over the years sometimes you must step back and hear other people out.
When you deal with something, like Diabetes, on a daily basis it is sometimes hard to remember there are people who don't understand. They may not understand what the disease is, what it entails or how important it is for your child to be able to eat a snack at a moments notice. It is hard to know if you're never taught, realistically in most cases a child doesn't face the risk of passing out from not being able to eat a snack. Individuals with Type 1 sometimes need a snack instantly, if their sugar is very low and they do not address it immediately they may very well pass out. Instead of letting this upset you take the time to explain and make it simple. Educating anyone about this disease make it easier for yourself and others.

Diagnosis Anniversary

So looking at hitting the year mark in a few weeks has made me consider what we are going to do. I have heard of many Type 1 Diabetics celebrating their diagnosis anniversary, does this seem odd to you? it's ok if it does, I've heard "what do you mean?" and "why would you want to make a point of remembering?" But hear me out my response to why would you want to make a point to remember is REALLY simple... she can't forget I mean really she can't like EVER "forget" there are a few hours a day, as in between meals, where she can forget but there's never more than a few waking hours where it doesn't nag her and trust me when I say there is NEVER a time she can afford to forget.
That being said I feel like the diagnosis anniversary is kind of a big deal she (we) have came a LONG way! we have a lot to celebrate, she is ALIVE! we have met Type 1 and kicked it's *** I mean why not grab the bull by the horns look it in the eye and laugh in it's face. It's more of a yeah you tried to take us down but we overcame. I mean this girl has been through so much the past year with learning how to test her blood sugar, change a lancet,  count carbs, give injections, figure her carb ratio, adjust her carb ratio, program an insulin pump, test for ketones, put in an infusion site, bolus, basal, (trust me there's more but I think you get the point), she's dealt with having to regulate her teenage life and stop when she's having fun to take care of her sugar why not celebrate that she is doing super fantastic??!?!
We have learned a lot too, like how awesome our friends and family are and how important a supportive family is. Her younger sister (5 years old) has tested her sugar for her, knows what carbs and insulin are, can tell you her sister's pancreas doesn't work (it seriously makes me smile every single time she explains to someone her sister has Type 1 Diabetes) and knows where to find the Glucagon! As a family we have all embraced and went with it and as a family we will all celebrate
So I think the decision at this point is a family dinner out, her choice of where and the family will celebrate her; her knowledge, growth and accomplishments. She deserves it and we all deserve to do it with her!

Hey Sugar Sugar...

So here's the number one misconception about Type 1 Diabetes...you can't eat sugar. Though we are not okay with our kids inhaling every sugary substance they can get their hands on we allow treats and aren't over the top restrictive. Since our oldest daughter was diagnosed with Type 1 I can't even count the number of people that have assumed all she has to do is quit eating sugar.
When she was diagnosed I can't say my thoughts weren't all that different. Therefore I can't fault anyone who doesn't know. We make it a habit though to take every opportunity to educate people and nearly every time we have been met with "wow, I had no idea!" So today we debunk the myth. The reason for this myth is because Type 2 Diabetes can be controlled by diet and exercise (with a lot of work). Since Type 1 and  Type 2 share the Diabetes label many assume they are the same. They really aren't it's like apples and oranges, they're both fruits but not close to the same.
Type 1 Diabetes is not controllable by diet! I know it's hard to believe but it isn't, not even close. No matter what a Type 1 Diabetic eats they will always need insulin. To be fair a Type 1 Diabetic may need less insulin depending on what they eat and the amount of insulin needed is different for everyone.
Exercise is also a factor, exercising causes the body to be more sensitive to insulin. This simply means that the same amount of insulin taken while not exercising may act differently during or after exercise. For my daughter this means that she needs to have a higher blood glucose level prior to exercise so her blood glucose levels do not go low during exercise or she can supplement her sugar during exercise. The other catch here is that there is no consistency in other words what works today may not work tomorrow.
So there it is myth debunked; Type 1 Diabetics can eat everything anyone else can(of course a healthy diet is best for everyone) they just have to count the Carbs and take enough insulin to cover them AND Type 1 Diabetics can exercise they just have to be aware of their blood glucose levels so they don't experience low blood sugar.