Type 1 Diabetes Medical Alert Bracelets Product Review

Type 1 Diabetes Medical Alert Bracelet

Since my 10 year old daughter was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, we're always on the lookout for products that can make her life easier and safer. The Type 1 Diabetes Medical Alert Bracelet by Living the Dream Goods is a product that can alert a stranger to her disease in case of an emergency. It is made of silicone and is easy to take on and off without help. It also won't discolor your skin. What I loved about it is that it's light weight, easy to travel with, and bright! The words written on it are visible and easy to read. One side reads ALERT Type 1 Diabetes and if your rotate it the other side reads Insulin Dependent.

My 10 year old daughter wore it for a day and found that it caused a lot more attention to her type 1 disease than she wanted. Her friends continuously asked her about it after noticing the bracelet. As such, she has preferred not to wear it unless she is doing an activity that is of greater risk for her safety such as swimming or white water rafting.  She's more likely to experience hypoglycemia (blood sugar low) with these types of activities. 

Overall, we found the Type 1 Diabetes Medical Alert Bracelet to be useful, especially for traveling and vacations. We loved that it's durable, waterproof, and colorful! We've lost a couple expensive medical bracelets on trips. This package includes four, so you have a back-up if you lose one. Highly recommend if planning a vacation where you don't need the extra worry of losing or misplacing a medical alert bracelet.

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Society Devaluing Children With Type One Diabetes

It's almost been three years since my daughter Madison was diagnosed with type one diabetes. I knew there was going to be challenges in her life, especially with managing her blood glucose levels. But I never imagined the lack of support and understanding by some in society.  This past summer, several people made comments like, "Maybe it's better if she's not in AIG (Academically or Intellectually Gifted Program). This way it is easier;" (easier on who? no matter if she's in AIG or not, her life will never be simply easy) or "If she were my daughter, I wouldn't put her under so much stress by having her in AIG," (first, she wants to be in AIG. second, stress is part of life and she needs to learn to deal with it no matter what age she is.) "Perhaps she should play recreational soccer, instead of competitive soccer because it's less stressful and it's more flexible." (not sure what world this guy lives in, but athletic games and tournaments will always entail some form of stress. and as she gets older, she is going to have to compete for jobs etc.)

I was blown away by their words, specifically the word easier. What about overcoming all odds? What about helping her reach her potential? What about looking at her true ability and being an advocate to help her succeed?

On top of it, this is what she wants and she is willing to deal with the stress that comes with succeeding and achieving her dreams.

Children with type one diabetes should be given the opportunity to succeed and perform their best at whatever they do. If they are smart enough to be in AIG's then create an environment that allows them to do so. If they are talented enough to play competitive soccer, help them make it happen. Especially if that is what they want.

I've never once thought that Madison couldn't do anything she put her mind to, even with having type one diabetes. Yes, it's not going to be as easy as someone who doesn't have her disease. But if she puts her mind to it, I truly believe she and any person living with type one diabetes can accomplish anything they put their mind too. They shouldn't be left out of success, even if it comes with more stress or they have to face competition.

Children with type one diabetes shouldn't be pushed to live an easier, less competitive life. They should be pushed and motivated to be the best at whatever they chose to do. And society should support them in the process.

Please share your stories of where someone suggested that you and / or your child take the easy road.

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Never a Normal Breakfast For My Daughter Who Has Type 1 Diabetes

This morning Madison asked me if she could have a Nutrigrain bar for breakfast. Her baby sister wanted one, why not her? I took a deep breath, dreading having to have this conversation and said, "That's a lot of carbs (24 to be exact) that most likely won't fill your belly." She frowned and then said, "Yea, your right." I've found Nutrigrain bars to be a great snack, but not to be very filling for a kid for breakfast, unless you eat two to three of them.

Every day Madison wakes up acting and being a normal kid. But as soon as she walks down the stairs for breakfast everything changes. See, she can't walk down the stairs without her blood glucose meter in hand and also her CGM (continuous glucose monitor). If she does, she can't eat until she gets it.

Before every meal and, every snack, Madison needs to check her blood glucose level. And if it's less than 225, she can have a kid-friendly 75 carb breakfast like pancakes and waffles and cereal. We've found that if she eats more than 75 carbs at a meal, she ends up getting a really bad headache, and even sometimes a stomach ache. If it's between 225 and 250, she can only have 50 carbs. And if it's over 250, she gets about 10 carbs and the rest has to be carb free.

My goal is to help Madison be as healthy as she can be and to live a long and healthy life. When her blood glucose is over 250 and she eats more than 10 carbs, her blood glucose shoots over 300. This to me is very unhealthy.

I'm very open to Madison on why she can't eat certain foods at certain times. She gets it. But not without a depressed face, which breaks my heart.

So this morning, with a blood glucose of 192, instead of a Nutrigrain bar, she had a bowl of cereal with milk and some blueberries added (55 carbs) and a side of strawberries and blueberries (15 carbs) = 70 carb breakfast.

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Dexcom G4 CGM for Type 1 Diabetes Review

I love the Dexcom G4 CGM! But I also am not the one with type 1 diabetes, or the one wearing it. It's my 9 year old daughter who is testing it and we've had some not so great moments with it. But the pros are outweighing the cons.


My daughters Dexcom is pink.

Madison was diagnosed 2 1/2 years ago with type 1 diabetes. Within 8 weeks we had her on an insulin pump, which made our lives easier (not great, but easier), with managing her type 1 diabetes. Last summer, I started to suggest that she try a continuous glucose monitor (CGM). She wasn't excited for several reasons:

1. It's another attachment. My daughter is an insulin pump user, which requires an inset to be attached to her body so insulin can flow from the insulin pump into her body. The CGM sensor attaches to your body and then wirelessly sends your blood sugar readings to a device that interprets and shows them in graph format.
2. With the Dexcom G4 CGM, you have another device to be responsible for. And they are pretty pricey to replace!

The reason I was pushing her to try it was because she started to experience loss of hypoglycemia sensitivity. She wasn't feeling her lows. A month ago, after having quite a few blood sugar lows of 60 and then one at 41 where she didn't feel the lows very well, she decided to give the Dexcom G4 Pediatric CGM a try.

Why we chose Dexcom G4 CGM:
I chose the Dexcom because it was a smaller and a less bulky attachment compared to the Medtronic CGM. It also had a separate receiver, allowing my husband and I to quickly see Madison's blood sugar readings. And from the reviews I had read, it was more accurate.

It arrived in three boxes. One box was the receiver. Another was the transmitter. And the third was four sensors.

 

Our positive and not so positive experience the first week:

• The CGM sensor/transmitter attachment was a lot bigger and bulkier on my daughter than it was on the adult we saw it on. 
   
  
• Having another attachment really was a downer for my daughter and I. She already had her insulin inset attached to her. This one took up so much space on her belly and made me sad that her baby skin was being pricked again.
   
  
• First day blood sugar readings weren't accurate at all. I learned why. The CGM is reading bodily fluids and not blood sugar. As such, we have to teach it that what it reads for a bodily fluid number equals the blood sugar reading. It really is cool. In fact, on day two, the results were amazingly accurate and have been since.
• On day two, my daughters sensor came off. We had it attached to an area just above her butt. It wasn't the best location, because I had attached it right where the top of her pants was. When she went to the bathroom, her pants got hooked on the sensor and ripped half of it off. The company replaced the sensor for us, which we were so happy about!
• The 2nd sensor lasted us seven days! I loved it! But my daughter didn't.
• First, why I loved it. It gave me accurate readings of her blood sugar, allowing me to prepare for her highs and lows. It also allowed us to not prick her fingers so much.
• She loved the fact that it gave her more accurate blood sugar readings, but hated that she had another attachment. The spot on her belly bothered her. It got in the way when she was sitting and felt awkward. We also had to put another piece of adhesive on it to make sure it didn't come off this time. She said it really itched. When we took off the CGM sensor on day seven, she had a rash that looked like it was irritated.
• It ended without allowing a grace period. I was so pissed! So, on day seven, the CGM sensor had reached it's life at 8:15 am - 45 minutes before we had to head to an all day fastpitch tournament. Later, I found out that it does give you an advance warning, which must have happened when we were all sleeping. Going back to 8:15 am.  I heard this beep coming from the CGM and then saw an image that looked like a red light / stop light. I pressed the button and it turned off. I was so pissed. We were heading out of the house to a softball tournament and the stupid thing ended. I called Dexcom. 45 minutes later they called me back. By that time, I had already changed my daughters sensor. Not without tears though. She shed a few tears because she needs a little more time than a few minutes to plan for stuff like this. She hates needles. She hates doing this. And removing the sensor attachment and putting another one one just wasn't something she was excited to do. But she did it at 8:55 am. Then we had to wait two hours before we got a blood sugar reading. Timing sucked. Exactly when her game started, the CGM receiver beeped asking us to enter two blood sugar readings. Thank heavens she was 5th at bat. We hurried and pricked her finger twice and then entered the blood sugar readings. From that moment on, the CGM was such a benefit. It gave us the most accurate blood sugar readings and we didn't have to prick her fingers during the tournament, except for lunch.

So, we are still in the testing period. As a mom, I love it because I don't have to prick her fingers as much and when she is running around, I get a quick snapshot if her blood sugar is starting to go down. But as a mom, I also hate it, because it covers a large part of her belly and she has to lug around a device so she can get a glimpse of her blood sugar results. She said this sensor attachment doesn't bother her as much. We put it higher so it doesn't interfere with her insulin pump fanny pack type bag. She also likes knowing her blood sugar more often.

My Type 1 Daughter Treated Herself For Wrong Blood Sugar

This morning, as I was getting the kids ready for school, I noticed I hadn't filled out Madison's type 1 diabetes sheet that lists her blood sugar for breakfast, total carbs she ate, and the carb count for her snack and lunch. I nonchalantly asked her what her blood sugar was. She told me 156. As I was writing the number on the sheet, she then told me that she might have changed it on her meter and given herself insulin for a blood sugar of 212. My eyes basically popped out of my head.

I really thought Madison was joking, but then I checked her meter and she did treat herself for a blood sugar of 212. All I thought was, when the heck is this disease going to become less stressful?

I actually left her as is and didn't give her anything to eat because I wasn't sure of the numbers. Even though Madison said she increased her blood sugar reading on the meter to 212, I wasn't 100% sure she really did. It just didn't seem realistic that she would have done that. Yet, she was so sure that she did. And there was no history or log that I could find within the meter that showed otherwise.

Instead, I emailed her teacher and the nurse to give them a heads up on what had happened and to watch her. If she would have given herself too much insulin, her blood sugar would have been lower than normal in the morning. It's 12:30 pm, and I guess everything must be fine because no emergency texts have come my way.

The more freedom I give my nine year old daughter to check her blood sugar and give herself insulin, the more I realize how easy it is to make mistakes using her current meter and insulin pump. She can easily change her blood sugar reading result. She can easily change her settings without a parents approval or password. She can easily give herself more insulin or less insulin. And she can easily prime the insulin pump, which could kill her.

I'm disappointed in the lack of safety protocols on my daughters insulin pump. Mistakes like this shouldn't easily happen. I know the technology has significantly advanced, since the 50's. But as a mom, wanting to give her daughter more freedom and control in managing her blood sugar, her current meter and pump doesn't give me the confidence that she will be safe.

Madison presently uses the Animas One Ping. I love it because of it's wireless ability. You can bolus your child wireless using the meter. It's heaven, especially when you are out in public. You don't have to pull out her insulin pump to give her insulin. Instead, you do it straight from the meter. But there are downsides like the meter not communicating with the insulin pump and only partial insulin delivery goes.

I'm sure every meter and insulin pump has it's positive and negatives. I'd love to hear your experiences with your meter and insulin pump. Right now we're looking into the Dexcom G4 CGM (continuous glucose monitor) and Medtronic.

Five Ways To Make Type 1 Diabetes Fun For Your Child | Working Mother

Every parent who has a child with type 1 diabetes knows this is not a fun disease to live with. You have to prick your fingers eight to twelve times a day. You have to count every carbohydrate that you eat. You have to be careful for blood sugar highs and lows because they can cause hypoglycemia (blurry vision, hunger, irritability, shakiness, fast heartbeat, fatigue, and headache and possibly even passing out) and hyperglycemia (increased thirst, frequent urination, headache, stupor, inability to focus).

As a parent with a nine year old daughter who has had this disease for two years, I've become an expert on managing her blood sugar highs and lows, making sure the tips of her fingers don't turn black because she pricks one more than the other, and teaching her how to take care of herself so she grows up to be a healthy confident adult. But this isn't the only thing that I'm teaching her. I'm also teaching her how to find ways to have fun in between the not so fun moments.

Below are five fun ways to make living with type 1 diabetes fun! The little things such as the below has truly made a difference in my daughter's life. And the smile I get when I do one of them is so worth it!

1. For dinner, eat dessert first. Then eat the meal.
2. For breakfast have a piece of birthday cake or a slice of pizza. My daughter has been invited to late night birthday parties and has been unable to eat the cake because of the time of day. So instead, we wrap it up, take it home, and she eats it for breakfast.
3. When changing her inset, I let her take the pump off for an hour and a half, and without any inset or tape on her behind (that's where we have to attach the inset) she can run around and have some freedom.
4. Give a lollipop after your child's plays baseball, basketball, or other extracurricular competitive game. After every softball, basketball, and soccer game, I surprise my daughter with a different colored lollipop. This keeps her blood sugar from dropping fast and also puts the sweetest smile on her face. It's her special treat after the game.
5. Sneak two pieces of hershey kisses into your type 1 child's lunch box. I usually try to sneak two pieces of chocolate because it doesn't affect my daughter's blood sugar as much as other treats. And she loves chocolate! Two Hershey kisses are only 5 carbs.

I would love to hear how other parents make their type 1 diabetic child's life fun! I plan on writing a children's chapter book about an elementary aged girl finds out she has type 1 diabetes. It will be one in my Wunderkind Family series.

Type 1 diabetes (T1D) is an autoimmune disease in which a person’s pancreas stops producing insulin, a hormone that enables people to get energy from food. It occurs when the body’s immune system attacks and destroys the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas, called beta cells. While its causes are not yet entirely understood, scientists believe that both genetic factors and environmental triggers are involved. Its onset has nothing to do with diet or lifestyle. There is nothing you can do to prevent T1D, and—at present—nothing you can do to get rid of it.

Type 1 Diabetes Triggers Anxiety Attacks During Soccer Game

I know every family has their worries and concerns, especially when it comes to their children. But parenting a child with type 1 diabetes is so much more complex then anyone realizes. It was this past weekend that I accepted the fact that Madison's type 1 diabetes disease is also triggering anxiety attacks and causing her difficulty breathing when her blood sugar is too low (below 80) or too high (above 225).

It all became apparent for me on the soccer field. As her soccer coach and mom, I constantly worry that she's not going to be able to play up to her potential because of her disease. And the past three soccer games she hasn't been able to. In fact, for three games in a row, she has taken herself out of the game because she wasn't able breathe. The last game she walked off the field when all the kids were still running around. She didn't even yell to me that she needed to be substituted. Her blood sugar made her feel so bad that she just couldn't even yell. She said, "I thought I was going to pass out and you would have to call 911."  I tried so hard to hide my emotions. But I was angry and frustrated. I have really come to hate this disease.

From the sidelines, parents have mentioned how great she's doing. She scores and she's able to make a few good plays. She even gives them the impression that she's running just as much as the other girls. But as her mom and her soccer coach, she hasn't been herself. And she's walking and standing so much more than she has in the past.

Madison was born to run. If she could run all day long, she would. But lately, for unknown reasons, her blood sugar has stayed above 250 during our soccer games, causing her to have a real difficult time breathing if she runs to much. I've tried moving her to defense and even goalie where she can calm down and not run as much. But she feels even worse when she's just standing around. The reason she feels worse is because her blood sugar is already high and when she stands around, she's not burning it off, making it go higher.

Seeing my daughter take herself out of the game is heartbreaking. Tears filled her eyes last game. And the only words that entered my mind was hers. When she was five years old she said, "Mommy, I want to be an Olympic soccer player." And ever since she was diagnosed (November 4, 2011), I feel as if her dream may not become reality. I'm not giving up and I hope she doesn't too. But boy this disease has really been the greatest challenge she and I have ever had to face.

Many of you may be thinking, Just change her diet. Wish it was that simple. This past Saturday, the morning of her game, she had eggs, bacon and a half of banana. I wanted her to have some carbs (the banana) so her blood sugar wouldn't drop so fast. But it didn't matter that she had a low carb breakfast. Her adrenaline and stress kept her blood sugar above 260 the entire game. After the game it went up to 300. Then within 30 minutes it dropped to 80. I was angry that her blood sugar was outsmarting me. I literally have a competition going with her blood sugar and I'm going to win!

We have two games left in the season and then our tournament starts the weekend of November 9th. This disease isn't going to control us or win! I truly believe there has to be a way to help my daughter do the things she loves to do at her potential.

The following is what I'm going to try this week.
This week I'm going to have her visualize seeing herself running and scoring and playing up to her potential. I'm going to work with her on breathing techniques. And then on Saturday, I'm going to eliminate the banana from her breakfast and have her eat a bowl of cereal (1/2 of a cup of Honey Nut Cheerios) along with eggs and bacon.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the above will work. If you have had any experience with type 1 diabetes and anxiety, I would love to hear how you have been able to manage anxiety and difficult breathing for a type 1 diabetic.

Thanks so much for your support!

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Back to School Type 1 Diabetes Survival Tips for Parents

Back to school is right around the corner, and school shopping isn’t the only thing that a mom and dad of a type 1 diabetes child needs to plan and prepare for. They also have to make sure the staff at their child’s school is trained and educated on how to take care of their child’s highs and lows; They need to ensure their type 1 child has enough supplies (medical, food and drink) on hand at school; And they need to plan for the unexpected. 

Below are some tips and strategies to help parents of type 1 children get ready for back to school. Please feel free to share any that you have too in the comments section!

• Get the class and activity schedule before your type 1 diabetes son or daughter starts school. This helped me with trying to set-up my daughter’s insulin pump basal rates during the day. For instance, before she got on the school bus, I lowered her basal enough where her blood sugar wouldn’t drop to where she was at risk of a seizure or passing out. We also worked out a plan for recess where my type 1 daughter would take off her pump and leave it on her desk. This way when recess was finished, she would see her pump on her desk which reminded her to put it back on.
• Schedule a training with the teacher and nurse prior to school starting. I went in a few days before school started and trained my daughter’s teacher on how to manage my type 1 child's diabetes at school. We discussed lows, highs and the unexpected such as how to handle rain days and substitute teachers.
• Provide your teacher with a bullet list of what if scenarios. The information I included were things like what if it rains and what if she drops food on the floor during lunch and what if there is a substitute teacher and what if she has a test after lunch. I also included things like how to tell if my daughter was low or high symptoms and how to treat them. 
• Create a daily log sheet that is sent home every day. Every morning before my daughter goes to school, I fill out the date, what her morning bg was, how many carbs she ate for breakfast and how much insulin I gave her. I also list what her snack carb will be and breakout her lunch items along with carb count. My daughter takes this to school with her and the teacher fills it out every time my daughter checks her blood sugar and administers insulin. The daily log sheet went home with my daughter every day. This helped me in making the necessary basal rate changes to her pump.
• Exchange cell phone numbers and email addresses if you can. My type 1 daughter’s teacher was awesome! She would text or call me whenever she had a question or wasn’t sure how to handle a situation (and there were many!). The most challenging part during last year’s school year was trying to get my type 1 diabetes daughter’s blood sugar low enough so she could participate in PE. She ate breakfast an hour before PE, which always caused her blood sugar to be right around 300 at that time. Our school will not allow a type 1 diabetic to participate in PE if their blood sugar is over 300. They also will not allow them to get on the school bus if their blood sugar is over 300 or too low.
• Create a type 1 diabetes at school supplies container. I bought a plastic container with a cover from Target which I filled with sugar tablets, 8 pack of juicy juice boxes, peanut butter crackers (protein), an extra glucose meter and ketone strips. Whenever my type 1 daughters supplies started to run low, the teacher would make note of it on the daily log sheet she sent home.
• Have your child carry a diabetes bag filled with sugar tablets, a juice box, protein, and meter (and test strips/lancets/finger pricker). They will need to take this everywhere they go.
• Discuss with your child's teacher and your child where they will check their blood sugar in class. For my daughter, the teacher set-up a table in the room where she could check her blood sugar. This is where my daughter kept her diabetes bag, daily log sheet and whatever else she needed.
• Determine how and if your type 1 child will share their disease with the students. We had my daughter take one of her type 1 diabetes books in for the teacher to read to the class. Then the teacher opened it up for discussion.
• Make sure your child's classroom is not an allergy classroom or has peanut allergy restrictions. Protein is a must for keeping a type 1 child's blood sugar stable. And peanuts and peanut butter work great!
• Fill out proper medical and school paper work, and know your legal rights! We have my type 1 daughters endocrinologist fill out diabetes medical management plan detailing my daughters insulin levels and what range her blood sugar should be kept at. In addition, we completed a 504 Plan which allows my daughter to take an exam at different times if her blood sugar is too low or too high. It also allows her to be excused from class during an exam if she needs to go to the bathroom.
• Know your legal rights.

Other tips for dealing with seemingly small problems that can depress children about having type 1 diabetes(e.g. all the good cafeteria seats being taken by the time a child returns from the nurse at lunch or having to carry their supplies around with them all the time).

• Try to invest in a diabetes bag that your child likes. My type 1 daughter picks out everything herself. She likes using a mini backpack. We also got her an insulin pump sports waist band from Pump Wear, Inc. that has cheetah prints on it and some fun things from Pumptastic. 
  
• Have someone reserve a seat at lunch or during a school event for your type 1 child. My daughter’s twin brother tries to hold a seat for her at lunch, while she’s in the classroom checking her blood sugar. I would talk to the teacher about helping make the diabetic child comfortable, where they can ensure the type 1 child gets to sit next to their good friend.


• Plan ahead for a celebration or party. There have been many occasions where my type 1 daughter hasn’t been able to eat during a celebration because her blood sugar is too high or it’s 30 minutes prior to the bus leaving. When that happens, I have the teacher wrap it up and let her take it home. In fact, there were quite a few times where they wouldn’t allow her to take the bus home because her blood sugar was over 300 bg. I have three kids at the elementary school. When my daughter unexpectedly couldn’t ride the school bus, the school staff would have to frantically run around and get my other two off the bus so I could pick up all three together. After a couple instances like the above, we put a plan in place where if there was a birthday celebration or treat up to one hour before my daughter got on the bus, then she would take the treat home.


• When a substitute teacher is in her class, my type 1 daughter has to go to the nurse to have her blood sugar checked. There always has to be someone with my daughter when she checks her blood and administers insulin. It’s a protocol her elementary school has. At my daughters school, the nurse is only there three days a week. On the days the nurse is not there, another diabetes trained school staff member sits with my daughter when she checks her blood sugar or administers insulin.


• Like I mentioned above, my type 1 daughter has missed part of PE or all of PE at least half of last year because of the time it’s held for her specific grade class. I have her color or play a game. I try to have her do things she likes to do during that time because she can’t run around and play.


• Your type 1 child drops food onto the floor or spills their drink. You’ll find that the teacher will panic more than your child. Try to estimate how many carbs your type 1 child dropped on the floor. Then supplement with something else. We always had extra peanut butter crackers on hand to supplement what fell onto the floor. And this definitely happens!


• It rained or snowed. If your child doesn’t take their pump off during recess than most likely your child’s blood sugar will be higher. If you are able to send in a note that informs the teacher to give your child a little more insulin at that time, you’ll be able to manage these highs better.


•  No nurse at the school! The nurse at my daughter’s elementary school is only there three days a week. It is required that a trained diabetes adult has to give, help or observe my type 1 daughter when she check’s her blood glucose and bolus’s herself (bolus means give insulin). For insulin shots, two trained diabetes adults MUST verify dosage and be in the room while administering insulin at my daughter’s school. Mistakes happen. I love that my type 1 daughters school has such strict rules.
  
  

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I Gave My Daughter Too Much Insulin

Madison, my type 1 diabetic daughter who has lived with type 1 diabetes for almost 19 months now, woke up this morning so tired. We both thought it was because she stayed up so late last night. We had a mommy and daughter fast pitch softball game and then went out for a TCBY ice cream to celebrate. We had a blast! But when she checked her blood sugar this morning, both of our faces turned pale. It was 388. I felt like I failed her. She needs me to help her control and manage her blood sugar so she stays healthy. And last night, it was almost impossible for me to do it.

Our night started off normal. Before our game, Madison checked her blood sugar. It was perfect-156. Knowing her blood sugar was going to drop after playing, I lowered her basal. (just in case you don't know what basal is, it's the insulin she gets from her insulin pump to keep her blood sugar under control at all times)

Madison receiving tropy from her coach

After the game, the girls wanted to go to TCBY. It was 7:45 pm. I never feed Madison carbs after 5:30 pm during a school night, unless she needs it to bring up a low blood sugar. It's just too hard for me to manage her blood sugar if she has insulin still in her body when she goes to bed. But it was such a special night and I could see it in her eyes how much she wanted to go with her team, so I said, "Let's go get you an ice cream!" She gave me the most warm-loving hug, which brought the biggest smile to my face.

We got home around 9:00 pm and checked her blood sugar. It was 160. I was so proud of myself that I was able to keep her blood sugar at such a great number. But then I remembered, she had just eaten an ice cream, which meant she still had insulin in her body. We checked her meter to see how much insulin was still on board. It read 2.98. I was speechless. I wanted to cry, because I had given her way too much insulin for the amount of ice cream she ate and now I had to feed her disease to make sure she didn't crash. Madison gets 1.0 unit of insulin for every 15 carbs. So basically, with 2.98 units of insulin still in her body, she needed to eat about 45 carbs to ensure her blood sugar didn't go too low while she slept. Taking precautionary measures, I gave her a juice and five crackers, and also lowered her basal to where she was almost getting no insulin from her insulin pump for an hour and a half. Then I sent her to bed.

At 10:00 pm, I checked her blood sugar and it read 89. Too low to let her continue sleeping, so I woke her up and gave her a couple sugar tablets and a few more peanut butter crackers. I then checked her an hour later and her blood sugar was 130. Perfect! And now I could go to sleep. Around 3:45 am, Madison woke up to use the bathroom. She does that often, even if her blood sugar isn't high, so I didn't think much of it.

My alarm went off at 5:45 am. I tried waking Madison up, but she was giving me a hard time. I nudged her a few times and slowly she opened her eyes. I could tell she was exhausted. Never did I think her blood sugar was off the charts high. I just assumed she was tired from staying up so late and having me wake her up. She got ready and we headed down the stairs.

As soon as we got into the kitchen, she sat at her normal spot at the kitchen table and checked her blood. She turned slowly, looked at me with this pale expression and said, "My blood sugar is 388." I had her check it one more time and it read the same. All those awful feelings shot through my body and mind. I wanted to swear. I wanted it hit something. I wanted to cry. But instead, I said half-smiling, "That's okay, I'll just make you a non-carb breakfast. How does bacon and eggs sound." She smiled and said, "Great!"

I HATE THIS STUPID DISEASE! All I want to do is keep her healthy and the poor kid can't even have an ice cream and run around after 7:00 pm at night without a crazy night of blood sugar highs and lows. Too many highs is so unhealthy for her. And too many lows is again, unhealthy for her. This disease really never gives you a break. But I'm a fighter. And this disease is not going to win the war!

Safety Preparation for a Type 1 Diabetic Child

Last week, we experienced severe weather storm warnings, which encouraged everyone in Union County, NC to get to the lowest level of their home in case of an unexpected Tornado. After the Oklahoma tragedy, we took this warning seriously. My kids and I ran around frantically, gathering and lugging down the following to our basement bathroom - food, water, diapers, baby wipes, toilet paper, towels, and type 1 diabetic supplies.

Once everything was in place, we sat near the bathroom, doing homework and waiting to see if the storm would bring the unexpected-a tornado. It didn't! Thank heavens. But what if it would have? What if a tornado did form just before we were able to gather my daughters type 1 diabetes supplies or diapers for my baby?

That one warning made me realize that I needed to prepare for such possible events now. The following is what I would recommend keeping near the place you plan to hide if a possible tornado did form. I also shared a list of things you should always have with you in your car, just in case your car breaks down, you are stuck in traffic, or you got into an accident. We've been stuck in traffic for hours at a time, unable to get off the road. Being prepared is a must when you have a type 1 diabetic child.

Severe  weather warning:

1. Always have your child's type 1 diabetic bag with them during a severe storm warning filled with at least one juice, the Glucagon pen, sugar tablets, meter, test strips, batteries for meter and insulin pump, and protein (such as peanut butter crackers or Slim Jim). We also have frosting in my daughters bag, along with syringes.
2. Store a package of juice (8 juice boxes per pack), case of water, sugar tablets and a box of peanut butter crackers in your basement where you will be hiding.
3. Keep an extra meter kit.
4. Keep an extra unopened insulin pen if you are able too.
5. Make sure you keep extra batteries in their diabetic bag or in this area. Your child's meter or insulin pump's battery could die.
6. Store a pad of paper and a few pencils for the kids to draw and doodle. If you have an extra card set, store that too.

Automobile:

1. Always have your child's type 1 diabetic bag with your child.
2. Have an extra finger pricking device in your glove compartment. We've broken ours when we have been out and about. We were lucky we had stashed an extra in our glove compartment.
3. Keep extra waters and juice in your car. If it's too hot to keep them in there all the time, then make an auto diabetes bag (in addition to your child's type 1 diabetes bag) that you take with you whenever you are in the car. I have a Thirty-one bag that I store water, juice, sugar tablets, baby wipes, and box of peanut butter Ritz crackers that I take with me whenever I drive.

I would love to hear any additional supplies or tips that you may have!

Highs and Lows of Raising a Child with Type 1 Diabetes | workingmother.com

Highs and Lows of Raising a Child with Type 1 Diabetes | workingmother.com

A Mother's Nightmare - Learning Her Seven Year Old Has Type 1 Diabetes

We all know that life can change in a split second. I experienced three such changes in less than one year, two which brought the greatest joy to my life—the pregnancy and birth of my fourth child! And a third that brought great sadness. The night of November 4, 2011 shockingly was a tragic time for me and my family. It's the night that my 7 year old daughter was rushed in an ambulance to downtown Charlotte Hemby Children’s Hospital, because the doctors at an Urgent Care Clinic found sugar in her urine. Within hours, she was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes-a disease I was ignorant of, a disease my prophetic logical mind could not predict.

Ironically, the signs were there a month prior. But I didn’t recognize the signs and messages; or should I say, I was too exhausted from being a new mom to pay attention to them or think they were anything serious.

Going back in time, one month earlier, my daughter, Madison, (after participating in a diabetes lecture at school) asked me if she could catch diabetes. I chuckled and paused for a split moment, wondering why she would ask me such a bizarre question. Her eyes filled with water, knowing there was something going on within her body that I wasn’t ready to face. I gazed into her big, glossy hazel eyes and said, “No, you can’t catch diabetes.” I then went on to share that my grandfather had Type 2 Diabetes when he was older, but it was because he didn’t take care of himself. She looked at me and said, “I think I have diabetes." Madison’s comment left me dumb-founded, unsure what was going to happen and to whom. I actually thought perhaps one of my parents may come down with diabetes. Never did I expect my daughter to be diagnosed not even a month later.

But that was only the beginning of the signs and messages. Madison had also started to wet her bed, urinate constantly, and drink more than usual. My husband even asked me once if I thought Madison had diabetes. My mind just couldn’t wrap itself around her all of a sudden getting diabetes. She was thin. She ate well. How in the world could she get it? So instead, I attributed all the changes to her adjusting to me having a baby and then taking care of the baby. I was pregnant and delivered October 7, 2011—the day I thanked God for being blessed with four healthy children, not knowing that one of my children wasn’t healthy.

Weeks went on, and Madison continued wetting her bed, and drinking and urinating more than usual. I was consumed with being a new mom, trying to catch up on sleep and doing the necessities when my kids got home from school that I chalked up her behavior to simply adjusting to having a newborn sister. But on November 4th, I couldn’t ignore the signs and messages any longer. She was thin. She was weak. She was stupor.

That afternoon, Madison stepped off the school bus, floating in her clothes. I thought perhaps I had purchased her the wrong size, because she looked anorexic. I checked the inner tag of her pants which said size 8, the size she had been wearing for several months. I followed her into the house, confused with what I was witnessing. She sat on the couch, leaned back and just stared out into the room in this dazed look. Thinking she may be anorexic, I asked her a simple question, “Did you eat your lunch today?” She just continued to stare in this stupor state, never responding. She looked like she was on drugs. Then I thought perhaps she had mono because my neighbor’s two girls just had mono a couple weeks back. I had my husband take Madison to Urgent Care, thinking they would be back home within an hour and a half. But instead, I received a text from my emotionally shocked husband around 6:10 pm stating Madison was being rushed to the hospital because they found sugar in her urine. My body and mind became numb from the words I read. How on Earth could I have missed all the signs? Within seconds tears flooded down my face and didn’t stop for weeks.

For four days, with my newborn baby in tow, I spent twelve hours by Madison's side in the hospital, learning everything I could to be able to take care of her. I tried so hard to be emotionally strong, but my hormones were everywhere, having just given birth four weeks earlier. Every time I cried, she would cry which broke my heart even more. But I was able to bring a smile to her face when I would say, “Princess, the reason I’m crying is because I'm so happy you are healthy again and you will be able to run around and play like you always have.” But down deep inside, I was mourning. I was angry. I was sad. I was in shock, especially when the endocrinologist said her Type 1 Diabetes was triggered by a virus and it was just pure bad luck. Words I really had a hard time wrapping my mind around.

After two days in ICU and a total of five nights in the hospital (where the first three days my husband, nurses, doctor and I spent begging Madison to allow us to give her shots, always resulting in us holding her arms and legs while she screamed and cried so we could give her the insulin that was keeping her alive), we were able to take her home. But with it came an enormous responsibility and change in lifestyle. We were now responsible for checking her blood sugar by pricking her finger every couple of hours, even throughout the night. We also were responsible for administering her insulin by giving her four to six shots a day. And we were responsible for keeping track and calculating every carbohydrate she ate at every meal. We now were responsible for making sure she didn’t go into a stupor state again, and for that matter, coma.

Things aren’t simple in our lives, but whose life is really simple. The good thing is our life is becoming more manageable. As of Christmas (2011), we were able to transition Madison to a pump, giving her and me a little more freedom and control. It’s not picture perfect, but its allowed her to have less shots and to eat snacks.

I’ve learned and grown a great deal over the past nine weeks. What I've come to realize is that when tragedy happens, there are people ready and willing to help you, if you open up your heart and life to them. Those people were my family, friends and neighbors. I wouldn’t have been able to get through this rough period without them, especially Tracy (a mother of a type 1 diabetic daughter who has become a great friend and mentor)! Madison’s diagnosis has truly made me stop and appreciate my family, friends and neighbors.

Yes, I still have moments of crying, experiencing disbelief, and getting angry. But in the same breath, I'm very grateful that her disease is manageable and she can still run around, play and be her silly sassy self.

Blessings,

Melissa
www.melissaproductions.com