Begin Again

My sweet girl has a practically perfect Diabetes-iversary. It is December 31. Today ( or rather yesterday, since it is now 2013) marks one year since her diagnosis. It has been the most warp-speed year. It seemed to pass by so quickly. Living life in 2 hour increments between blood sugar checks and snacks, etc. can do that I suppose. And I still feel so new to this disease and like I have so much to learn, but I HAVE learned so much. But the reason that today I found that this is the perfect day for an anniversary of diabetes is that it is a day for pondering new beginnings..a fresh start. Take a deep breath and begin again. We made it through year one. The ball drops. On with year two. We can do this.

So...the perfect gift for her diabetes-iversary? FedEx dropped off her new Dexcom G4 Platinum CGM (pink, of course!) this morning at 8:45. How cool is that? So new year, new device to hopefully help us handle the crazy swings a bit better. We spent a good portion of the day watching the tutorial and reading along in the user guide. We inserted the sensor ..no problem! She cried in advance...fear of the unknown is greatest for her but she wanted it badly And she is truly so brave. She watched the entire tutorial with me. That impresses me at age 7. Before the insertion we got out a minute and watched an insertion done by a mom on a little boy about 2 or 3 years of age. Super kiddo who was brave and who showed that it obviously didn't hurt. His was a Dex 7..sensor insertion looks the same though. Then for good measure we also watched Lorraine's Caleb get his very first sensor inserted. He seemed a bit nervous but was brave and said it didn't hurt. Thanks to both of these ladies for posting these videos. They were helpful. My sweet girl was put at ease and we inserted with no problems and no tears. It hasn't been quite smooth sailing tonight, but I know from all I've read that will come with time. We haven't even done the 12 hour calibration yet! Right now she's been at 124-135 with a forward arrow for about 3 hours. Not too shabby:).

We discussed this morning whether it should be called her "diaversary" or her "diabetes-iversary". She voted for the latter. Why? " Because 'diaversary' sounds like 'die' ". Good point. Diabetes-iversary it is !

Photo-a-day Challenge

I'm WAAAY behind on posting photos, but it's hard to find time to post when taking care of ol' diabetes, right? But I have had it in the back of my mind and have been taking pictures here and there that are appropriate for each day's catagory. So here are a few. I may have to skip a day here and there. Gotta do this while I have the moment:)

Ooops

So my sweet girl ate lunch today...she had a typical weekday lunch for her. It was what my mom used to call a "mix" when my siblings and I were growing up. It consisted of some strawberries (10 carbs), 5 saltine crackers(10 carbs), some mammal-shaped cheese crackers(10 carbs) and a 3/4oz slice of cheese. She had eaten some Chick-fil-A nuggets(12.6 carbs) for a snack a couple hours earlier when we were out so this is all she wanted at the time. Well, her BS was 126...I bolused for the 30 carbs and she ate all that was on her plate. Then she decided she wanted more crackers..I tried to talk her out of them..which is something at which I succeed more often than not..but she was still HUNGRY and more cheese or a 7carb mini-yogurt would not do. So I have her 3 more crackers and another slice of cheese and waited to bolus because she had said that wouldn't be enough. But it was...she jumped out of her chair and began to play...and I forgot about the second bolus. So we ended up with a 294 a couple hours later. Chalk another one up in the pro-CGM column. So far, the only negative I have is having to wear something else and having another site to care for and change. The "pros" are many. And my sweet girl is very excited about the idea of getting one. Now of we can just get doctor and insurance approval ! Don't laugh...it could happen.

T1D4ADAY

This month JDRF is offering this cool experience for those who, for one day, would like to have a little better idea what goes on in the life of a person living with type 1 diabetes (T1D) on an EVERYDAY basis. So, before I recommended this to family and friends, I did this myself to see what it was like and how close to accurate it was. To sign up you just text T1D4ADAY to 63566 and they will begin your day the following day or the next, depending on how late you send in the text. They will send you texts throughout the day as if the texts were your own thoughts about managing your own type 1 diabetes. It sounds like an adult with T1D, so it is a bit different than a parent managing their child's, and different than a child managing their own during the school day. But, for me, as the mom of a young child with T1D, I found it a interesting and sobering and heartbreaking peek into her adult life.... When I'm not there to back her up and help her decide how to handle each situation she is faced with...when I'm not there to say, "Hey, it's ok...we can fix this".

So...I recommend to all this month to take a day to "have" type 1 diabetes. Then share it with anyone you know who might also be willing to learn. JDRF is doing a FANTASTIC job and there is some great hope on the horizon for better technology to manage this disease. And they are working to find the cause and a way to prevent this auto-immune disease from occurring. Please check out your local JDRF walk or bike ride...or just donate if you can. Thank you:)

Never ending

So I've compared having a child with diabetes to having a newborn. The level of constant care and attention and planning is similar. And today I was reminded again of this as we spent hours out on an errand that should not have taken that long. But when you have to stop and check blood sugars, stop to treat a low, stop for a needed snack...it adds up in time similar to the amount of time it takes for the diaper changes and feedings needed when out with a newborn. But diabetes doesn't grow up and need less care. Even those beautiful people who have been managing it for decades still have highs that require an impromptu pump site change in the vehicle or lows that stop them in their tracks, demanding to be fed. My sweet girl will have 60 or 70 YEARS of caring for diabetes. Overwhelming if I stop to think about that.