My life with The Superhero and The Princess: #Diabetes

Showing posts with label #Diabetes. Show all posts

Saturday, April 9, 2011

HAWMC Day 9 - I still cry

Today's Topic: Health Activist Choice. Today’s blog post can be about anything you like. Free write! Whether you want to take inspiration from one of your community members or HAWMCers or just recap your April so far – anything and everything is fair game today. Length, topic, style – all up to you!

Last week Laura posted about why she still cries. And today I was recording a video about The Superhero's diagnosis and started thinking about this myself.

I still cry.

It has been almost 3 years (7/10/08:D day) and I still cry.

Every time I think about that aweful week leading up to his diagnosis, I cry.

Every time I think about my baby being poked SO many times to get his THREE IV's in while in the PICU, I cry.

Every time I think about his tiny fingers being poked every hour in the PICU, I cry.

Every time I think about him laying there in his hospital crib, I cry.

Every time I think about the first shot I had to give my 18 month old, I cry.

Every time I think about the first low we dealt with, I cry.

Every time I think about waking up my sleeping toddler to give him a juice, I cry.

Every time I think about chasing after my toddler to give him a shot, I cry.

Every time I think about changing pump sites as my son cries "No, mommy, no!", I cry.

Every time I think about changing CGM sites as The Superhero cries "NO! That hurts!", I cry.

I HATE having to hurt my son on a daily basis. So I cry.

Don't get me wrong, I am not sitting around crying all the time. Sometimes these cries are more silent than others. But, Diabetes HURTS and I think it is OK to cry over something that has taken over our lives and changed it from the course we were heading down.

The thing that gets me through the tears is seeing his smiling face. He is still a happy little boy, despite all the pain and pokes.

*Disclaimer: I am a mom of a T1 Diabetic child. I am NOT a doctor. I just play one in real life. Please do not take anything in this post or any other post on this blog as medical advice. If you have questions or concerns of your own, please seek advice from your doctor.*

Friday, April 8, 2011

HAWMC Day 8 - A Poem of Questions

Today's topic: Write a poem where every line is a health question. Today’s prompt is to write a 5-10 poem where every line is a question. The questions could be ones you have, ones you’ve heard, or ones that are rhetorical. You can make it a Found Poem and use questions you’ve been asked before. Or you can make up new ones.

As I stated before, I am NOT an English teacher. Poetry is NOT my strong suit. But, here goes anyway...

Diabetes

What did you do to cause your son to have this disease?
How to you manage to live a life with Diabetes with such ease?

Is it hard to keep track of everything The Superhero chooses to eat?
Why do you always look so beat?
Do you ever admit defeat?

How does Diabetes affect your day to day lives?
When The Superhero has a low at night, how do you get him to rise?

Are there days when you still feel blue?
Did you know you could have to deal with Diabetes someday too?

Thursday, April 7, 2011

HAWMC Day 7 - A voicemail to Diabetes

Today's topic: Leave your health a text or voicemail. Time to check in with your health! You call, ready to talk, but it turns out that your health isn’t exactly responsive and is probably screening your call. No matter – leave your health a voicemail. What does your health’s voicemail message sound like? And what are you going to tell your health today?

"Hello Diabetes, This is Tracy Ripley, mom and pseudo-pancreas to The Superhero. I was hoping to reach you today to thank you. I know, I know, this is not the kind of call you usually receive. As much as I despise you, I also am grateful for you in some ways. I feel I am more in tune with my kids as their mommy than I would be without you in our lives. You have helped connect me to the most wonderful support network of other people who live with you day in and day out. I consider all of these people my family. Without you, it is likely I would never have come into contact with any of them. So, Diabetes, Thanks again for being in our lives. Sorry I missed you this time around, maybe next time I call you won't be so hesitant to answer the phone. Although, next time, I might not be so happy with you."

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

HAWMC Day 6 - Why do I blog?

Today's Topic:
I write about [my] health because….
Internet and social-media-skeptics always ask me the judgmental “why.” “But why would I blog?” “Why would I have a Twitter?” But what they are really asking is – ‘what’s the point of all of it?’ Well, friends, is there one? Why do we do what we do?

I have thought about this one A LOT. I have had a post started on this topic for a LONG time. I started a post about this a long time ago and just couldn't get out the right words. Since this IS the topic for today, I will do my best to get this out coherently.

Why do I blog...
1) To educate. Simple. I feel it is VERY important to do my part to educate others about Diabetes to raise awareness. I am tired of misconceptions and misunderstanding and feel I need to do what I can to spread information about this disease.

2) To feel connected. As a mommy of small kids, who works from home, and rarely sees other adults, I blog to feel connected to other people. Not just any other people, but people living parallel lives to my own. Sure, they may not all work from home. They may not all have 2 kids. They may have some differences from my house. But, the people I enjoy connecting with have Diabetes in their lives too. They get it. They understand what we go through day in and day out and it means the world to me to connect with every single one of them.

3) To learn. I enjoy learning not only through writing my posts, but also through reading other blogger's posts. There is always something new to learn.

4) For myself. Blogging is a way for me to get my thoughts, feelings, and full emotions out. And getting comments on each post makes me feel less alone. So, yep, I am a little selfish. I do it because of ME.

And those are the main reasons I blog. How about you?

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

HAWMC Day 5 - Life for a Child Campaign

Today's topic: Health Haiku. A haiku is a “miniature Japanese poem consisting of 17 syllables – five syllables in first line, seven in second, and five in the last. No rhyme or meter scheme is employed when writing haiku. The aim of the haiku is to create something greater than the sum of the parts.”

I would like to remind my readers that I am a math teacher, NOT an English teacher. Anyway, here goes...

No child should die due

to lack of insulin. Have

you saved a life yet?

I wrote this haiku in honor of the Life for a Child Campaign.

My friend, Wendy, over at Candy Hearts Blog has been putting together a much needed campaign to raise money to provide insulin to children in need around the world. I am hoping to do some things in the coming weeks, months, and even years to continue raising awareness and money for the Life for a Child Campaign. Because NO child should die due to lack of insulin.

It is estimated that there are 100,000 children with diabetes around the world who are in need of assistance to access insulin.

Without insulin, these children will die within 1 week.

Over the past several weeks I have been feeling drawn to this cause. I feel I am being led to help Wendy raise money to help these children.

Here is how Wendy says YOU can help...

1) Support these vendors! Think of them when you're making an online purchase, whether it's for yourself or a gift for someone else. Remember, your support will save a child's life!

2) Spread the word! PLEASE share via Facebook, Twitter, Blogs, chat forums, emails, and any other venue you can think of. Feel free to grab the button as a tool to help with that!

3) Please pray that this effort will, somehow, reach each and every child in need. I realize that sounds like an impossible task, but I believe in a big God who can do amazing things.

4) If you are an artisan who would like to participate, feel free to create your blue circle merchandise and contact Wendy today. There's always room for more love in her Candy Heart! (candyheartsblog@gmail.com)

5) In addition to making an investment in the Candy Hearts Collection, you can also make a direct donation. Donations are accepted on behalf of Life For A Child through HOPE Worldwide. (For more information about this partnership, click HERE.) The donation button below will link you to a page where you can make the contribution amount of your choosing in support of Life For A Child . All contributions are U.S. tax deductible. For information about tax deductibility in other countries, click HERE.

So, have you saved the life of a child today?

Monday, April 4, 2011

HAWMC Day 4

Today's topic: Ludicrous headline or cure.

I was once told by a parent of one of my students that ALL I needed to do was feed my son cinnamon toast for breakfast every day. Then he could go off insulin and have stable blood sugars all the time

Now, for my readers, I feel I MUST post that there is NO cure for T1 Diabetes. If there WAS a cure, our kids would NOT need to be poked with needles day in and day out.

Sunday, April 3, 2011

HAWMC Day 3

Today’s prompt is simple: write a health question and answer it. Your question can be a real, genuine one about your condition or you can make it a strange, humorous, or satirical health question. Once you’ve asked the question – answer it however you want to.

My Question: What caused your 4 year old to get Diabetes? He MUST have eaten A LOT of sugar! That is why I am not feeding ANY sugar to MY kid.

Funny/Sarcastic Answer: Yep, he definitely got it because I fed him A TON of sugar. He had cereal covered in sugar every morning, candy for snacks, ice cream for lunch, more candy for snacks, and pasta covered in syrup for dinner. Every day. That is exactly why he was diagnosed at the age of 18 months. I also made sure to only let him drink sugared soda and juice each day. It all caught up to him and he was just bound to get it. Oh, and I bottle fed him as a baby. He was born on a Thursday, that contributed to the diagnosis as well. I had an epidural and he was circumcised. as a baby. So, as long as you don't do ANY of those things, you have nothing to worry about!

REAL Answer: T1 Diabetes is an Autoimmune disease and there are currently NO known causes. It has been said that some people are born with the antibodies for the disease and then there is an environmental trigger that makes the body stop producing insulin. This trigger can be different for every person with T1 Diabetes and it can be triggered at any age. T1 Diabetes is NOT caused from eating too much sugar.

March 2011 Blogger Basal - - - Lessons Learned

I was honestly hoping to do something a little more fun with the Blogger Basal for March, but the truth is March was a SUPER busy month for me and I just did not have as much time as I would have liked to put this together.

So instead I have focused on what we have all learned. That's the teacher in me. We are all learning all the time. So, now we can learn some lessons from each other. (lessons learned as I perceive them from reading through the posts myself)

And a side note before I begin, going with the "Lessons Learned" theme, I had Carrie Underwood's song in my head the WHOLE time. Enjoy this too. Listen to the words. They work well for this post.

In no particular order, here are the posts for the Blogger Basal for the month of March 2011. Enjoy!

Bridget learned to follow her gut and test her T1 child at an unusual test time in the middle of the night and it was a good thing she did!

Michelle learned about the incredible bond between her two daughters, one with type one diabetes and one who pretended she did for a day. Amazing story of two beautiful little girls.

Donna learned why she grieves over Diabetes. Even after 2 years managing the disease, the grief still hits sometimes.

Nicole learned that Type 1 diabetes is like a great big unanswered question and just when you think you have it all figured out the damn equation is changed!

Reyna has helped us learn that it will all be ok. We do what we do because we have to. And we do it out of the love for our children.

Misty learned how important an AMAZING school nurse can be and she takes the time to share about her awesome school nurse.

Wendy learned what a BIG CANDY HEART one little boy has! We all love you, Rasmus!

Heidi helped us learn about what her family did to celebrate the life of her T1 child, including several guest blog posts and a big party at the end! I totally want to steal the party idea!

Denise learned how much fun art + Diabetes meet ups can be!

Amy learned that diabetes does NOT define her son, it is NOT who he is, it is NOT EVEN NEAR what he is all about. She was reminded; he is a crazy-happy-full-of-energy-six-year-old boy who has diabetes, NOT a T1er trying to be a little boy!

Roselady learned to take a lesson from her T1 son! Cutting back on sweets is not so easy, until you see your small child doing it day in and day out. Hard lesson to learn.

Hallie helped all of us learn the importance of being honest with our non-D friends because in reality, it is not them, it is us. What a great letter written to our friends not dealing with Diabetes daily.

Meri learned that her boys are just awesome. And I have to agree, they truly are awesome.

Laura learned that 1 year can go by SO fast. Super Nate has now been Podding for 1 year and Laura would never look back!

Kris learned that her T1 Child thinks about and worries about Diabetes too. It is a hard thing to realize that our kids are growing up and our worry will become their worry too.

Ashley learned that diabetes has a way of making every day moments get tense really quickly. And it’s the possibility of the things that are not thought about that can scare the life out of us!

Lora learned that having ~~dreams~~ nightmares about Diabetes sucks. Why can’t we just dream about Unicorns and Rainbows?

Jen is learning find a way out of getting so worked up in the middle of the chaos. Hoping someday to be able to embrace it and not let it get in the way so much. A hard lesson for sure.

Heidi learned to find the sense of humor in her boys’ antics. And I have to say I had a good laugh too.

Holly learned to find some Happy amongst the reality. Beautiful picture of your T1 kiddo.

Heather learned that actions speak louder than words. She posts a nice thank you to her non-D friends.

Shamae helps us learn the importance of being prepared for emergencies when type one diabetes is in our life. A very informative post for all to read.

Hailey learned a lot at the JDRF Government Day in Washington D.C. and enjoyed meeting some fellow bloggers from the DOC.

I learned that not all days go as planned and sometimes you have to just go with the flow.

And THAT, my friends, is the March Blogger Basal.

Please send your April posts to at Kris from My Sugar Bugs at mysugarbugs@gmail.com.

Saturday, April 2, 2011

HAWMC Day 2

Today's prompt: Word of the Day Post! Go to dictionary.com and write a post inspired by their WOTD – or grab a dictionary (or any book) from your book shelf, open to a page and write about that word. Can you link the word to your condition somehow?

Dictionary.com WOTD is...

unctuous

\ UNGK-choo-us \ , adjective;

1.Of the nature or quality of an unguent or ointment; fatty; oily; greasy.

2.Having a smooth, greasy feel, as certain minerals.

3.Insincerely or excessively suave or ingratiating in manner or speech; marked by a false or smug earnestness or agreeableness.

I am choosing to use definition number one. Thinking fatty, oily, greasy. I can definitely apply this to Type One Diabetes.

People with Type One Diabetes (or any people, Diabetic or not, really) should consume a limited amount of unctuous foods. Foods containing fat and oil tend to slow down the absorption of the food eaten and in turn cause the blood sugar to rise slower and then spike hours after consumption.

Examples of foods that can cause this blood sugar spike are PIZZA and ICE CREAM. Those are two foods where WE see a problem with blood sugar.

Unctuous.

Friday, April 1, 2011

HAWMC? and an Acrostic poem by Yours Truly...

Ok, ok, another acronym of daily blog posts for a month. And yep, I have signed up. I figure, it will coincide with the April NaBloPoMo that I already signed up for.

So what is HAWMC? Apparently, April is Health Activist Writer's Month. Since I am an activist for T1 Diabetes, I decided to take on this challenge.

Today's topic is to write an Acrostic poem for the health condition that affects my life, or to use the word HEALTH. I have decided to create a poem for TYPE ONE DIABETES. So, here goes...

Too many people are being diagnosed with T1 Diabetes. 40 new people get that dx every.single.day.Too many people.
Yo yo. Sometimes The Superhero's blood sugar has a yo yo effect. Up and down. Up and down.Yo yo.
Painful.Tears are involved. This disease is painful. All the poking. All the highs. All the lows. Painful.
Exhausting. Sleep? What's that? We are up checking BG at all hours of the day and night. And it is exhausting for the T1 person himself too. He has to deal with the poking, highs, and lows. Exhausting.

Obscure. Diabetes is hard to perceive. Not clear. Vague. Uncertain. (definition found here). Obscure.
Needles. Lots of needles. Lancets to poke tiny fingers. Shots to administer insulin. Needles to insert pump sites. Needles to insert CGM sites.
Easy? No way! Diabetes is in NO way easy. It is a 24/7 disease that we do our best to manage day in and day out. Easy? No way!

Diabetes. T1 Diabetes is an Autoimmune disease with no known cause. It was not caused from eating too much sugar. It is important for EVERYONE to learn the signs of T1. Knowing the signs could save a life. Seriously. Diabetes.
Independence. People with T1 Diabetes strive for independence, but sometimes still require the assistance of others. It is important to know how to help a person with Diabetes having a hypoglycemic episode. Independence.
Amazing. Parents of children with Diabetes and those with diabetes themselves are pretty amazing people. We all deal with the ins and outs of this disease day in and day out. Amazing.
Brave. Children (and adults) with T1 Diabetes are incredibly BRAVE. They deal with all the pokes and prods constantly. I for one know that *I* would not do as well as I have seen The Superhero do. He is incredibly brave. Brave.
Expensive. Insulin. Needles.Pump sites. Cartridges. CGM sites. Alcohol swabs. Etc. Enough said? Expensive.
Time. Two parts to this concept of Diabetes and "time". The actual "time" it takes to change sites, check fingers, administer insulin, count carbs, etc. And the "time" it takes to grieve over Diabetes. To come to terms with this disease. It is time consuming. Time.
Exercise. Good and bad. Exercise is known to DROP blood sugar in someone with Diabetes. This can be good. And this can be bad. It all depends on where the starting BG is and how the person handles it. Exercise.
Support. People in the DOC (Diabetes Online Community) provide the BEST support to one another. It is also important for those of us dealing with this disease to have support from our family and friends who don't deal with this daily. Support.

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