It’s National Diabetes Awareness Month (NDAM) and all month long
we will be interviewing family and friends of those who have T1D, and
what it’s like to live with them on a daily basis. 

Today’s post is written by community member Betheny (BAM251A) who is a parent and spouse of a person with T1D. Today she writes about her daughter and what her day is like.

Living with a person that has T1D is my way of life. My daughter was diagnosed when she was 13 months old, she is now 4. I have not slept through the night since her diagnosis. I am up every night checking her blood sugar and making adjustments when needed, even waking her up to drink juice from time to time. It is a stressful life, worrying and preparing constantly. Is she running around more than usual, will her site get pulled out if she plays like that, how do I attach her pump to her ballet/gymnastics outfit, will I be able to trust her nurse/aid at school, is she tired because he is low/high, do I have extra test strips packed, do we have quick sticks/juice…….the list is endless. It is a disease that you cannot ignore because everything effects blood sugar- food, stress, sickness, exercise. But then I see her smile. She smiles with this disease and this pump on her. She doesn’t remember her life before T1D, but she is happy. This is her life and she loves it. She might roll her eyes when she has to stop to take her blood sugar, but she does it and moves on because that is how it has always been. I will never stop worrying or being stressed living with a person with T1D, but this disease can never take away love and commitment our family has.We want a cure so that one day she will know what it is like to live without T1D. Until then, this is how we live our life, everyday.

Want to know what it is like to live with T1D for a day? Click here to sign-up for the T1D for a Day Text Challenge.