Friends and Family - Recent Threads

In a Diabetes Funk!

norwaymama — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 03:47:58 GMT

I am the mother to Noah (nearly 8yrs old, diagnosed Feb 2010) and I am in a total diabetes funk! I am so incredibly tired,exhausted,mad,sad,overwhelmed and beaten down. Dealing with this disease while living overseas in Malaysia as an expat is such an isolating experience. We are the ONLY family at our school dealing with diabetes. And Type I is not very common in Asia so there are not really any support groups around. There is just not anyone here who really "gets" what it is to live with a diabetic kid. I think everyone has this general idea of diabetes and what it means, but they have no understanding of how it completely dominates your existence. Don't get me wrong, we have our routine down now and life is somewhat normal, but I am always thinking ahead to the next snack, next meal, next recess, next PE, next soccer practice, etc. There is never any downtime. There is never a day where you just can't think or do anything about it. And then there are the 3 month checks that just punch you in the gut and say all the hard work and getting up in the middle of the night were just not enough. We have been 8.2, 8.4, 8.4 the last 3 visits. I guess you can say we are consistent, but obviously this means his blood sugars on a daily basis are not the greatest. Is it too much to just ask for something in the 7s??? Maybe it is not achievable. Maybe I am putting too much pressure on myself. I mean, honestly all we can do is try right? It's just really hard to not feel like a failure sometimes. And I know that for his long term health better controlled blood sugars are a must. It just feels like an impossible task at times.

I think part of my funk is that I am mainly "in charge" of this diabetes roller coaster. My husband does help out of course, but I have the pleasure (and sometimes burden) of being the school nurse at my son's school. Part of me is incredibly thankful for this as I am always around in case of an emergency, but the other part me wishes I was somewhere else. My husband gets to go to work for 8-10 hours a day where I am sure diabetes never crosses his mind while I am left to deal with it by myself every.single.day. I think being a nurse makes it worse as I think people feel I should be able to handle it better, or know more. But this is not the case. I struggle just as much as anyone else on trying to get a handle on the blood sugars and what works one day and goes perfectly goes completely wrong the next.

I just wish there was one day when I could pretend that diabetes did not exist. Sorry if I have been a downer but thanks for letting me rant!

Bethanie

Mother to the incredible soccer player and swimmer Noah

BLOGS ABOUT THIS

Ashley — Tue, 04 Dec 2012 21:06:31 GMT

I have posted many blogs about friends and family regarding diabetes on my blog

Hey there. My name is Ashley. I have been Type 1 Diabetic for 4 years now. I have a blog that normally revolves around diabetic topics and I would love if you would read some of my posts and give me some feedback. Also, I am asking for suggestions for topics! What do you want to hear about?! :) Please leave comments.

Here is the link to the blog: www.iamjuvenated.blogspot.com

Have you been shy to help raise money for JDRF? Me too.

everydayhighsandlows — Thu, 04 Oct 2012 15:49:48 GMT

Come read my new post about my journey to help JDRF fight for our loved ones. Hope it inspires someone out there too! Www.everydayhighsandlows.com

They just don't understand!

Gabrielle — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 21:44:31 GMT

I know that my family means best but sometimes I wish they would just listen and try to understand what I am going through! They say small meaningless things, atleast to them it seems meaningless, but to me I just want them to really consider what I am going through and nothing they have been through even compares. For example they think that the obvious an ultimate solution is to make a diabetic friend. Which I would totally love getting to talk to someone my age in my area. But their reasoning? 'if you were to hang out with more diabetic friends then testing and blousing and carb counting would just be normal' seriously? When is that considered normal I mean just because there I someone right next to me doing the exact same thing does not make me feel more normal. I just want them to realize that since diagnosis day I am never returning to 'normal' and I don't mind being diffrent I really want my family to realize that whether they really mean it or not they sound insensitive and there is no easy fix-all solution! Now I'm stressed out again

I can't believe this happened...

PaytonKroymann — Mon, 13 Aug 2012 12:31:21 GMT

I was 5 when i was diagnosed. My mom was so heartbroken.. She has thing REALLY good friend of hers and she has a daughter and i am friends with her. A year or so later... That friend was diagnosed. Then another one of my friends was diagnosed. :( Seriously right now i am thinking it had something to do with me. I know though that you cant get diabetes from someone else..

Having Diabetes

PaytonKroymann — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 23:30:48 GMT

I'm just a 10 year old girl and it can still be really hard and emotional sometimes. It gets in front of school and gym class. I lose some learning time just to go test my blood sugar. I just need some inspiration and help because every time i break down and say, "Why was it me?" I always say that because its true. If you think about it I just say, "Why do things like this cancer, diabetes, and injuries happen?" My mom says, "Life is not perfect." I just need someone to talk too.

Research Study: Siblings of Individuals with Type 1 Diabetes--Please read!!

Julie E. Balzano, M.S.Ed. — Sun, 26 Jun 2011 16:44:15 GMT

My name is Julie E. Balzano and I am a fifth year doctoral student in the Counseling Psychology program at Fordham University. I am writing to ask for help in recruiting participants for my doctoral dissertation research examining the sibling relationship, empathy, and interpersonal problems among adult siblings of individuals with Type I diabetes.

I was wondering if individuals would be willing to help distribute an email about my study, post it to a blog you might have, or distribute my study flyer at any support group meetings or events you might have. And, of course, if you have sibling(s) and Type 1 it would be great if you could pass this information to your sibling(s). Study participants are the non-diagnosed adult siblings of individuals with Type 1, but the best way to get in touch with these individuals has been through their diabetic siblings.

Study participation occurs electronically, takes 20-25 minutes, and is anonymous. I have pasted study information below. Information can also be found at: http://siblingresearchstudy.blogspot.com/

Sincerely,

Julie E. Balzano, M.S.Ed.

***************************************************************************************************************************************************************

Participants must have sibling(s) who are EITHER medically healthy OR who have a diagnosis of Type I diabetes. Additional participation criteria include:

• Must be 18 years of age or older.

• Must have grown up in the same household with sibling(s).

• Participants may not have any serious medical conditions or developmental delays/ disabilities.

• Sibling(s) may not have any of the above conditions except for Type I diabetes.

• Sibling(s) must be alive.

Participation will take approximately 25-30 minutes of your time and includes electronic completion of one demographic information survey and three questionnaires. All participants will remain anonymous. To participate, type the following link into any web-browser and follow the directions:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/G3XW7KV

If you do not qualify, but happen to know someone who might be interested, I would really appreciate you passing this information along. Please feel free to contact myself or my dissertation mentor, Dr. Eric C. Chen, Ph.D., with any questions you many have. I thank you in advance for your cooperation.

Sincerely,

Julie E. Balzano, M.S.Ed.

Ph.D. Candidate

Counseling Psychology

973-818-0162

balzano@fordham.edu

Eric C. Chen, Ph.D.

Dissertation Mentor

Associate Professor of Counseling Psychology

212-636-6474

echen@fordham.edu

any advice for t1 son learning to drive

Mjk — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 01:47:16 GMT

my son just got his learner's permit to drive, but his blood sugars were so high that we couldn't hand him the keys! I'm so bumbed for him, and I'm wondering if any parents out there survived this period and how you did it...thx.

Dating someone with T1

CTeam79 — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 13:55:32 GMT

Hello group -

I (31) am dating someone (32) with T1 for 3 years now (was diagnosed at age 11). It has not been easy- highs and lows,scary times and frustrating times - but I feel I have more to learn to better help him in the long run. I feel like a nag some times which frustrates him to no end but I just care about his well being, our future and I love him. Am I going about this the wrong way? How can I be more supportive of him and help him become a healthier T1. How can I let him know that I worry without being too "dramatic" about it.

Thanks!

CTeam

I am T1 for 22 years. My little brother (he is 27 yrs old) was just diagonsed 3 days ago w/ type 1.

vicky1990 — Sun, 10 Apr 2011 01:11:00 GMT

Hello. My name is Vicky. I was diagnosed with type 1 22 years ago at age 11. I have two beautiful and healthy boys, ages: 5 (6 in June) and 17 months. I am also pregnant with our 3rd child. Due in September. I am on this blog because my baby brother was just diagnosed 3 days ago, also with type 1. I am shocked becuase I have 5 brothers and no one in my family, i.e. uncles, cousines, grand parents, parents, etc.... even has type 2, and now both my brother and I have type 1. I totally thought that my diabetes was a fluke and it wasn't hereditary and now I have to realize that it actually runs in my family, potentially affecting my little babies. Had I known this I may have not decided to have children of my own. Prehaps decided to adopt instead. Of course everything happens for a reason, hence the fact my lil bro was diagnosed 4.5 months into my last pregnancy, however I am terrified of this darn disease for him.

I have been very blessed for almost 23 years to have stayed as healthy as I continue to be. My two earlier pregnancies were great and I have no signs of complications from diabetes, albeit it has been a difficult journey dealing with this disease. Nonetheless, I have accepted and feel strong enough to deal with the disease myself. I just worry about it affecting others close to me. It feels like the walls are closing in. I know I am being dramatic, but I am MAD that it is 'spreading' amongst my loved ones. Ironically, just last week (prior to ever knowing or even thinking my brother would siffer from diabetes) my 5 year old asked me if diabetes was contagious and I told him no! He had nothing to worry about.

I just wanted to share my story and give hope and strength to those young girls/women hoping to live a normal future relative to good health and strong healthy pregnancies. It is more than possible, so long as you take care of yourself and accept the extra care your body needs.

Good luck to you all and best wishes!

MY BLOG CONCERNING TYPE 1 :)

Ashley Kinstler — Sat, 12 Mar 2011 13:48:42 GMT

www.iamjuvenated.blogspot.com

check it out :) make a blogger account and "follow" me, leave comments, and take the polls that change often at the bottom of my homepage!

have you friends and family read to learn about it!

Diabetes and Dyslexia

orla — Wed, 26 Jan 2011 12:19:36 GMT

My son was diagnosed in Novemebr, and although he is a teenage and able bodied, he is also Learning disabled with dyslexia.

This effects his reading and calculation abilities so Carb counting is a big struggle and he gets overwhelmed. (Oh and annoyed with me, imagine that :)) As a result he may never be able to calculate it alone and easily makes mistakes with a regular calculator.

Is there an app or a special calculator out there to help ? Or a special device. We are currently changing doctors as they have been quite disapointing in their teaching. The keep "forgetting" he is LD and just hand him these books to read and learn carb counting ourselves :( :(

If anyone out there has an LD kid, they may identify with the frustration with this and I would love some feed back. I am still stunned some days with this diagnosis, but it seems to be getting better as time goes by.

Newly diagnosed daughter

Ann4 — Wed, 22 Dec 2010 13:59:11 GMT

My 11 y/o daughter was diagnosed in November. It's been a roller coaster with other complications landing in her lap. We're trying to get her BS under control and there is definitely no honeymoon phase happening right now. Would love to connect with other parents and find out how to figure all this out. The diagnosis answered a lot of questions but, with no family history, we never saw this coming. Feeling a little overwhelmed at times.

Daughter of 12yrs old

SYLVIA HERNANDEZ — Wed, 10 Nov 2010 04:55:29 GMT

Hi everyone. I am a mother of one and she was diagnosed with type 1. It was a shocker to us because no one our family has it.

Memories

Nads — Wed, 03 Nov 2010 21:15:25 GMT

I'm not sure why this thought crossed my mind today, but....

I was diagnosed in 1973, before pumps and bg meters. Diabetes was a pretty "secret" thing to deal with, really.

So recently, I was going through some photographs of my childhood and realized that I really have none, not one, that somehow attests to the fact that I have been living with this disease for 37 years! The funny thing is that I am somewhat disappointed by this! I guess since I've come to terms with it, almost embraced it, I feel that I should have some kind of "badge of honour" for all those years that I fought to stay alive!

Again, this began with sorting through old pictures. I am the youngest of four children, so as usual, there aren't many pics of me - no time! lol But there are no pics of me injecting, testing my urine, passed out from low BG... nada! The only one is a picture of me on the beach of the cottage we were visiting the weekend I ended up being taken to hospital and later diagnosed; I certainly was a lot lighter in weight than I had been previously!

So, my question probably goes out more to those diagnosed, say, 25+ years ago: What sort of tangible memories do you have? (Just curious!)

"free" (under 5 carbs) snacks

cath0617 — Sat, 02 Oct 2010 23:00:05 GMT

Hello, My 5 year old son was just diagnosed with type 1 diabetes and I am trying so hard to find "free"(under 5 carbs) snacks for him to eat between meals.

If anyone has any suggestions for me I would really appreciate it! Thx

Lazy Days of Summer

ClaudetteSanDiego — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 21:45:23 GMT

Although you can't take a break from type 1 diabetes you can still enjoy simpler times and simpler days. You can still enjoy the lazy days of summer. What does a lazy summer day look like to you ? What kind of things would you do on a lazy summer day ?

Read one woman's idea of a lazy summer day. Click on the link below to her post. Check out other posts on this site - the San Diego Chapter community. Read some of the other posts and post your comments. Why not start a discussion ? We are always looking for new members.

http://juvenation.org/groups/jdrf_san_diego_chapter/forum/t/7821.aspx

Thanks

Claudette

dealing with teens

susan — Wed, 12 May 2010 20:54:41 GMT

My teenage daughter, 15, just won't take any responsibility with her diabetes. She did better when she was in third grade. Now, I can't trust her to do her blood sugars in school or at home and she lies about doing themm too. I've tried grounding her, taking away privelages, talking to her , even a stint with a counselor all to no avail. She just keeps slipping back into careless behavior. What do I do? I am so worried about her health. Worried mom

low blood sugar unawareness

Scottie — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 00:42:54 GMT

My husband has been type 1 for over 40 years and now does not feel a low coming on. He has gone into severe insulin shock and loss of consciousness and 911 has had to be called. If I am with him I can give him a glucogon injection, but I can't always be with him and now I am fearful about leaving him alone. We are just 66 years old and he doesn't appreciate being "mothered!"

loss of a loved one

Lauren — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 17:40:05 GMT

my grandma passed away when i was only 2, I am 13 now. she was diabetic and due to diabetes, 2 bones in her spine disappeared. a hospital she was admitted to didnt even care for her/ help her. she was in very bad shape. then she was put on life support, i believe(i was only 2). finally one day we had to say goodbye to her. i miss her so much but i know that she is watching over me. R.I.P Mary Ann Fertig.

have any of you lost a loved one to diabetes?

Spouses

Sarah — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 14:03:21 GMT

I am a type 1 diabetic married to a type 1 diabetic. I was diagnosed in 1986, he was diagnosed in 1970. Being married to a diabetic and living life with someone who truely understands has been wonderful. The thing I don't like is being on the otherside and negotiating the walk between trying to control and supporting.

Recently, he was diagnosed with advanced proliferative diabetic retinopathy. We also know that he has some neuropathy in his feet (he unknowingly broke his foot a couple years ago) and inital reduced kidney function. With the advance of the the retinopathy, I wonder what happened with the function of his kidneys. Each doctor has confirmed my concern, but my husband ignores it. I guess ignore is not the right word because he is trying to tighten his control.

Any help would be appreciated.

My son is my hero

Tiffany — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 07:08:30 GMT

Hi everyone im new to the site but im here to tell everyone about my 2 yr old son who was born without a pancreas and a gallbladder so he has severe diabetes he is on 3 diff kinds of insulins along with other meds and a feeding tube.I know people think its hard to live with it but my son is 2 yrs old and is the strongest kid i have ever met the surgeons tell us he shouldnt even be alive.I He is one of a kind truely a miracle im not sure how he is here.Everyone email me for more info im dieing to share his amazing story with the world

thanks tiffany

An ear to listen, a shoulder to cry

Brianna — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 20:27:44 GMT

My best friend has had diabetes since 2005. I met her in 2006. We were in 7th grade then so I wasn't familiar with what it was exactly. Now we are in 10th grade and I really started to understand all that she goes through last year. We became really close, coping with our lives together and helping each other out. We would talk each other through the hard times and help the other one out. I remember our long phone calls late at night and crying through the phone. She needed my help with her diabetes, i needed her help with my mom and her stroke. I really appreciate all that she has done for me and always being there when i needed her most. So what i'm trying to say is...i'm a friend of someone with diabetes and i really want to help and relate with others of you out there, friends of or teens who have it. I just want to help talk it through with you and help you feel better. :) so feel free to talk to me, i'm always here.

Looking to Understand

Ana — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 21:00:00 GMT

One of my best friends found out she was diabetic T1 i believe about a month ago. I didn't really want to ask her what that ment exactly. I wasn't sure if it would be hard for her to talk about. But I want to understand so that when she is ready to ever talk about it I won't act like a complete idiot. I don't know what its like to live wiht diabetes so i can't say that i know how she feels. But I wish that i can at least try to understand what shes going through and be supportive if she needs it. If someone could help me out by telling me what it actually means i would really appreciate it. I hope that everybody that does have diabetes has an amazing life and that you have friends and family to support you through it.

Any grandparents or great grandparents out there?

Jillian — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 15:57:51 GMT

Would love to know if any grandparents or great grandparents are on Juvenation!