Diabetes Community: News and Events
from diabetesartday.com - Diabetes Art Day is a web-based initiative for the Diabetes Online Community to “tell a story” about life with diabetes though creative visual expression. It’s a way for us to tell our stories so we can connect and share with each other and with our loved ones. It’s a way to generate diabetes awareness outside of the DOC by sharing artwork on Facebook, Twitter, blogs and community websites.
I want to strongly encourage you to check out Diabetes Art Day which happens on February 3, 2014.
from Spare a Rose: Lack of access to insulin is the most common cause of death for children with diabetes in many countries around the world. In fact, in some parts of the world, the estimated life expectancy of a child who has just developed diabetes could be less than a year. *This Valentine’s Day our community can help change that. Through the Spare a Rose, Save a Child campaign, we raise awareness and donations for Life for a Child, an International Diabetes Federation program which provides life-saving diabetes supplies, medication, and education that children in developing countries need to stay alive.Spare a Rose, Save a Child is simple: buy one less rose this Valentine’s Day and donate the value of that flower to children with diabetes. Your loved one at home still gets flowers and you both show some love to children around the world who need it.One rose, one month of life. A dozen roses, a year of life for a child with diabetes. Find out how you can help.
Interview: Conversations in Care
That was one jam-packed hour of parenting and type I diabetes talk.
Thanks to Tami Neumann of Conversations In Care for having me on her show!
Conversations In Care
Tonight at 8 PM est.
I'll be doing a live one hour interview tonight at 8 PM est with host, Tami Neumann. We'll be talking about type I diabetes caregiving, parenting and my book, 'Life Is Short, Laundry Is Eternal'.
Listeners are invited to call-in to ask questions, participate in the conversation or just heckle me. Hope to talk to you tonight!
646-478-4343
Helping Children With Diabetes Gain Independence
Part 5: Taking It One Moment at a Time
The word independence literally means, “Freedom from outside control or support.” But when we use it to describe a child who lives with type 1 diabetes, the word takes on a much deeper meaning.
I wanted to say, “Children struggle,” but in all honesty, all people struggle to be themselves every day. We are influenced by so many outside pressures that I often wonder if any of us are really being who we are. On any given day I can feel too short, too fat, too old or just not smart enough. I worry that my affections won’t be reciprocated, that I am not being a good parent, husband and son. In the past, my concern about loved ones’ reactions have stopped me from telling them how I truly feel. Yet if you asked me to describe myself and the level of independence that I felt during that time in my life, I would have told you that I was not bothered by what other people thought of me, that I didn’t feel the pressure – but of course I did.
As I sit here and write to you, I realize that I felt all of those things when I was younger and I wasn’t wearing an insulin pump or a continuous glucose monitor. I didn’t have to stop and check my blood glucose all day, people never felt obliged to tell me what to eat and I never once thought that I may pass out from not paying attention to my moment-to-moment health. Young Scott was living a pretty easy life, and yet he still felt the proverbial weight of the world.
So how the heck are we going to teach our children with diabetes to feel independent? I think the answer to that question is, one moment at a time.
I could have written a series of blog posts about helping children with diabetes gain independence through any number of experiences. I believe that people, young and old, have potential and that all they need is patient loving people to surround them with quiet strength and support. Sure, sometimes it feels good to be told that someone has your back, but often it feels better to just know. Then when life happens, alone or together, we have the inner strength to shoulder what’s coming our way. In time, with maturity and practice, we begin to believe in ourselves the way that our loved ones believe in us.
So does technology help to build independence for children with type 1 diabetes? Absolutely it does! Does it do it overnight or over the course of a single year? No. Independence is a form of maturity and the process towards becoming a fully realized person is a long one. That kind of firm base is built one experience at a time and not every step taken is a step in the correct direction. Each blood glucose check in public will build confidence. Every low blood glucose conquered is a step in the right direction. There will be moments that don’t go as planned, but don’t think of them as failures, think of them as perspective for the successes. You can’t appreciate success without knowing failure, at least not to the degree that it requires to build maturity, and none of this can happen if we are being sheltered. I know as well as you do that having a child with type 1 diabetes is different and at times scary. That’s why I added technology to our daily routine; so I could give Arden the personal space that she needs to grow while protecting, as best as the situation allows, her health and safety.
This post is part of a six part series that I originally wrote for the Suite D Blog, which is operated by Insulet. Insulet is the company responsible for Arden's insulin pump, the Omnipod. Please know that I was compensated for my writing in an amount that would be considered standard for freelance blogging. My family pays for Arden's Omnipods with insurance and out of pocket cash. My writing for Insulet has no impact on my opinions or the information that I share here or anywhere online.
A1c Three-peat
One year ago, Arden sat in my car after her endocrinologist appointment and asked me what she could do to lower her A1c. At that moment, her A1c was 7.4 - it had been a full point higher just one year prior. Three months later, we returned to see if the adjustments that we made had any effect and that's the day we saw the first result under 7.
Three months after that, Arden's A1c was 6.7, and then yesterday... it was 6.7 again.
That's three consecutive A1c results under 7 - I'm calling that a three-peat.
There are many ways to celebrate an A1c while you wait for you NP to come into the room, on this day Arden and I choose VolleyGlove. Even though we haven't played in quite some time, you will see in this video that our skills remain intact. #sochi?
I'm always looking for ways to make Endo day less of a drag. VolleyGlove is a time-honored favorite.
