#1898 Cat Scratch Seizure
Cat Scratch Seizure
A single mom navigates her son's type 1 diagnosis alongside ADHD, a hypoglycemic seizure, and a school that fought her — and slowly finds accommodations, support, and steadier ground.
Jump to a moment
- What led to diagnosis: months of frequent overnight urination and thirst, unexplained bruising, and a scare that sent them to the ER, where his blood sugar was 416. A family history of diabetes helped Amber recognize the signs early.
- Type 1 is covered under U.S. disability law (the ADA and Section 504). Schools must provide trained staff and accommodations — during the school day, on transportation, and for activities — and every student has a right to a full education. Families can request a formal 504 plan; Amber learned this the hard way.
- ADHD and type 1 interact: high blood sugars can mimic or worsen attention and mood symptoms, and stimulant medications suppress appetite — a real consideration around meals and insulin. Changes to one condition often affect the other, so it’s worth coordinating with the care team.
- Severe lows are an emergency. A seizure or an unresponsive person is a call-911-and-use-emergency-glucagon situation — someone who can’t safely swallow should not be given juice or food. CGM alarms are a critical overnight safety net, and a sensor failure removes that warning.
- The emotional load is real and valid — for the child (anger, wanting to fit in, autonomy) and the caregiver (exhaustion, doing it largely alone). What helped Amber: not forcing, letting him own his devices, watching her language (“I understand” can land wrong), keeping him active, and leaning on community and support.
- Bold Beginnings Series — for the newly diagnosed, with Jenny Smith (verify slug)
- Mental Health & Diabetes Series — with Erica Forsyth; Amber leans on these (verify slug)
- Small Sips Series — short, listener-voted management takeaways (verify slug)
- ADA Safe at School — school rights, 504 plans, and accommodations for type 1 (verify URL)
- Diabetes Pro Tip Series — foundational management series (verify slug)
- Juicebox Podcast Facebook Group — community around type 1 (verify URL)
- Juicebox Podcast — all series and free resources
Every word of the conversation
Meet Amber0:00
Here we are back together again, friends, for another episode of the Juice Box podcast. Please don't forget that nothing you hear on the Juice Box podcast should be considered advice, medical or otherwise. Always consult a physician before making any changes to your health care plan or becoming bold with insulin. Have you tried the small sip series? They're curated takeaways from the Juice Box podcast voted on by listeners as the most helpful insights for managing their diabetes.
These bite sized pieces of wisdom cover essential topics like insulin timing, carb management, and balancing highs and lows, making it easier for you to incorporate real life strategies into your daily routine. Dive deep, take a sip, and discover what our community finds most valuable on the journey to better diabetes management. For more information on small sips, go to juiceboxpodcast.com. Click on the word series in the menu. If you're looking for community around type one diabetes, check out the juice box podcast private Facebook group, Juice Box Podcast, type one diabetes.
But everybody is welcome. Type one, type two, gestational, loved ones, it doesn't matter to me. If you're impacted by diabetes and you're looking for support, comfort, or community, check out Juice Box podcast, Type one Diabetes on Facebook. Today's episode is sponsored by the Tandem Mobi system with Control IQ Plus technology. If you are looking for the only system with auto bolus, multiple wear options, and full control from your personal iPhone, you're looking for Tandem's newest pump and algorithm.
Use my link to support the podcast, tandemdiabetes.com/juicebox. Check it out. This episode of the Juice Box podcast is sponsored by the Dexcom g seven, the same CGM that my daughter wears. Check it out now at dexcom.com/juicebox. When you use the offer code juice box at checkout at cozyearth.com, you will in fact save 20% off of your entire order.
I'm talking about the sheets, the towels that I use, the joggers I'm wearing now, and anything else on that site that catches your eye. Cozyearth.com. Use the offer code juice box.
Hi. My name is Amber. I'm a single mom with two kids. My younger 12 year old is my type one, and and I have my 14 year old daughter as well.
Okay. You are a single mom. How old are you?
I'm 37.
37. Do you know that when asked to randomly choose a number between one and one hundred, people most frequently choose 37?
I do not know that.
It's one of those weird factoids that may or may not be true. Anyway, tell me again your kid's age. I'm sorry.
Yes. I have a 14 year old daughter, and then my son, he is 12. He's my type one.
12 with a type one. Gotcha. Do do you know, Amber? Are you nervous? You told me you were nervous before we started.
I am nervous.
You are nervous. So here's why I asked. Because when we were talking before you recorded, you were louder. Oh. And as soon as we started recording, it feels like you stepped back like a half a step.
Don't worry about it. Okay? It's all gonna go great. Okay. 100%.
And if you suck, no one will even notice. I'll go off on some weird tangent, tell a story, it'll be fine. Okay?
Alright.
Sounds good. No pressure for you, and you're not gonna suck. It'll be great. So let's find out a little bit about the background first. Your kid's father or you, any autoimmune issues in your families?
Family History and a Mother's Radar3:44
So my uncle, he was diagnosed just a couple years ago with Hashimoto's.
Mhmm.
Other than that, I don't know of any other Okay. Autoimmune.
Okay. Celiac?
No. I think my my daughter, she does have, like, an intolerance, but she's been tested for celiac, and it's been negative.
Okay. How about you? Do you have anything going on? You have PCOS? You got severe anxiety?
You got anything anything inflammation related even? Not necessarily autoimmune?
Formally diagnosed? No. But I sure do think I have a few of those things going on.
Amber's like, listen. I got the Internet. Let me tell you. I got a couple of those things. What things Yeah.
What what do you what do you struggle with?
Yeah. My hormones are all messed up. I do think I might have some PCOS, and I'm definitely an anxious person. My hypochondria, I think, has helped me, especially, like, through this type one diagnosis, though.
Tell me about that. How did your hypochondria help you figure out your kid had type one?
The Symptoms Before Diagnosis5:07
Yeah. Well, funny enough, it it kind of even goes back towards the summer before he was diagnosed. He you know, I I thought he he also has ADHD, so I was worried that his medication was doing something, like, to his heart and everything because I had noticed, you know, maybe four or five months before his diagnosis that he was he would get up at night, go to the bathroom, and then he'd come into my room and fall back to sleep in my room. And I he would sweat profusely. And I, like, felt his heart felt like it was going to, like, beat out of his chest.
And I was always worried about putting him on medicine for the ADHD. And so I contacted the doctor. The doctor was like, the medicine is not doing that. It should already be out of his system. So, you know, it it only happened a couple times and then it just kind of stopped.
So I kinda just I was worried that he had, like, more of a vitamin d deficiency also because he had bruises on his legs this past summer. Okay. He wouldn't wear shorts or anything either. But so to fast forward, he was diagnosed. It was October of last like, not this past, like, 2024.
And so he had a a dirt bike accident, and he really hurt his back badly. And right after that happened, he started going to the bathroom even more frequently. And I'm I I, like, had conversations in my head to, like, not be overly paranoid about things because, like, even my daughter will tell me sometimes, like, that I want there to be something wrong with her. She's but I just wanna be, like, ahead of things. So I noticed he was going to the bathroom a lot after that, and we had just moved.
And we had a wood burner stove, so I thought, okay. Maybe he's, you know, a little dehydrated. I asked him. He said, oh, yeah. No.
I don't like the water at school, so I'm just drinking more at home. And I'm like, okay. I'm just, like, keeping an eye on it. And then right before Halloween, my mother had taken the kids to a trunk or treat while I was at work. And he didn't feel good that next like, Monday, he didn't go into school.
And my mother happened to I lived with her. I moved in with her right before he was diagnosed. Mhmm. But she had noticed that he was going to the bathroom a lot then too. And she said, you know, do you think that maybe he hurt his kidney or or something with the dirt bike accident?
And I was like, no. But I was worried that it was diabetes.
Say no, mom, but I I do have a long list of other things I'm concerned about, including that I think we're turning the kids into beef jerky with a pellet stove. If I had a pellet stove, I would sit there wrapped in my cozy earth blanket. There is one I have on my I know you think I'm making this up. I promise I'm not. There's this fuzzy heavy, like, I don't know.
It's like this one person blanket that I use on my sofa all the time from Cozy Earth. It's absolutely fabulous. There's just a ton of stuff on their site. Cozyearth.com. Use the offer code juice box to save 20%.
I'm talking about everything from towels to clothing, dryer balls, the fuzzy blanket for the sofa, the sheets on my bed, anything you can think of. Cozyearth.com. Use the offer code juice box. Save 20% off of your entire order. Treat yourself.
You're working too hard to be laying around on an old blanket that smells like a cat. So
Yeah. Oh my gosh. It does My favorite Mardi Gras story so far.
You're like, I think I was drying them out with a burner. And so your mom goes to kidney damage. Hey. What happened on this dirt bike accident? Did he fall off a roof?
Like, what what what was it?
So he was at a friend's house, but the way I heard it, it it sounded like the other person, like, break a little too fast in front of him, and he, you know, got scared and then he, you know, didn't wanna hit them and wound up breaking. And I think there was, like, a pothole or something.
Oh my gosh.
But yeah. And it was his first time on, like, a a big dirt bike like that. He only had, like, a little electric one. So
So what? He hit his back? Or
Yeah. Right on on the the sacrum there, the the low back. Yeah.
Jeez.
But, yeah, he's still got a pretty nasty scar. And yeah. So my my dad was tested when I was little. I remember he would go to the bathroom a lot. Like, this is also what I was, like, justifying in the summertime.
Like Mhmm. Oh, I guess he's just getting older, you know, getting up and going to the bathroom. My dad heeds a lot. You know? They tested him for diabetes, which is why I knew it was like, a symptom.
That's what got you. And Oh, that's what got you. So if something happened to your father, he peed a lot. They said maybe he has diabetes, and then that's what you started thinking. So let me take you back to because you were doing a good job in this story.
So you and your mom were talking. Your mom's like, kidney damage. And you're like, diabetes. So where do we go from there?
To the ER10:49
Yeah. So I called the doctor after that, and I was gonna set up an appointment. And the doctor's office called me back and said, just take him to the emergency room. So I did. I had to, like, actually, I had to bribe him.
He was like, no. I don't wanna get any needles. I'm like, I'll give you $20. He's like, okay. I'll go for money.
$20 got him. That's that's great.
Yeah. After the fact, he was like, now that I need a lot of needles, are you going to give me more money? So Yeah.
Yeah. Set yourself up there.
Backfired. Yeah.
Now listen. Their understanding of money is different between everyone's. Arden said to me the other day, hey. Because her she has a bank card and it expired. So they sent her a new one.
And she sends me a text last night. She goes, I don't think that my money transferred over to my new bank card. And I went, that's not how that works. I said, what happened was you used up all the money in the account. He goes, oh, oh, okay.
She didn't think the money through it. I hope she hears this one day. It's embarrassing how little you know about money, Arden. I'm trying so hard to teach her, but she doesn't wanna learn. So anyway, so the kid hits you for 20 for the to go to the hospital.
And what happened when you got there?
Yeah. So we got there and I I mentioned, you know, getting his blood sugar checked because I was worried about diabetes, but we were also worried that maybe there was some kind of organ damage. So we we got there. You know, they it it was kind of annoying because they checked his blood sugar, told me it was high. I didn't wouldn't tell me what it was until they gave him the scan.
Mhmm. And I was actually gonna opt out of it because I was like, listen. Is this, you know, you said it's with contrast. That's radiation. I rather, like, just how about we just go the blood sugar route because you said it was high, and he kinda guilted me into, like, doing the scan as well.
And then after that came back negative, they're like, yeah. His blood sugar's 416.
Wait. You felt pressured by the doctor? Yeah.
Started using a bunch of big medical terms, like, what if, you know, there is something, you know, inside, you know, bleeding or yada yada, you know, just
this is to
the point.
Yeah. Yeah. I here's what I heard. Hey. We think your kid might have diabetes, but we also have a reason to suspect that we need this scan, that's enough for us to do it, and your insurance will pay for it.
So why don't we do that?
Yeah. It's pretty much how it went.
Yeah. Yeah. Gotcha. Yeah. How about Check the kid's blood sugar and then if that's not the problem, we'll do the scan.
Yeah. And they had already did it and they, like, didn't tell me what the actual number was and, I mean,
I think I was in
a bit of shock. Yeah. They told me after he had the scan and the scan just came back, you know, that he May I didn't have any damage.
Yeah. Scumbag. You know what I mean? I mean, it covered up. Yeah.
I won't
go to the hospital anymore. I would I would imagine. Agitated by it.
Yeah.
Yeah. Because I I think he had already given my son the the the the contrast. Mhmm. Because after the fact, they just took him right away for the scan, I was like, well, they didn't give him anything. They gave to him already.
That's why he was trying to talk me into it too because he already
Lady, we're halfway there. Let's do it, okay? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
Caden Doesn't Want Diabetes14:15
So we had to wait for an ambulance because we had to go to a children's hospital, and they wouldn't let me drive. You know, the doctor told my son, you know, yeah, I think it's diabetes. And that was a pretty devastating moment because Caden, like, looked at me and just started crying like, no. I don't want diabetes. Because funny enough, not funny, I I already knew a lot about blood sugar.
You know, in hindsight, was more of a type two. I would joke with the kids. Joke, not joke. Hey. You know, think of your pancreas when you eat that, you know, like, to kinda, like, give them the self aware, like, you know, this is sugar.
This is protein. You know? Like, healthy food choices. Mhmm. Later on in the hospital, my son jokes like, oh, maybe, you know, your talk about diabetes, like, kinda willed this on me.
And, after I started crying, he said he was joking and he didn't mean it. But Yeah. Great.
Yeah. Yeah. Do do you guys I mean, first of all, Amber, you're delightful. But, like, you know, you said you have a ton of anxiety. Is that a good way to put it?
Yes.
Yeah. Yeah.
Yes. That amplified after children.
I was yeah. Yeah. Well, yeah, that yeah. No kidding. I didn't I didn't have any anxiety in mind amplified after children.
Mhmm. So you do you think the kids have it too?
My daughter definitely has more
How about your mom?
More more blatant anxiety, actually. My mom, I would say she's not as anxious as me.
Okay. Well, is that a high bar, though?
It's a high bar. I mean, I yeah. They would joke about my hypochondria when I was little.
So Oh, so even when you were little, you were always worried something was wrong?
I was worried I was sick. Yeah. I remember one time, like, a dog that I would pass by on the way home from school, like, he was, like, mean. I I I don't even remember, and he, like, licked me. I thought I got rabies.
I was like, oh god. He was rabid, you know, like, you know, paranoid thoughts.
Do you have a OCD or I was gonna say, do you have something like I mean, I don't again, barely got through high school, but do you have something else? Have you ever spoken to somebody?
I I had some tendencies when I was younger. I wouldn't say I have any OCD at the moment. Mhmm. I'm very good at rationalizing my my thoughts. You know?
I kinda, like, wait, gather the facts before I lunge into thinking something is worse than it is.
Like counting or skipping over the cracks in the sidewalks or anything like that?
Oh, there was a time in my life, but no. I don't do anything like that anymore.
Okay. So because you found a way to manage it for yourself. That's what you're telling me?
Yeah. I when I was in high school, I was going through some stuff with, like, my dad, and, you know, there was just some I was having mental health issues trying to, like, manage him kind of not speaking with me. So Yeah. Yeah. He isolated you?
Manifested yeah.
Oh, I'm sorry. Well, it's been a bit of a of a slog so far.
Yeah. Yeah.
Okay. We got the kid here. He doesn't want the diabetes. He gets it. Is this a moment for him?
Does he regress? Is it hard for him? Does that carry into the future?
Yes. It was really hard for him. You know, he even in the hospital, like, we had so many different people coming in to explain different things. Like, no one person could give us, like, all the answers. Oh, that's a question for the doctor.
That's a question for the, nutritionist. So that happened a lot in the hospital. When he was there, there was the tech lady that came to show us how to give injections and all that. And he just kind of was like, nope. I'm not having it.
And he started ripping off the cords and, like, I'm getting out of here to the point they had to sedate him. Is
that is that a common level of reaction for him, or was that out of out of character? The Dexcom g seven is sponsoring this episode of the Juice Box podcast, and it features a lightning fast thirty minute warm up time. That's right. From the time you put on the Dexcom g seven till the time you're getting readings, thirty minutes. That's pretty great.
It also has a twelve hour grace period, so you can swap your sensor when it's convenient for you. All that on top of it being small, accurate, incredibly wearable, and light, these things, in my opinion, make the Dexcom g seven a no brainer. The Dexcom g seven comes with way more than just this. Up to 10 people can follow you. You can use it with type one, type two, or gestational diabetes.
It's covered by all sorts of insurances. And, this might be the best part. It might be the best part. Alerts and alarms that are customizable so that you can be alerted at the levels that make sense to you. Dexcom.com/juicebox.
Links in the show notes. Links at juiceboxpodcast.com to Dexcom and all of the sponsors. When you use my links, you're supporting the production of the podcast and helping to keep it free and plentiful. Let's talk about the Tandem Mobi insulin pump from today's sponsor, Tandem Diabetes Care. Their newest algorithm, Control IQ Plus technology and the new Tandem Mobi pump offer you unique opportunities to have better control.
It's the only system with auto bolus that helps with missed meals and preventing hyperglycemia, the only system with a dedicated sleep setting, and the only system with off or on body wear options. Tandem Mobi gives you more discretion, freedom, and options for how to manage your diabetes. This is their best algorithm ever, and they'd like you to check it out at tandemdiabetes.com/juicebox. When you get to my link, you're going to see integrations with Dexcom sensors and a ton of other information that's gonna help you learn about Tandem's tiny pump that's big on control. Tandemdiabetes.com/juicebox.
The Tandem Mobi system is available for people ages two and up who want an automated delivery system to help them sleep better, wake up in range, and address high blood sugars with auto bolus.
No. He's he's yeah. He has reactions like that. He's He's
Oh, Amber, you got you got you got sad. What happened?
ADHD, Meds, and the Hard Year21:22
Oh, well, I mean, this past year and a half since he was diagnosed has been a challenge. But even before, diabetes, his ADHD has been so bad that it it also caused, like, a lot of issues, school especially. I never wanted to put him on medication, but eventually, I did. My my uncle said, you know, what's worse, the potential side effects of the medication or what's happening to his, you know, emotions and everything by not being on the medicine.
What was what were some of his symptoms? What was happening?
Well, he just couldn't focus on the schoolwork. He was acting up to the point where I was getting called every every other day. He was getting suspended. They put him in a a program for kids with behavioral issues. This was at his old school, which these kids already had behavioral issues.
So he learned terrible behaviors, like, and how these kids were acting. So he acted even worse because he saw other kids acting up. I wound up putting him on medication and all like like a light switch, he was able to sit, do his work because he would have the behaviors to get out of school because he couldn't focus on it. Mhmm. Which even so after he came home from the hospital, he's two weeks into a new school.
I like, we need to have a meeting with his history of behavioral issues and ADHD along with this diagnosis. We need to have a plan in place. And because he's, like, half an hour from our house the school's half an hour from our house, so I I needed to make sure that he was going to be safe on the van. He drive he's on a van. He doesn't take the bus, you know, safe in the school.
So Well
I yeah. What medication did they put him on?
He's on methylphenidate.
And that just you're saying, like, a light switch. You mean one dose or one week or one month? How did
It it works instantly. So, like, you know, you take it that day, it works that day, it wears off that day, you know. And but the thing with the the ADHD medication is it suppresses his appetite. So when I told his doctor, the doctor said, you know, maybe high blood sugars were causing his some of his ADHD symptoms. That does happen.
So we decided to take him off of the medication after diagnosis to see if, you know, because we were worried about falling blood sugars at There that was no pump, you know? Suppressing his appetite was a big deal. Mhmm. And so we did take him off the medicine and so that was
Half Days and the Fight for Accommodations24:32
yeah. Was that a mistake? It
was a mistake. Mhmm. But I also think that the school was worried about him. They wound up saying, hey. How about we just put him in school for half days so he could adjust to this new diagnosis?
So that wound up happening all the majority of last year. But even with, like, getting any type of accommodations for him, I really had to fight the principal even last year with that because he was like, no. The nurse is enough. This is fine. This is how we've had other, you know, diabetics.
I'm like, yeah. Well, they weren't, Caden, and I wanna know, like, if the nurse is, you know, unavailable. Like, the the high school and the elementary are right across from one another. Sometimes the nurse if one of the nurses are out, they're, you know, subbing between schools. So I really had to push just to get some training done after getting the super superintendent involved.
He was like, yeah. Of course. So we got the van driver tested, which, honestly, we had to switch van drivers because the original van driver was like, I don't want that liability. Really? So we switched van drivers.
The one he has now is lovely. He got trained and then a couple people in the school also got trained.
Very nice.
So I felt a lot better. Mhmm. And and then he was doing half days, but the entire time, I'm they're calling me all the time. Like, you know? Yeah.
You have to come get him. He's having a low blood sugar. You have to come get him. You know, he's acting up. And I you know, it wasn't as bad last year as it was the beginning of this year, but it it was just Hey.
Did they when he gets Terrible.
When he gets a low blood sugar, do they not help him? Why do you have to come because he has a low blood sugar?
He would refuse to treat it sometimes. This was more of an issue the beginning of this school year, which, led to me having to get a lawyer and everything.
For what? What'd you need a lawyer for?
Well, I had to get two. First off, one was because the school so in hindsight, I found out that there was a bit of discrimination going on against him, like, with some programming. Like, there was a summer program that they told me, oh, you know, we don't have a nurse on staff. We don't have a a driver to get him here who's trained in, you know, diabetes. Mhmm.
So, like, I don't know how we would manage that. I offered myself to drive there and sit in the parking lot for that summer program. Same with these after school activities, the intramurals. Again, the nurse leaves. We don't have a nurse here.
There's you know? So I I was, like, offering to take him and and stay there, and, you know, I was like, I don't want him getting resentful of his his diabetes. You know? I'll do whatever I have to. You know, in hindsight, after I get the lawyer, I find out that they are supposed to accommodate him.
Mhmm. I guess I I didn't really think of his type one as, like, a a disability. You know? Like, I guess when I thought of disabilities being disabled, it was more you can't see, hear, You know? Yeah.
So I didn't even think of it in the sense of, like, you know, he falls under, like, the American Disability Act and things like that. But so I feel like I need to breathe.
Yeah. Take take a second. Really. I mean, it's it's obvious it's obviously a lot. Like, I'm I'm I'm struggling between not wanting to interrupt you and trying to help you by interrupting you, so I'm not sure where to go sometimes.
Yeah. Wow. I mean, gosh. Is the father helping at all? Is anybody helping you?
Their father hasn't been involved ever, pretty much. Okay. So no with that. For help, I really don't get too much help, to be honest. It it's really just me.
You know, on occasion, my mother will help if she's around, but she's kind of been off doing her own thing for the most part that's neither here nor there. Yeah.
Well, I'm just saying, it's you know, you got two kids and they're struggling. You have some struggles of your own. You know? It's it's definitely a lot. I I don't have an answer for you, but it feels like it feels like it would be valuable if somebody could, you know, step in once in a while and offer you a break.
Do you get do you get a break? How do you find time for yourself, or are you not able to?
No. There's really no breaks. It it's been a lot better now. I will, like, say that the beginning of the school year, it was a pure nightmare, but things, like, have really settled down. He's in school.
I'm not worried about him, you know, anybody calling me. The it it's gotten so much better. Better. After I had to get lawyers involved. Well, let's even go back, like, two weeks before schools.
Caden didn't want to do the summer program. Honestly, we went to one day of the summer program, and I got anxiety just seeing the school. We were feeling so much better. This was, like, July. And then I realized, like, oh my gosh.
The school is stressing me out even just seeing it, just thinking of, like, everything we went through the year before. And I decided, I'm like, Caden, if you don't want to he's like, yeah. I don't want to. So he didn't do the summer program. Mhmm.
But two weeks before school even started, he this was happening last year too. He started getting stomachaches. I was, you know, slightly paranoid that he had something to do with with his diagnosis. I'm like, oh my gosh. Is this anxiety, or is this, you know, some kinda
The slower digestion or something. I'm like,
oh my god. Is that possible?
I I was assuming you would jump to that. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. No.
I I did. I did. But, you know, again, I I talked these crazy thoughts out of my head and try to rationalize things. But, you know, the whole summer, he wasn't having any issues with his stomach. Two weeks before school, he's already starting to complain.
And the first day of school, he was so anxious, he threw up. Well, he wasn't sick at all. I knew it was nerves.
Mhmm.
And so in between him, like, he started getting in trouble at school, but then also he would not wanna go because his stomach hurt. So that was happening quite a bit. Now fast forward to this past November, it was right before his birthday. He had a low blood sugar and like they would always do, they would, like, use me. Like, you better eat something or I'm calling your mom was kind of what was happening a lot.
The Security Guard Presses Charges31:48
That's a shame.
So the school principal, you know, put a security guard in charge of Caden. And the security guard, you know you know how they can be, like, trying to kinda strong-arm him. Mhmm. You need to eat this, that, the other. Caden winds up telling me, like I guess he wanted to get out of the nurse's room, and the security guard kinda, like I'm sure he just put his hand out.
Caden swears that he'd tried choking him. But, again, he was having a low blood sugar. So Right. The whole thing escalated quickly. I, you know, I bring him home.
I a couple days later, like, that was, like, a Thursday, they suspended him. He comes back to school the following week. It was actually his birthday. I the only way to get him to school, I was like, listen. Let's just try half a day.
So I wind up picking him up early, and the security guard comes over to me while I'm waiting for my son. And he's like, yeah. You're Caden's mom. I'm like, yeah. Okay.
I just wanna let you know I'm pressing charges after what happened last week.
Wait. The security? Guard said this?
He the security card said this. I'm like, wait. Come again? And I I I kinda just, like, stared, and I think he was hoping I would give a reaction. And he repeated himself.
I'm pressing charges. Your son threatened to kill me. And I was like, what? What? Excuse me?
He's like, yeah. He threatened to kill me, and he was getting, like, he was raising his voice. He was kinda like leaning in towards me. You could tell he was agitated and trying to get a rise out of me. Mhmm.
And I'm like, do you have any formal training in, you know, medical or mental health emergencies? He's like, no. He threatened to kill me. And I was like, well, when you're having a low blood sugar, you can't really, like, control some of the things you say or do. But, you know, you do what you have to do, and we'll just go to court for it.
So after that, I called the principal, and I asked the principal. I'm like, did Caden threaten to kill him? And the principal's like, oh, I know he threatened him. I don't know what he actually actually said, but I heard him threaten him. I'm like, you heard a threat, but you don't know what the threat was?
Like, okay. That makes sense. And I could just tell that the principal was he wasn't answering specific, like, specifically.
Where they where they hired the security guard from, by the way? Wait. Wait. I
don't even know. I it a big thing. I but I wound up I wound up having to, like, find a lawyer because of that. And I thought I was just going to hire a lawyer to go to the magistrate because, you know, like, a week or so later, I get a letter in the mail. They filed disorderly conduct charges.
In the the report, it doesn't say anything about, like, threatening to kill him. It's very vague also. And I even asked Caden. I'm like, did you like, what happened? And he even to this day, he insists that he he tried choking him.
I I think that he did have his hand out and, you know, Caden was, you know, running into it. I'm sure it could have been by his throat. Neither here nor there, Caden did not threaten to kill him. That never came up again in conversation. It wasn't written on this, you know, the incident report.
But but
I I even said, like, I was looking into it. If you threatened to kill somebody at a school, you could get ex
Expelled?
Expelled. You know? So I I 100% don't believe that happened. I tried to get camera footage. Nobody would give me camera footage.
I didn't know what like, I don't know anything about lawyers. So I went to my mother suggested going to the Center for Independent Living. They help people with disabilities. They're like, okay. We we don't help kids, but, you know, I can make some phone calls and see who I could find.
And then they found oh gosh. The I forgot what the name of the lawyers to help educational law firm. The educational law firm. So I talked to them. They tell me that I certainly have a case and that they couldn't take it because they had too many cases.
But they gave me a list of other lawyers and a whole bunch of information in case I didn't go the lawyer route, about, like, Caden's rights and things like that. Very helpful stuff. But, I still wanted to get a lawyer because
What's the frame of time all of this has happened in?
The pay front. It was
It's, like, the last year and a half?
Yes. Yeah. This was just a few months ago. This was started in November. I wound up finding the lawyer in December.
I started putting Caden back on the medication too because I had a meeting with the principal because of this incident, and I thought to myself, I'm like, wait a minute. You know, he was trying to get out of schoolwork years ago. This is familiar despite the diabetes, and I said, you know what? I think he needs his medicine again. Mhmm.
I put him back on the medicine, and, again, night and day, all of a sudden, he's not complaining of stomachaches. He's going to school every day. I'm not I'm I'm still getting phone calls because I swear that they were trying to find more reason. They were worried.
I was gonna say they probably hate his gut they probably hate his guts by now. You know what mean? Yeah. But you're you're you're involved in a blood feud at this point.
Well, honestly, I even didn't put him in school for, like, two weeks after that because I was worried. I'm like, I can tell you're all lying. I don't wanna bring him to school, and you make something up to get him into more trouble, you know? Mhmm. So, you know, you need to put your kid in school.
Now I'm getting truancy letters, and I'm like, okay. I've put him back in school. I'll just hold my breath. I get the lawyer. I had to, like, get every email, every, like, voicemail, every letter, send everything to the lawyer.
The lawyer accepts the case. She in hindsight, I kinda wish I got a different lawyer. It was like, I put all this work in, like, six weeks of gathering paperwork, and then she's like, yeah. I'll accept your case. You know, you need to sign this.
And this whole time, I'm thinking it's free because that's what the education law center told me. And she's like, yeah. Well, if you you know, it's free unless, you know, you cut out early and decide not to finish up with the case or, you know, any money that my son might get, I'm gonna take, like, 30% of that. I was like, what? Like, oh my gosh.
But I decided to still go through with it because I put all this time into giving her all this information, and I didn't wanna take any more time away from Caden getting help at the school. Yeah. I So, you know, I and then she told me she's like, yes. I'm I'll I'll help you with this, but you also need to get another lawyer. Like, I I don't do anything with the magistrate, so I wound up getting another lawyer to go in front of the magistrate for the whole security guard thing.
And
Can you just go somewhere and start over? Have you ever thought
of thought I was doing moving To
your mom's.
Moving here.
Yeah.
Yeah. Well, to backtrack, this past September, Caden had a seizure
From a low?
Children and youth got yeah. It was a low blood sugar, and children and youth got involved because of it. I didn't even mention, like, how angry he was after the diagnosis. There was a lot of emotions going on.
Yeah. Sure.
A lot of holes in the walls. Hard time accepting. Like, even in the beginning, he didn't wanna eat certain things. Once he got his insulin pump, he started feeling comfortable eating again. But then that was the other thing the school was doing.
They were so up in his business with things. You know? I need to see how many carbs you had. I need to see what you ate. The lunch ladies are watching him, calling the nurse, telling them what he ate, you know, things like that.
But so back in September, he we were having an argument. I don't even remember why he got mad. He ripped his Dexcom off. I went in my room because my mom was like, I'll I'll help him. I'll put another one on, you know, we'll we'll take care of this.
Because I was just like, I can't I can't with this boy right now because I've also been going on very little sleep since all of this. So after, you know, a couple weeks of interrupted sleep, I I was exhausted. It was right before bed too.
The Night of the Seizure41:16
I hear you.
And I didn't put my Sugarpixel on, and, you know, they put a new Dexcom on and it had an error in the middle of the night, some error I've never seen before or again, and it stopped working. And he you know, it was just giving him his basal insulin. And and that was, like, for three hours in the middle of the night. And so my mom like, I didn't hear any alarms. I was sleeping through everything up.
But it was around 06:15 I woke up, realized, oh my god. Slept through the night. Running to his room, and he just seemed kind of out of it. I just automatically gave him juice. I didn't check his blood sugar or anything.
Didn't know my mom was just in there, like, fifteen minutes beforehand and saw him, you know, unresponsive. There was foam coming out of his mouth. Telltale signs that, you know, he he didn't put it together that it was a seizure. I mean, that sounds like a seizure. But she had already given him, you know, some juice before I even got in there.
He kinda snapped out of it. He didn't even like, he didn't know he had a seizure. I'm like, oh my god. Do I take him to the hospital? I knew that they couldn't really do anything for him, but I still wanted him to get checked out.
But he got so sick. He was throwing up. He was super nauseous for a couple hours. So, like, he was just throwing up. He fell back to sleep.
I'm like, I'm gonna take him to the emergency room after he he wakes back up. He had a terrible headache for a few days afterwards even. And but, you know, I took him to the emergency room, you know, they there was nothing they could do. They were going to give him something for nausea, but he wasn't nauseous by the time they actually saw him. They gave him some medicine for his headache, you know, and then they wanted him to go get, like, a sleep study done to make sure it wasn't, like, epilepsy and, like Ugh.
Even though they were, like, I'm sure it's not, but this is our protocol.
If I Gave You a Magic Wand44:08
Amber, can I ask you a question? I gave you a magic wand and I said, wish for things that make everything better, do you know what would help? Did you
have like, let's Oh, yeah.
Know what I mean? Yeah. What would help what would help?
Like, a second me would be great that would just, like
Right.
You know? Maybe
More hands, more time.
Yeah. Honestly, like, having another person, money, the the whole time, like, I wasn't working. So it it it was really rough this this past year
and a half. But You you weren't working because of having to put the effort into the kids or because you didn't have a job or what was the reason for that?
No. I mean, I I got FMLA, so I was working, but it was maybe half the amount. There was times I would go into work, get a call from the nurse, had to just leave soon as I got there. Or, you know, maybe he's, you know, has a stomachache and didn't wanna go to school, and I couldn't leave him home. So I would have to call off a lot.
Mhmm. So that happened. Yeah. Like, a bit
When you think of your son, do you think is he a good kid in a bad situation, or do you think he's do you think he's prone to just being bombastic?
He's a good kid. He's trying to get a grip on his emotions that they're bigger than he is. Mhmm. And through all this, I realized, like, a lot has to do with his ADHD and executive functioning. You know, he something happens, he's zero to a 100, you know, and we have to work backwards from a 100 and calm him down if, you know, something upsets him.
Do you know what upsets him, or could it be anything? It's
no. It's it's not. Like, what what except I
don't know. Like, it's not random. You you the when it happens, you see that, like, oh, that's reasonable that he's upset.
He like, he doesn't like being treated unfairly, which was a big issue he was also having with this school. He if he knew, like, his math teacher, she's a total turd. She made me cry at the parent teacher conference.
Wait. She's a what a total what?
A turd.
Oh, okay.
But, like, if he knows if he feels you're treating him unfairly or that you don't like him, he he's going to give it right back to you. You know what I mean? Mhmm. So there was a lot of that going on with with certain teachers too.
But Is any of this is any of this I don't know. Are are they righteous in any way? Like, is is he like, can you put yourself in their shoes for a second?
Oh, yeah. I put myself in their shoes for a whole year. Yeah. They're like I was like, no. I understand.
You know, you he know, and I I would explain to them. I'm like, if he doesn't think that, you know because he he'll tell me things. He'll be like, oh, yeah. My math teacher, you know, she told the kids, you know, if he bothers you, I'll move him to the back of the classroom. You know, I like he's like, I was just sitting there.
I wasn't doing anything. Why did she say that? You know, like so things hurt his he's sensitive. You know? Things do hurt his feelings, but the way he acts
They feel like he feels like he like they're shitting they're shitting on him a lot.
Yeah. And does it seem like that told. It it does happen a lot. Yeah. Honestly, like
Well, he's an easy target for them. Right? He because in their head, right, he's not a good kid, and he's the problem.
What happens. Yeah. Yeah. Exactly. Because they'll they'll just you know, it's it's Caden.
He's the problem. Even if it wasn't him, we know his background.
He's a good scapegoat. Anyway. Times too.
He's been a scapegoat so much. So I've always been there trying to, you know, stand up for him when I can, you know, so his confidence doesn't get shattered. Like, even this whole thing with the school, he still wanted to go to school, and I'm so proud of him that it didn't, like, crush him and you know, because the the principal even at one point said, how about homeschooling? And it's like, He actually wants
was like, hey. Could you take him and leave, please? Is that what that's Yeah. You know, there's this gosh. There's this book.
I forget which this is helpful. I'm not sure which book I read this in. Right? But I guess there's this kinda, like like, psychological study that was done. They went to kindergarten teachers, and it turned out that kindergarten teachers completely unbeknownst to them, meaning they did not know they were doing this.
They were kinder, more lenient, and more loving towards attractive children.
Labeled the Problem Kid48:48
Oh my god.
Yeah. And it's not it's not a thing they did on purpose. They didn't like like, no one stood up at the front of the room and went, that kid's cute. I'll be nicer to that kid. But they assume that attractive children are smarter.
They cut them more breaks. They like them better, like, the whole thing. But then once you really, like, examine it, they have no idea they're doing it. And so I'm wondering
see that?
Yeah. On the flip side of that, if once a kid is problematic, you're probably digging the hole deeper and deeper for him, you know, I I would say unconsciously if you're the teacher.
Oh, yeah. He he's totally been labeled. Now take him out of school and put him in sports, he's great. Wouldn't know that there was any issue. It it's been
That part of his life goes really well.
Exactly. And, I mean, his father had terrible ADHD, so did my dad. Mhmm. Neither of them graduated high school, you know. I just I see them and I try so hard to not have my son wind up like that.
Did did did either of them have success in life as adults?
No. Sorry. No. They don't.
I was hoping you'd be like, my god. Yeah. Like, he ran a a very successful small engine repair shop, Scott. But no. So they had trouble navigating life in general.
You're worried about that for him.
Yes. You know? And I'm trying to, like, parent him in a more compassionate way, you know, back you know, when they were growing up, it was like, you know, stop acting up, you know, smack them around a bit, you know? Mhmm. Like, why don't you listen?
You know? And, you know, that didn't work out for either of them, and I don't want And try not to have
that happen again. Yeah. Of course. Yeah. Hey.
Listen. The medication I'm sorry. I think I'm am I getting sick? Uh-oh. Back of my throat is I oh, god.
I shouldn't tell you about it. You'll think you're sick now.
Honestly, Caden just had a sore throat and everything. So
No. I'm sorry. I just have a little bit of, like, whatever's going on back there. Tell me about the medication again. Is it methyl what is it?
Methylphenidate. Phenidate.
Okay. So I thought that's what you said. I looked it up. It's a stimulant. And is he on it right now?
Yes. He takes it while he goes to school.
But in ADHD, it feels calming because it's a stimulant that feels calming because it calming, end quote. It improves signal strength and attention control circuits. Simply put, your brain uses chemical bestengers, especially dopamine and norepinephrine to help with attention, motivation, task starting, impulse control, and working memory. This medication mainly works by blocking the reuptake of dopamine and norepinephrine. Meaning, it slows the brain from vacuuming those chemicals back up too quickly.
More of those signals stay available between neurons for longer. The FDA label says the exact therapeutic action in ADHD is not fully known, but the medication is thought to block norepinephrine and dopamine reuptake and increase their availability outside of the neuron. Well, that's what it's doing. Who the hell figured that out?
I don't know, but thank god they did it because well, that was the thing. Like, I their grandmother on their dad's side, you know, she proudly would say, you know, oh, yeah. You know, I I had given him, you know, her son, their dad, Ritalin, and their, like, PCP said, take him right off of that. Like, you're not giving him any of that. And I'm like, now look at him.
You know what I mean? Like, what if he you know, that medicine wasn't demonized and you didn't didn't take him off of it? He could have had a completely different life, you know?
What is it? A ton of medications here. Common ADHD meds, Ritalin, Concerta, Medidate, Methylin, Quilvant XR, Quilchu ER, but, I mean, there's a ton of different ones. Some of these look like extended release and stuff like that. So why do you have them on it at school and not always?
Well, it also affects your sleep. So it's, I I think he has, like, the extended release. It only lasts about, like, six, seven hours.
Okay.
If he were to have it all the time, he would never sleep. He already has a bit of an issue falling asleep. Like, it's like, if he forgets it, he usually takes a nap after school. But if he, now my throat is, like, dry. Sorry.
I'm sorry.
Did I do that to you by coughing?
Oh my gosh. I didn't know I was that bad with my hypochondria.
Jeez. I coughed and Amber's like, I'm I'm verklempt. Everything's going wrong. Go ahead. Take a drink.
I'll take a drink too. We'll do it together. It'd be a tea time.
Oh my gosh.
Was fascinating. Thank you very much, Amber. I appreciate you admitting that out loud.
But, yeah. I don't remember where we were.
We feel from
all over the
We were a team for two. The the medication help stops him helps him with some stuff, but hurts him because he can't sleep. So it's it's not a perfect, obviously, answer for him. So when you stop and think about him because you're the only one thinking about him. Right?
And I would so when you stop and think about him, is he better off on it or better off off it? And why?
He's better off when he's on the medicine for sure. Like, whatever is going on in his brain, especially when it comes to to focusing on school,
he What about if he wasn't in school though? Like, like, I let's let's imagine you live on a desert island. Do you think he would need it?
I don't know. I have been curious to like, I haven't actually witnessed him on it because he only take it while he's at school. The doctors would like him on it every day just to, you know, keep consistency, but I would have to wait. Like, I work weekends. I would have to wake him up for yet another thing to give him the medicine, like, around, like, 07:00 on the weekend, and I already wake him enough, you you know, when he's got a low blood sugar and, you know, he like so I'm like
You're not with him on the weekends, generally?
No. Generally, I have They're at work. Yeah.
Yeah. What do they what do they do during the weekends? Are they with grandma or what do they do? Are they feral? They on the They're they're they're kind of
feral, honestly. Like, my daughter, I kinda put him in charge if there's an emergency, and I I hate to do it, and she's not too thrilled with it either. But, like, my mother, she works too, but when she's not working, she is off doing her own thing, pretty much. Like, I I don't wanna talk, like, badly about her, but even, like, a month after diagnosis, I was like, I think I could keep my job, you know, with your help and, you know, manage his his diabetes. And she's like, yeah.
I don't think Would
love to, but my college game is on Wednesdays. I gotta go.
You know? Yeah. And she has held true to that, not wanting to really
Be involved.
Help. Yeah. So, unfortunately, like, she's kinda going through a divorce and, you know But your
mom's getting divorced?
Yeah. Well, it's part of the reason that I moved in here. It was, you know, beneficial for me to save money and help her with bills, and then it just worked out that way. Yeah. Like like it did.
But but yeah. I feel like I had a lot to say, so I'm kinda going in circles. I was I was I was talking about the seizure. So I had two therapists coming to the house, family therapists, and I had told them I'm taking him to the emergency room. We should be back for a 03:00 appointment.
Well, they wound up calling Children and Youth because they said that I waited too long to help help him get medical care. So, you know, they told me that, like, listen. This is what we had to do. I was like, I'm through with you. I can't believe you'd do that.
Like, I I was very
Cat Scratch Seizure57:26
upset about that. Like Wait. They threw you under the bus. They said that you waited too long to get a medical so if I remember back to the seizure, you fell asleep. The CGM was messed up.
He got, automated insulin more than he should have. Your mom finds him frothy, unresponsive, gives him a juice. Mhmm.
And then she
just by by the way, I didn't I didn't wanna ask this part, but she just fucks off and leaves after that? Doesn't come get you?
My mother, I think, had worked that day. Well, that that was part of the thing that I'm agitated with her about. She heard beeping. Like, she heard his alarms going off that night, and I guess, thought I was taking care of it.
But she did get up tried gave him juice and then left him alone?
Well, I guess she went out to the kitchen. She was just out in the kitchen when that happened, like, probably getting ready for work. And then she came back, and she's like, yeah. I gave him juice. I checked his blood sugar.
His blood sugar wasn't, like it was probably, like, 70 or something. It wasn't, like
Okay. So she checked it. He was 70. You think she maybe thought he was just asleep and a little low and gave him the the juice.
Yeah.
Okay.
And then 15 didn't yeah. It didn't hit her.
Yeah. Yeah. Give me a second. Then fifteen minutes later, you roll up on it, see what's going on, give him another juice, you come to the conclusion that he's had a seizure.
Yeah. She told me what happened. Well, she even heard convulsing
Okay.
At one point and thought it was my cat having a seizure. She's like, I thought it sounded, like, bigger than mama bear, my cat.
You people do not need a cat. Let me just say this, Amber. Amber, you don't you don't need a cat. There's no more responsibility necessary in your life. And so Oh my god.
So she
She's crazy that my cat like, I think stress makes her have seizures because right after Caden was diagnosed, I thought I was gonna have to put her down. She was having, like, seven seizures a day.
Your mom thought the cat did it. Your mom thought the cat did it. Right?
Well, I she thought that the cat was having a seizure. That's what she heard overnight, and it must have it must have been Caden because
Can we call this episode cat scratch seizure? I think maybe yes.
That's actually hilarious.
Thank you. I'm doing my best over here, Amber, to make your incredibly sad story more fun for people to listen to. I know.
I I was like, I hope that this doesn't
just turn into a big party. It doesn't. Alright. I don't think it's listen. Here's what I think.
If if I can be candid. Right? You're limited in help. You're limited in in finances. You have to go to work.
Your kids have problems. I it sounds to me like you're doing the best that you can. The best you can is not awesome, but it is it is the best you can. I listen. I grew up in that a house like that and nobody around me ever.
Like, I got up in the morning. I went to school. I came home. My mom was gone. She got home at 09:00 at night.
She yelled at us to take a shower, and then that was it. You you know what I mean? Like, there was we were broke. We didn't have the luxury of hanging out with our kids or chatting or being there on the weekends and, like, that none of that. I didn't live any of my life like that.
And I ended up raising my brothers, which sucked, by the way, in case you're wondering how your daughter feels. Mhmm. But, like, a but point being, this is what it is. I mean, you can't stop this from being like, people could listen to go, oh, she should do this. She should do that.
Try to get the school to help her. They're a problem. Try to get some outside therapist to help her. They fucking threw her under the bus while she was trying to do her best she could with the kid and the seizure. And, like, every time she turns to somebody, they shake her down.
The lawyer shakes her down. The lawyer doesn't wanna help your kid. The lawyer wants to sue the school, make 30%. That's what the lawyer wants. Right?
Yeah.
Yeah. The dad ain't helping anybody. Right? Your mom isn't half checked out, and I don't know if I can blame her or not. That's neither here or there because she's not helping you.
And so and maybe she doesn't have the ability to help. So truth be told, you're trying to keep all these balls up in the air until these kids get old enough to be a little more responsible for themselves hopefully. And then, I mean, the best you can hope for is to is to help them, I think. I don't I hope this doesn't sound sad. I think the best you can hope for is to help them break this cycle as adults.
Like, you're already totally. Yeah. You're already in it, Amber. We're we're not going backwards now. Like and that and fair enough.
You know? And you love those kids. It sounds like you love them immensely. And and so Yeah. Yeah.
Yeah. So you gotta help them get to the part where they can make better decisions. You gotta set it up so your daughter doesn't end up with some scattered guy who's gonna flake on her. Like, that's the goal. Like, you're you gotta find a thing in the world that your son can do where he can be peaceful and sleep and at the same time take how his brain works and and adapt it to the world somehow.
Like, I think the biggest like, I don't know shit about any of this. Okay? But listening to your story, what it feels like is that that kid's a square peg, and you were trying to pound it into a round hole at school.
No. Absolutely. Like, I he is, you know, not a little, you know exactly.
He doesn't fit in that scenario.
He thinks that's inside the box. You know? Yeah. And I just I've been trying to, like, you know, just encourage him until, like, you know, maybe he could go to, like, a trade school. I I can see him doing something like that where he's not just sitting down in a box.
You know, there's
room Oh, it's not right for him. Yeah.
Yeah. Yeah. You know? It's it's not. And so I'd yeah.
That's what I've just been trying to encourage him so he doesn't lose that, you know, self worth. I mean, he was in kindergarten. He's like, I'm bad and I don't know why. You know? Like, after he he's like, I'm like, oh god.
Don't say that about yourself. You know? Because it was it went back that far. You know? He was running and hiding under the table, you know, and everything.
So, you know, there was always, space. You know
He's and it's and it's not it's not something you can just tell him to stop doing. It's not like that. Right? Like so it's a bad situation, but it'll also be over fairly soon. I you know, it's funny.
Maybe the homeschooling is not a bad idea. Like Well, that's
the thing. I did actually take him out at his old school because I saw how it was emotionally destroying him, and I did put him in home. Like, I did like, I I worked at a different job at the time, and, I mean, I cut my hours. I don't even wanna get into it. It didn't work out, we'll say.
He wound up wanting to go back to school. It just put me in a financial hole, which is part of the reason I I moved in with my mom to, like Mhmm. Start, you know
So you think
get all that back in order. Yeah. So Wait. Wait. Wait.
Give me a second here, though. Like, I wanna go back to school.
Why? What what didn't work about it?
He wants to fit in. He always just wants to be like the other kids. You know?
Oh, okay.
Even when he was little, I would pack him a lunch. He would he started throwing it away. I just wanna eat what the other kids eat. So if you can imagine, that's through diabetes and that was Oh,
so he so even though he doesn't fit in that scenario, he desperately wants to. Yeah. So does he, be on the medication for school?
He he sees the importance. He does. He even said, he's like, I'm not anxious anymore.
Oh. You know,
I wanna, you know, like because he's seeing a therapist at the school, and, you know, they go through, like, their, like, game plan. And he told her, like, no. We don't have to work on that anymore. He just wants to work on, you know, his emotions, anger. He he's very aware of, you know, how he is and how he doesn't want to do you know, act certain ways.
Yeah. Listen. Are any of these other medications better? Like, does anybody ever say, like, like, can we get some of the benefit we're getting without the the sleep issue, or is that just is this part and parcel for all these meds?
I think it's how stimulants are, and I didn't want him to, like, bounce around. Like, it's the the good is outweighing the bad in my opinion. Mhmm. You know, again, I get worried. I'm like, are we gonna be messing with the liver, getting this?
You know? Because some of them, they take weeks to even start working. You know? So I'm like, I don't want to take him off of this, see if it's six weeks this is working, it's not working, then have to put him on something else. You know?
So it's like, let's just stick with what's working. Yeah. Okay. And, yeah, that's the let let me go back. So Go ahead.
The reason I had mentioned the seizure, now children and youth call me, and they I'm like, listen. I'm wasn't the first time I got children and youth called. They actually the school, the year before when I took him off his medication, they called Children and Youth saying I wasn't giving him his medication even though the doctor said, you're the mom. Do what you want. You know, like, it's up to you if you want him on the medicine.
But, anyway, I, you know, I came at it like like, I'm, like, two steps ahead of children and you taking my kids away from me. And the lady was like, listen. I'm not here to take your kids away. We could just forget this phone call ever happened, or you could look at me as an aid. Maybe I could help you in some way.
So I'm like, sure. I could use help. Let's let's see what you have. Yeah. She winds up sending us a lady that was kinda like a therapist, but she I'm not quite sure what she was, but she actually had type one, and they're like, you know, she understands.
Like, so this lady's coming to the house. She winds up coming to the magistrate with us. I had the lawyer and, you know, I tell him what happens. We're all at the magistrate, and the lawyer's like, let me try talking to the security guard. Maybe we don't even have to go in front of the magistrate.
He comes back. He's like, this is, like, bullshit. That's what the lawyer actually said to me. He's like, yeah. He wants Caden on probation for six weeks, and that's how he'll, like, you know, drop the charges.
And he's like, I don't know about you, but that doesn't sound good to me. I was like, absolutely not. So we proceed in front of the magistrate, and I thought this was gonna be open closed, medical emergency, you know, all dropped. And, honestly, the security guard, he kept pushing it. He's like, I wanna know how this cannot happen anymore.
He shouldn't act like this. You know? What are we gonna do about it? No. This isn't good enough to to the point where we actually had to put the woman like, she had to, you know, go into the stand and, like, testify, you know.
And she not only had type one, she was a nurse and she was in school to for psychology. So she had a lot of credentials and, like, you know, she spoke and she she rocked. Like, she was so impressive. You know? And, like, at one point, you know, the security guard said it again, like, how can we prevent this?
She's like, I don't know. Cure diabetes? She's like, you know, like, you can't. Like, the you know, it's diabetes. There will be low blood sugars.
Yeah. You're trying to
An Aide, and a Nurse Who Testified1:07:22
hold a 15 year old accountable for something he might have said when he had a low
blood 11.
11. He's my he's my
12 year old. Yeah. He was 11 at
the time. What are we talking about here? Like, rid it's ridiculous. What what's wrong with this guy? Is he bored?
He needed something to do? The security guard? I mean
Yeah. Good question. I think at this point, like, it went I don't think that they thought I would get a lawyer. I thought that they would just, you know
Is your son, like, nine feet tall and weighs, like, three hundred what's he scared of exactly?
Oh, he was always a tiny little thing too. Like, you know, I I do think that they were just trying to prove their case because at this time, they were worried that I was getting a lawyer, you know, to come after the school.
Previous, do you think they pushed the security guard a little bit to try to cause a problem to get rid of your son? Like, you or or what I mean They
might have. Honestly, because, like
Are you in the woods? What's going on? I need you near a Metropolitan Center. I I
kinda am in the woods.
How are you? I am.
But yeah. So the the magistrate, she wound up, you know it it seemed like she didn't want to take our side, but she had to to kind of an extent. Like, that was the vibe I was getting, but she was also like, this doesn't seem like it was the security guard's fault. This seems like it was the principal's fault because why did he put an untrained officer in place of a medical emergency? And I was like, oh, that is fair.
And then she kinda insinuated, like, this seems like a school issue, in which case my lawyer was like, she's actually got another lawyer and will be coming after the school because of all this. You know? So that was the end of that, and I I was really glad that that woman had got on the stand and spoke because, like I said, I couldn't believe that it wasn't as straightforward as This
is a medical thing. Yeah. We're sorry. Bye.
Face closed. Like, sorry to waste your time. But so, I mean, for that alone, I was glad Children and Youth had gotten involved and sent her to us. Because even, like, when she would come to the house, she's like, everybody just always tells me, you just need more help. Like, you know, like, that's all you need.
I would have suggested a lawyer anyway. You're already getting a lawyer. There was really nothing more she she could do for us.
Right. You know? Jeez.
But so she doesn't come around anymore. Fast forward to more recent. I had a, like, a lot to say, so I'm really trying to
You're doing well. Hey. Listen. It's a it's a big story, and you're doing a good job getting through it. Don't worry about it.
We have, like we can do, like, ten more minutes, and then we're gonna we'll be I'll be over too far. But, like, let's take a second and think. What else did you wanna talk about that you don't think we got to?
Yeah. Well, just like, the case is all closed with the lawyer and the school now, and I didn't even know what I was exactly, like, fighting for getting that lawyer, but they wound up accommodating. They were trying to get him out of the school to go to, like, a, like, a behavioral health school. Mhmm. But we wound up getting it, so he he goes over to the high school instead of being with that, like, snotty math teacher, and he goes over to the high school for they have, like, some teachers that help with behavior.
Yeah.
So he goes over there for a couple classes, and they also we got it. So, like, they can't call me for every little small inconvenience that now I like, the information I have now, it's like, oh, now I know that if, you know, he wants to do an after school activity, which he wants to wrestle next year, he wants to play baseball for the school. Like, so like, there was a lot of other things that I was like, how is this going to work if I have to sit at the school, you know, like I thought I had to do previously? So there was a lot of little things like that that we we got taken care of, and they also gave him money in a fund. Like, it's not like I got money, but there's a fund for his education that he got.
Do you do you think the high school is just better equipped to help him?
Yes. And even, like, one of the, like, counselors that he talks to even said, like, he's gonna do much better in the high school. They have a lot more support in place. And
Well, maybe this is the bit yeah. Maybe this is the beginning of a new chapter for him.
Yes. So he goes there. He loves it at the high school. Like, before the whole magistrate security officer issue, I was asking him, like, maybe he needs some tutoring. He only got half days last year.
And they're like, oh, we'll see, but they couldn't find anybody. Turns out that it was also illegal to not provide education for him and, like, them doing the half days and then him not getting a full education.
Yeah.
Like, it's every student's, like
He's got a right to
a full education. Yeah. So now we have this fund where I can get him tutoring. I could even get him executive functioning coaching, which I didn't even know was a thing to help kids with ADHD. Mhmm.
So I'm looking forward to all that. The case was very quickly resolved. Actually, the lawyer had told me she thought that this could go on well until next year, and it's already been all closed out for a month now. She wound up not taking that 30% of the money that he got because I think that she was just happy with what she caught and how quick it went the way it was. Mhmm.
So, like, he's happy now, and I'm just, like, so thrilled that he's been doing so much better.
Yeah.
But, yeah, that was
The fund is is the result of the of the the lawyer's work.
And part of it was, you know because also they were suspending him, so he was also missing school. And then it was like, well, how is he supposed to do his schoolwork when he's not here Mhmm. When you're suspending him all the time? They're no longer doing that anymore, thankfully. Like, yeah, it's
How much longer till he's out of that school totally?
Just two more weeks. Yeah. He goes to seventh grade, and the high school is seventh to twelfth grade.
Graduation day. Get out of there. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
Yeah. Definitely. So just so thrilled about all that.
How old is he today? He's 12. Okay. So he'll have the summer, and and maybe, you know, maybe he'll he'll change a little bit. Maybe his situation will get better.
Maybe he can spend the summer getting better at the diabetes thing, getting better at the ADHD thing. Really give him a great launch at the high school and get him going. You know.
Yeah. And I I think a big issue was too, like, I think he was also depressed. I didn't put him in there's no fall ball at the school district that he goes to in. So it was like the first time he hadn't played baseball when school started.
Okay.
So I've I noticed, like, I just have to keep him in things. You know?
He's been moving.
Yes. Yes. He does.
Well, I kind of I so you live in Pennsylvania. Right?
Yes.
Yeah. There's fall ball out there somewhere. You're just gonna have to get into a travel league to find it.
Yeah. I I've thought about travel with my work and
How are gonna do that?
Don't know if I could make it work. So so he's actually going to start playing football this this year. Like, it was always baseball, like, his whole life. Ever since he was, like, four years old, it was always baseball. We started at this school, and somebody was like, oh, do you wanna wrestle?
So he started wrestling. Well, honestly, it was right, like, two weeks before diagnosis. And I remember taking him to wrestling practice, and his blood sugar went to, like, two fifty. And I'm like, you know what? How about we learn this diabetes thing, and then we come back wrestling because I'm like, what just happened here?
Not sure what's going on. How how So
Let's take the last wrestle. Yeah.
How the Diabetes Is Going Now1:18:32
Yeah. Amber, let's take the last minute or two here. Like, how is the diabetes part going right now?
It's it's going a lot better. Like, even during all of this, he was I didn't even mention impulsively taking too much insulin. So we were having issues with if, like, he got mad. All of a sudden, I'm like, I know he just took too much insulin. That was a big issue, but he's not even doing that anymore since we got everything straightened out at school.
I just think he was so overwhelmed with everything. He does a great job. He's very independent with his management. I help him as much as I can, but, like, he doesn't wanna put the infusion he doesn't want me to put the infusion set on or his Dexcom. He wants that.
I'll fill up the cartridges. I'll unwrap the Dexcoms, you know, like, get everything ready, and he just, like, applies it. Mhmm. But if I'm not here, he'll put it on, like, no problem. He doesn't want high blood sugars, so sometimes we we have an issue with him overcorrecting, which I've heard that he's not alone in that.
So we're still working on that. But, yeah, he he's very active in it. I just hope that he doesn't, you know, rebel against it one day. I've been trying really hard to not come off as, like
Lording
over Yeah. Yeah. Or anything. Just, give him any bad feelings towards it. I kinda try to tell him it's like brushing your teeth, taking a shower.
You know? You just
Yeah.
You change in your pump site. You know? It's just another part of your your routine. Right. You know?
Everybody's routine can be a little bit different depending on
Situation. The
things they have going on. Amber, you I just
You're doing a good job. Don't? No. I mean, gosh. It's a it's a lot, and you're I think you're doing a good job.
It's it's you know? I imagine it doesn't feel that way, but I you're trying. You're there. You're, you know, engaged. You're, you know, talking about it, trying to figure out other ideas.
It doesn't sound like you've given up. It's I I I just think it's probably a really long process that you're in the beginning of still And a lot of different factors, you know.
Yeah. I mean, you know, you know, we're trying our best and, you know, I try like, I love all the mental health series that you do with Erica, you know. Like, I try really hard. Like, at one point, he you know, I said to him, some something happened. It was a few months ago, and I'm like, I understand.
And he was like, no. You don't understand. And it, like, crushed me, but, like, I tried to change my wording with some of the things too because it's like, yeah. I understand from my point of view, not him and his point of view with diabetes, you know. So I and then I know that was talked about in the series.
Yeah. The language is important. You just have to you just have to say, like, I I don't live with the same problems you have, and I, you know, I but I am doing my best to to to to understand as best I can what's happening to you so that I can be as, you know, valuable to you as possible. Like, it is it is tough when you say I understand. People are like, you don't you don't know what you're talking about.
And I can see how it's crushing from your side to hear that because you're probably putting so much effort into trying to trying to absorb as much of this as possible.
It could be so isolating. I'd like I don't ever want him to feel like he's all alone in this. You know? Like, I wanna know as much as I can, so I'm here when he's frustrated as somebody who, you know, understands to some extent. You know?
Like because you know when somebody doesn't understand, you know, anything about type one, and you're trying to explain the same things over and over. So I wanna always be his support. So
Yeah. The best you can do is be there. I mean, I really do think that's most of it. Just be there so that he's aware that when when he wants you, you're ready, willing, able, excited to be involved. Yeah.
Yeah. And just try not to push. I thought that was good advice you gave yourself too. Don't don't push too much and but stay involved and it's a balancing act. It's it's not It really is.
I I had to learn a lot about control because, like, I there was a way I wanted to manage it for him. Mhmm. You know? And then there was singing of him and his emotions and, you know, and not just being, like, diabetes or, you know, like, even food related. It was like, okay.
You know? Okay. You wanna eat this? Okay. We're we're gonna figure out how to eat this.
You know? I don't want you to feel restricted because at first, you know, I I think, like, everybody does it. We'll do low carb. It'll be great. You know?
And it's like, okay. He really doesn't wanna do low carb. Let's do this so you're comfortable. And you're in control because it was it took a lot of control away from him, and he still wants
Right.
To feel in control as best as he can. So
Amber, I'm impressed. I really am. Because you could you could be in a significantly different situation right now, and your understanding could be a lot worse, but it's not. And you're you're doing a great job. You really are.
I want you that's what I'd like to end on is you knowing that this is long, it's hard, but you were doing a really great job. I would say stay on the course you're on, and I I think you'll get there.
Well, thank you so much. And I'm just so glad that somebody, you know, referred the podcast to me, like, just a couple weeks after he was diagnosed because it has just helped immensely in in so many ways.
I'm glad. That's nice. I'm I'm glad to know that. Thank you. You you made my day.
Of course.
Yeah. Oh gosh. I don't know what to say other than get back in there. Keep throwing your hands, Amber.
Yeah. Life. Right? I mean, it's a roller coaster.
You could trick a boy into helping you? I mean, I know that's not right, but could you?
Maybe one day, I feel like it's just it's another person to think about at this point. To get dating.
Yeah. My god. I can imagine dating you and being like, I don't know. I'm gonna go home and meet her kids, and you get home and be like, oh, I don't know what's happening.
Oh, yeah. It's a lot. It's a lot. I I I won't lie.
I won't lie. Oh my god. Oh, I'm so upset. What did I say we were gonna call this one?
Oh, something about cats.
Okay. Cat scratch seizure. There you go.
That that's adorable. I love it.
Thank you. Because I don't know what I I I love your mom's like, thought it was the cat having a seizure. Like, when that's happening, you know everything's upside down. When you think when you think cat seizure is a reasonable answer to the noise in your house Yeah. That's how you know things have gotten out of hand.
Oh my gosh. Yeah.
Oh my god. Okay. Alright. Let me let you go. Hold on one second.
I I need to talk to you before we're done. Hold on.
Okay.
You're off. Do you think they called it Cozy Earth because the stuff wasn't comfortable? That is not how it got its name. Cozy Earth dot com. Use the offer code juice box right now.
Save 20% off of everything that you buy on that website. Can you just for me to look at the website for you for a second? I can do it. Best sellers include bamboo sheets. I have them.
Brushed bamboo joggers, my wife has those. There's a t shirt I have. Oh, there's my comforter. Yeah. Yeah.
Yeah. I mean, that's the best seller stuff. I actually used the bag that my Cozy Earth sheets came in recently to go to the ADA thing. Swear I to god. Bath towels.
I'm talking about robes, sleepwear, loungewear, skincare, bedding, bath. Just go spend your money. Give it to Cozy Earth. They they damn it. They deserve it.
They make such cozy stuff, and you wanna be cozy. Plus, did that thing with the pellet stove earlier. That was really unique. So, I mean, you owe me. Use the offer code JuiceBox at checkout.
Today's episode of the JuiceBox podcast was sponsored by the new Tandem Mobi system and Control IQ Plus technology. Learn more and get started today at tandemdiabetes.com/juicebox. Check it out. Dexcom sponsored this episode of the juice box podcast. Learn more about the Dexcom g seven at my link, dexcom.com/juicebox.
Okay. Well, here we are at the end of the episode. You're still with me? Thank you. I really do appreciate that.
What else could you do for me? Why don't you tell a friend about the show or leave a five star review? Maybe you could make sure you're following or subscribe in your podcast app. Go to YouTube and follow me or Instagram, TikTok. Oh, gosh.
Here's one. Make sure you're following the podcast in the private Facebook group as well as the public Facebook page. You don't wanna miss please, do you not know about the private group? You have to join the private group. As of this recording, it has 74,000 members.
They're active talking about diabetes. Whatever you need to know, there's a conversation happening in there right now. And I'm there all the time. Tag me. I'll say hi.
Actually, I haven't had time to update that in a little bit, but it's 85,000 now. 85,000 members, you might be the one hundred thousandth member of the Juice Box podcast Facebook group. You'll never find out if you don't go look.
Read the full disclaimer
© 2007–2026 Juicebox Podcast. All rights reserved.
