Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Argh! What next?

Hi all!
So my 8 year old son's last blood work indicated that he may be one of the 25% of Type 1 diabetics that will also have to contend with Thyroid disease.... What next?

My poor child who is normal and healthy in every other way AND very active now has to probably take daily thyroid replacement drugs in addition to the 2 types of insulin shots and the constant pricking of his fingers to test his blood glucose.

I still get very angry ( at whom I'm not quite sure) that my precious son has to have this disease!

I can't seem to go a night without having to get up at least twice to test his blood sugar, he has been all over the place with his levels. I've tried everything- he's soo erratic with the amount of lantus he needs... I only vary it by .25 at a time. He will spike in the middle of the night and run high so I'll raise the basal by .25. The next night I'll be up giving him juices because he'll keep dropping!!! ARGH! I'm so tired some days that I just want to cry but I can't because I'm too tired!

Any other parents out there who have experienced this? Any advice?

More to come.....

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

This is for parents of Diabetic children....

Here is a place to share experiences, wisdom, and the ever mounting daily frustration we face as parents. As a child I grew up being close with my first cousin Shawn who was 5 years my senior. She had been diagnosed Type 1 at the age of 7... I had no idea what diabetes was I only knew that Shawn had to watch what she ate, give herself shots, and check her urine with mysterious strips. When she was alive the theory for controlling blood glucose was still centered around counting "sugars" and the insulin available was only the basal, longacting kind.

Shawn started to go blind in her early twenties and eventually lost all sight in one eye... To the shock of us all who loved her she died in her sleep at the age of 30. I can still hear her laughter- she was silly and made all who knew her laugh with joy till the tears came down.

Now here I am a mother of a Type 1 diabetic son. He was diagnosed shortly after his 4th birthday... I was devastated. After witnessing what my cousin went through and that we lost her at age 30 I was terrified that my son would have the same fate.
More to come....