The Houston Family will be there . . . will you?

Click for the Diabetes Hero - Sunday 5/20 Link List.
Let’s end our week on a high note and blog about our “Diabetes Hero”.  It can be anyone you’d like to recognize or admire, someone you know personally or not, someone with diabetes or maybe a Type 3.  It might be a fabulous endo or CDE.  It could be a d-celebrity or role-model.  It could be another DOC member.  It’s up to you – who is your Diabetes Hero??


Click for the Diabetes Creativity Wildcard Link List.
 Creativity comes in all shapes and forms, so take this where ever it leads you.  Write a diabetes poem.  Create some D-Art.  Record a vlog.  Write a diabetes song parody.  Scrapbook, collage, sew, knit, crochet . . . . use your favorite creative outlet to create a diabetes project!




It's kind of a combo or 2 for the price of one deal . . . 


Obviously, it goes without saying that Nate is my Diabetes Hero and I've written about that many, many times.  I honestly do not think I could have diabetes ----- I'm a total wimp!  He is so totally amazing and strong and awesome and brave and super adorable!


See ---- total diabetes hero.


For the creativity part I thought I would share this video I made back in 2010 not even a year after Nate's diagnosis.  If I made one today which I should have done for this post but didn't have the time.  It would be to a much more upbeat song --- maybe . . . The Fighter by Gym Class Heroes or something bad ass like that.  

Click for the Saturday Snapshots - Saturday 5/19 Link List.
Back for the third year, let’s show everyone what life with diabetes looks like!  With a nod to the Diabetes 365 project, let’s grab our cameras again and share some more d-related pictures.  Post as many or as few as you’d like.  Feel free to blog your thoughts on or explanations of your pictures, or leave out the written words and let the pictures speak for themselves.





Diabetes has changed me.  I'm not sure if it has made be better or worse but I do know it has made me stronger.

_______________________________________________________________________________


I was going to just post the above picture but while looking for something else I found the below picture that I posted back in 2010 and it seems fitting for this post . . .

Click for the What They Should Know – Friday 5/18  Link List.
Today let’s borrow a topic from a #dsma chat held last September.  The tweet asked “What is one thing you would tell someone that doesn’t have diabetes about living with diabetes?”.  Let’s do a little advocating and post what we wish people knew about diabetes.  Have more than one thing you wish people knew?  Go ahead and tell us everything.


To learn a lot --- I mean a whole lot about living with type 1 click the link list above and read some of the other blogs participating in D Blog Week.  Lots & lots of good information being posted today.

There is a ton I would like to educate the general public on about type 1 but today I am just going to remind those not living with type 1 diabetes . . . that diabetes hurts.

I think people forget because Nate doesn't flinch when I check his sugar that there is still a little needle poking him until he bleeds ---- he may be used to it but that doesn't mean it doesn't hurt. And we do it 12-15 times a day.  So far today we've actually done it 20 times!!

UGH --- picture proof.  No judging on the WAY CRAZY numbers we've been having lately!




Also, very few people in my real life actually see Nate getting his pod changed.  We change it every 2 - 3 days (sometimes more frequently) and he hates it.  I've posted videos for my readers before of Nate's pod changes.  They are hard to watch.  After 2 years, 2 months and 18 days Nate still cries almost every single time we change his pod.

Diabetes Hurts.

The littles and I decided to make a couple of silly videos about checking Nate's sugar and then tonight was pod change night so we made a video of that as well.

SUGAR CHECK




POPPING BALLOONS




TODAY'S POD CHANGE




DECEMBER 2011 POD CHANGE






AUGUST 2010 POD CHANGE




I want everyone to know a lot of things about living with type 1 diabetes but I think the one thing I want you to remember today is that DIABETES HURTS.  If you think it is just a physical pain you would be mistaken.  That is my son, my baby in those videos.  I do that to him every few days.  Diabetes hurts Nate but it hurts me and the rest of our family too.

Keep Calm and Pod Change On . . .

Click here for the Fantasy Diabetes Device - Thursday 5/17 Link List.
Today let’s tackle an idea inspired by Bennet of Your Diabetes May Vary.  Tell us what your Fantasy Diabetes Device would be?  Think of your dream blood glucose checker, delivery system for insulin or other meds, magic carb counter, etc etc etc.  The sky is the limit – what would you love to see?




Keep Calm and D-Blog Week On . . . 

Click for the One Thing to Improve - Wednesday 5/16 Link List.
Yesterday we gave ourselves and our loved ones a big pat on the back for one thing we are great at.  Today let’s look at the flip-side.  We probably all have one thing we could try to do better.  Why not make today the day we start working on it.  No judgments, no scolding, just sharing one small thing we can improve so the DOC can cheer us on!




Well-- Well . . .  since I said I totally rock diabetes yesterday I guess today I must confess to a few things that I could improve.  


1) Changing of the Lancet --- Seriously cannot tell you the last time this happened.  I know - I suck!


2) Washing of the Poking Finger --- I'm really bad about just wiping Nate's finger on my shirt and calling it clean.  I know - GROSS!


3) Stressing over the Highs --- Oh yes, highs stress me out far more than lows.  I get seriously stressed out and rage bolus the crap out of them.  I know - Relax


4) Diabetes in the House --- I think the worst thing that I do is put Nate's diabetes on everyone in the house.  I strongly believe that it is a family disease --- we all live with it but I sometimes put too much of it on Emma and Sophie.  The only example I can think of right now is that Emma wants to get her ears pierced which I am ok with -- sort of.  But, the latest trend is to get numbing cream from the doctor (EMLA) before going to get them pierced so they won't feel it.  I say NO WAY!  Nate's fingers get poked 12-15 times a day, he gets his pod changed every 2-3 days and Dexcom every 7-14.  NO STINKIN WAY am I letting my daughters get numbing cream for an elective poking of the ears.  I wonder if I would even care if Nate didn't have diabetes?  I know - I'm a meanie!


I could go on and on but I think we were only supposed to focus on one.  


Keep calm and D-Blog Week On . . . 

Click for the One Great Thing - Tuesday 5/15 Link List.
Living with diabetes (or caring for someone who lives with it) sure does take a lot of work, and it’s easy to be hard on ourselves if we aren’t “perfect”.  But today it’s time to give ourselves some much deserved credit.  Tell us about just one diabetes thing you (or your loved one) does spectacularly!  Fasting blood sugar checks, oral meds sorted and ready, something always on hand to treat a low, or anything that you do for diabetes.  Nothing is too big or too small to celebrate doing well! 




This weekend I was chatting with a friend's husband and while eating one my of super delicious chocolate chip cookies he asked me the following question:


Besides making awesome cookies, what other talents do you have?


I had no answer.  I seriously don't really do anything well.  I have no talents! I didn't play sports growing up, or dance or do gymnastics.  I don't paint or draw.  I really have no talents whatsoever.  Sad, I know.  I couldn't think of anything that  I do well.


Then when I was trying to think of a diabetes thing that I do spectacularly for this post and it came to me.  


That's what I do.


Diabetes. 


I do it all well. 


Don't get me wrong ---- I'm far from a perfect pancreas but I think I balance it all so well that most of my friends forget what all I deal with on daily/nightly basis.  


I think they forget that I check Nate's sugar 12-15 times per day, they don't realize that I have to make critical decisions to his well being at every single check, I change his insulin pump every 2-3 days (hell, I think 1/2 of them think the pod just sticks on his arm with the sticky tape ---- FYI --- there's a very large needle that inserts a ---- oh good hell never mind!), I do a lot of math, I am accountable for everything that he puts into his mouth, the list goes on and on.  


What I do -- 


What I do spectacularly is . . . 


that I make it all seem NORMAL and OK and EASY and like it is NO BIG DEAL.  


I'm actually quite pleased that I've gotten to a place after almost 3 years where I can make it all look easy.  


It's not easy.  It is hard.  It is exhausting.  It is frustrating. It is bloody.  It is painful.  It is total and complete suckage at times.  But I am glad that I make it look easier than all of that.  




Here's how it really is for me and for all of moms raising children with diabetes --- 


A beautiful post written by my friend and fellow D Mom, Meri from Our Diabetic Life











Keep calm and D-Blog Week On ---


DO IT!

Day 1 --- Find a Friend

Click for the Find A Friend - Monday 5/14 Link List.
It seems the most popular thing about Diabetes Blog Week is that it helps us find blogs we weren’t reading yet and connect with some new blog friends.  With that in mind, let’s kick off Diabetes Blog Week by making some new connections.  Think about the d-blogs you read that you think we may not know about and introduce us to one that you love!!  Let’s all find a new friend today! 


Day 1 - Topic 1 and I am already having problems.  Excellent.  The problem?  I've been so busy I've all but stopped reading blogs.  I know ---- it totally sucks.  I miss it!

I am sure all of my PWD bloggy friends already read this blog but I'm not sure if all of my D-Mama bloggy friends do . . . so I thought I would make the introduction.  Melissa of Sweetly Voiced is not only one of my friends that lives inside of my computer she's actually a friend in real life!!

She lives super close, we have met lots of times and I absolutely adore her.  I love reading her blog and I love sitting down and discussing diabetes with her.  She has taught me a ton and she always has such an interesting twist on things.  I always leave the conversations thinking . . .
hmmmm . . . I never would have thought of that.  Genius!  Plus after I wrote this post ---> The Sh*t that is Crohn's Disease which has some serious foul language in it she left the best comment ever (I hope she doesn't get mad at me for posting):

God, Laura. I love you. I'm going to hug the f*ck out of you when I see you this week.

The greatest part of the comment is that she actually did it ---- she hugged the F*CK out of me and I loved it.  I love her and I love her blog so get the F*CK out out of here and go check out Sweetly Voiced.


Keep Calm and D-Blog Week On . . .

in·su·lin/ˈinsələn/

Insulin . . . such an important part of my life today.  The small vial of insulin that I pick up at my local CVS pharmacy each month literally keeps my son, Nate alive each day.  Without his insulin pump, the OmniPod infusing insulin into his body 24 hours a day/7 days a week Nate would not be able to live.

I've said it many times the scariest part of Nate's T1 is that the very same insulin that keeps him alive and healthy can actually cause extreme hypoglycemia which could lead to a coma, brain damage or death.  It's a very, very fine line.

The insulin isn't magic and Nate's pump isn't magic . . .  although that would be really nice.   Jim and I have to calculate each dose of insulin that Nate receives through his pump. It is a non-stop, never-ending, always-changing job that keeps us on our toes at all times.

Mistakes are not an option when it comes to insulin.

That being said . . . Saturday the 5th of May, 2012 a monumental mistake was made and it could have been fatal.  I'm not saying this to be dramatic ---- it is a fact! If we had not realized what we had done --- the mistake that was made ---- it would have been fatal.

Most of my readers know that Jim and I are going through a divorce, he works out of state most of the time and I handle most of Nate's diabetes care.  Jim can do everything that I can do --- he's just not here most of the time so the every day ins and outs of D care are mine.  Nate has been pumping with the OmniPod for over 2 years now and I can probably count on one hand the number of insulin injections I've had to give Nate from a syringe.  In that same time Jim has not had to give Nate any injections via syringe.

So, Saturday was a rare day for us.  Jim was in town, it was his weekend with the littles but he had a ton of work to do so I volunteered to hang around and help out so he could get it all done.  Yea . . . pretty much I had nothing else to do all weekend so you know --- I was nice.  :)

I decided to take the kids hiking Saturday afternoon and at the last minute Jim decided to take a break from work and tag along.  I was actually happy he decided to go.  As much as I love hiking with the littles --- it can be a bit challenging solo.

As we were hiking Nate's pod fell off and being the stellar D Mama that I am I didn't have another one with me (I always have an extra or 2 with me EXCEPT for when I actually need one).  I wasn't worried at all during the hike because he stays in range with the help of a lot of carbo boosting along the way.  After our very long, hot and dirty hike we decided to grab a bite to eat and instead of doing a pod change we decided to just give Nate an injection to bolus for dinner.  No. Big. Deal.  Except it turned out to be a VERY. BIG. DEAL.

We SWAGGED dinner and decided that Nate needed about 1.25 units of insulin.  Jim drew up the insulin and was handling giving Nate the injection while I took the girls to the restroom.  As I was leaving the table I could tell that Nate wasn't too thrilled about a shot so I decided to grab the syringe and give the shot in Nate's arm really fast while Jim was distracting him.  I never even looked at the syringe just picked it up, stuck it in, and pushed down on the plunger.  As soon as I did I knew something was very, very wrong.  I asked Jim how much insulin he put in the syringe and he very confidently answered 1.25 units.  I asked him to show me on the syringe because I knew . . . I knew by the feel that I had never given that much insulin before.  When he showed me on the syringe he pointed somewhere between the 10 unit line and the 15 unit line and my knees went weak.  He thought the 10 was 1.0 and the 15 was 1.5.



I actually felt the blood drain from my face and I saw the look of absolute fear in Jim's eyes when I told him what we had done.

We gave Nate 12 units of FAST ACTING APIDRA.

To date Nate's largest bolus has been 4 units and that made him bottom out.  His current total daily insulin intake is around 11 units per day.  12 units of fast acting insulin in my 3 year old son was a fatal dose and we kind of freaked the F out.

The part that scared us both the most is that if I had not decided to turn around and help with the shot Jim would have never known that he gave Nate 12 units of fast acting insulin.  The what ifs and the what could have beens were pretty overwhelming.

 I usually handle all things diabetes pretty calmly --- I avoid the hospital like the plague when it comes to Nate and diabetes.  I'm pretty cocky . . . always thinking ---- I got this.  This time I was ready to go straight to the ER --- I was pretty scared.  I stayed calm and Jim and I very calmly and quietly discussed our options.  We were soon overwhelmed when we realized Nate's dinner time insulin to carb ration (I:C) is 1:30.  That means he only gets 1 unit of insulin for 30g of carbs eaten.  That meant we need to feed Nate 360 grams of carbs to keep him safe. CRAP!  I did call the on call endo at Children's but she said 'just give him some ice cream' . . . ummmmmmm ok!

Jim and I decided we could handle it and it would be more traumatic for Nate if we took him to ER for glucose drip.  So, we began the carbo overload right there at Uncle Julios!  We started with regular Coke --- 2 glasses, ordered sopapillas with extra honey & ice cream.  When we left the restaurant we stopped and picked up a few treats . . .



Jim kept up with carbs on paper and I kept up with my iPhone calculator.


I kept adding to my calculator each time we convinced Nate to eat something else.  I like this picture because if you look closely at the top you can see a message from Lexi was coming in to check on me.  I absolutely loved the way the D moms and dads, family and friends rallied around us Saturday night. Every text message, phone call and FB message seriously kept us going and kept us encouraged enough to know that we would be able to get through one of the scariest nights of our lives.


And no . . . Nate didn't eat GaGa . . . she brought cookies and treat over for him to eat so I guess instead of writing all of those things down he just wrote GaGa. :)

Nate's blood sugar hovered between 90 and 159 all evening.  It would drop, we would feed, drop and feed, drop and feed.  We ended up finally giving 270g of carbs and 2 mini glucagon (4 units each) and he never dropped below 90 not even when the Apidra peaked.



When we finally saw his bg rising later that night we put a pod on and started his basal again.  He ended up pretty high after the pod change but after the long night that we had . . . I was so ok with it!

Oh yea - - - did I mention that 270g of carbs had Nate bouncing off the walls?  He was CrAzY!

As per usual all pics were taken with my iPhone so please excuse the terrible color and all that blah blah blah!


Nate was in carb heaven . . . he and the girls never knew the severity of the situation or really that there was a situation at all.  They just enjoyed munching on candy, coke and ice cream all night.

We kept calm and carbed on!