October 1, 2007

It takes a _____ to raise a (diabetic) child

I don’t know about a village but it sure takes some support to raise a diabetic child, preferably support with cell phones and text messaging.

It helps to be in touch. I am not talking about the constant checking in with the kids. They need to be trusted and we need to learn to trust them. I am talking about getting a second opinion when you need one an/ or getting a message from the school nurse.
The fact is the family is the primary care giver for a type 1 child. Not the endo., not the CDE, the family.

We are the ones, to quote Clint Eastwood, who must, “Improvise. Adapt. Overcome.” (Heartbreak Ridge 1986) It is great to be able to get a quick second opinion with a text message. “Something like 290 @ 10:00 breakfast bolus didn’t seem to work PE in 20 min what do you think”

Odds are you know what to do but checking in helps with the confidence. Some times it just emotional support, “Just got some comment from a twitmeister who doesn’t know the first thing about T1 care but has a better idea. UGGGGH!” It is amazing how much money you save in justifiable homicide defenses with that second text message.

It may well be that the venting outlet is more important than the what do we do with this curve ball BG message.

My heart goes out to the families where only one partner is engaged in the diabetes care and the single parent families dealing with Type 1. I know the Charming Mrs. YDMV is my line to sanity.
Finding someone for support (venting with) is key, even if they are not a text message away. There lots of shoulders to cry on one the web http://forums.childrenwithdiabetes.com and http://www.type1parents.org are two of my favorites but there are others, YDMV, find one that fits your needs.

It may not take a village but a good web board is a big help.

Or today’s 52, given two glucotab at end of school, followed by 45 juice and gogert 20 minutes later a cool nurse is a big help too.

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