Now.

A CURE.

I swear I feel like that concept could eat me alive sometimes.  It's everywhere...repeated over and over by diabetes advocacy organizations...woven through blogs and other social media venues...pleas for financial support to expedite A CURE.

People have waited entire lifetimes for their CURE.

Science has been pursuing A CURE for decades....BILLIONS of dollars have been poured into science labs all over the globe...theories have been pondered, disproven, and sent back to the drawing board.  Mice have benefited from cure technologies that can't be translated to humans.

All of that time.  All of those resources.  Yet my daughter still has type 1 diabetes.  By the time I figure out how to get the words out of my brain and into your computer screen, another family will have gotten the news that their child has type 1 diabetes too.  By the time I hit enter to publish this post, another child will have died because of type 1 diabetes.

That being said, I've been pondering -- REALLY PONDERING -- why a cure for type 1 diabetes continues to escape reality.  I mean...if it could be bought, then collectively we have most definitely paid the price.  I have no idea the final dollar amount we'd end up with if we added together every single dime that has been poured into a cure for type 1 diabetes.  Same goes for time.  People whose lives have been affected by this disease have certainly waited their turn while other causes have been pushed to the front of the line.

What if the cure CAN'T come out of science alone?

No one can prove why my daughter's pancreas stopped producing insulin.  Even still, her type 1 diabetes remains evident.  By the same token, science hasn't been able to prove there isn't a God, but that doesn't mean He ceases to exist.

What if there's a bigger plan that involves more than just science?

What if it means reaching deep down inside our Candy Hearts and finding a way to provide insulin -- the most basic need for a person with T1D -- for people who cannot access it?

What if it means praying intently for THEIR needs instead of solely for a cure?

What if it means sacrifice?

I know this might seem hard to believe, but do you realize that there are T1 Parents who have no idea what Twitter, Facebook or a blog is?  They aren't able to Google symptoms, insulin management, or technology options.  Parents who probably haven't ever clicked a computer keyboard in their entire lives.  Parents who can't fund raise for a cure, because there are no cure-focused organizations advocating for them and, besides, they're hardly surviving with the limited resources they've scraped together.  Right now, as you read this, there are parents being forced to choose between life-saving insulin for one child and food or shelter for the rest of the family.  They must travel for hours by foot before reaching an overcrowded clinic once or twice a month to obtain limited amounts of insulin in order to keep their child alive long enough to make the journey all over again.

They love their child no less than we love ours.

I am NOT suggesting that you stop supporting the cure-focused organizations you believe in. I do, however, feel that our community has a responsibility to consider the global crisis that exists, and stretch farther than we ever have before to find a way to address it.

NOT just on November 14th.

INSULIN WAS DISCOVERED ALMOST 100 YEARS AGO!!!!

How is it possible that people -- CHILDREN -- are dying every single day because they cannot access it?  If they can't access insulin now -- nearly 100 years after the fact -- how on earth will they EVER be able to access the "cure" should one ever show up?

Each of us must be ready and willing to respond to this catastrophe...ESPECIALLY if we are asking people to reach into their pockets to support our fund raising efforts for a cure. How can we POSSIBLY ask someone to, for example, sacrifice their daily coffee and contribute to our cure-focused initiatives instead; if we aren't willing to sacrifice our own to allow someone else's child to SURVIVE?

Science has had it's turn.

A CURE will never be possible without the hand of God as a part of it.  We may forever be "just around the corner" or "5 - 10 years away" if we continue to put all of our faith, time, and resources into science labs that repeatedly cut God out of the equation.

It's time for humanity to prevail.

NOW.

CANDY HEARTS' Great PJ World Diabetes Day Giveaway!

**THIS CONTEST IS CLOSED**
Welcome to

CANDY HEARTS'

Great PJ World Diabetes Day Giveaway!

This contest comes to you courtesy of PJs for a Cure.



PJs for the Cure are specially designed women's and children's pajama sets from Komar, the #1 sleepwear manufacturer in the country. 

Komar donates 100% of the profits from the sales of these special PJs to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF).

Yep, you read that right! 100%  Isn't that great?!

The wife of Komar CEO Charles Komar was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, and thus, Mr. Komar founded PJs for the Cure in an effort  to raise $1 million for JDRF.

Wouldn't you like to snuggle up in your very own set of PJs for the Cure?

Well, Komar contacted several of us bloggin' D mamas with an opportunity to give away free PJs, and we united for a mega giveaway to celebrate World Diabetes Day! It's a Super Sugar Bolus!

(Just so you know...My fellow D mama bloggers and I are neither getting paid by Komar nor are we receiving free PJs for hosting our giveaway contests. This is simply a fantastic opportunity to spread the word about the great work that Komar is doing to support the research for a cure!)

You can view the entire collection of PJs for the Cure at www.pjsforthecure.org.

Here's how to enter the contest:

Leave a comment on this blog post before Saturday, November 13th at noon EST. Please include your name.

Only one entry is allowed per person.

The winner will be chosen randomly at www.random.org and announced on Sunday, November 14th.

Don't forget that I'm not the only D mama celebrating and holding a contest! Komar generously donated 13 pairs of PJs for this World Diabetes Day Super Sugar Bolus!

So, visit my fellow D mama bloggers listed below and increase your chances of winning! You can enter to win on all 13 blogs!  (BTW, EVERYONE loves PJ's!  Feel free to share this post with as many people as possible, even if they are not affected personally by diabetes.  EVERYONE is welcome to join the fun!)

(But you can only win one pair of PJs. Once you win on one blog, you are disqualified from winning on another blog. We gotta be fair and spread thePJ love!)

Beta Buddies

Candy Hearts

D-Tales

Houston Family We Have a Problem

I am Your Pancreas

Life is Like a Box of Chocolates

My Diabetic Child

My Sugar Bugs

Our Diabetic Life

The Princess and The Pump

The Sugar Kids Blog

The Superhero and The Princess

The We CARA Lot Blog

Remember, you only have until tomorrow, Saturday, November 13th at noon to enter The Great PJ World Diabetes Day Giveaway on all of these blogs. So, start clicking and commenting!

We D mama bloggers will announce one winner per hour, starting at 9 a.m. and ending at 9 p.m., on World Diabetes Day, Sunday, November 14th.

Good luck!

And, if you don't win, won't you please consider purchasing a pair of PJs for the Cure? It's for a good cause!

My Turn With The Worms - Embryonic Stem Cell Research

Last week the blog circuit of D Mamas that I keep up with touched on Embryonic Stem Cell Research (ESCR).  When you're raising a child with diabetes, this is a subject that is hard to ignore....because, the truth is, there are labs using this research to advance a cure and organizations close to our hearts who are helping to fund it.

You can peruse Heather's post HERE.  And Jen's post HERE.


I realize this is touchy.  


But who am I to avoid "touchy"????  I like to dive into "touchy" subject matters!!!!  

Some people are morally opposed.  Others are strong advocates.

As a Christian/D Mama/T1D Advocate/Blogger, where do I stand?

To be honest, this isn't the first time I've been posed this question.  From time to time over the past 2 years, I have received a few private e-mails from fellow D Mamas asking me to reconcile my endorsement of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and my position as a Christian who supports an organization that provides funding for ESCR.
 
Before I get to the nitty gritty of my post, there's a few things I'd like to explain.

1)     The JDRF is an advocacy organization that supports a mission very close to my heart.  Without the efforts of JDRF, children under the age of 8 probably would not have access to insulin pumps.  (Sugar began pumping when she was THREE!!!).  Chances are REALLY good that NO ONE would have access to a Continuous Glucose Monitor (CGM) covered by insurance.  The Special Diabetes Program funding would probably have already been chopped off the block, and the Artificial Pancreas Project would never become a reality.

2)     I have never knowingly donated money raised by our family for JDRF to programs that support ESCR.  As a donor to this organization, I/you/we have the ability to earmark where the money goes....and where it doesn't. 

3)     I think everyone has a right to their own opinion.  If you're morally opposed, I believe you reserve the right to your position.  If you are an advocate, I believe the same.  At the same time, however, I do not believe that this, or any other hot topic, should create a divide.  At the end of the day, we are all united.  We want a cure for Type 1 Diabetes.  I believe that we can disagree and still love each other unconditionally.

4)     In the past 6-8 months or so, I have learned that I do not have to be chained by this disease.  Yes, it remains overwhelming.  Yes, I have moments of despair when it feels like I'm not being the pancreas Sugar needs me to be.  Yes, I oscillate between ups and downs emotionally, much like the rollercoaster reality of blood sugars.  But my heart knows it has already been rescued.  As a follower of Jesus Christ, I take comfort knowing that He can handle the things I cannot.  I can let it go. I can lay all of it at the cross and proceed with confidence.

5)     I also believe that each of us may have a different definition of what a cure is.

For the record, my definition of a cure for Type 1 Diabetes looks like this:

No more finger pricks.  No more carb counting.  No more brain boggling over insulin.  No more highs.  No more lows.  No more "pancreatic thinking".  Sugar will be able to eat/drink something --> there's insulin automatically available to convert glucose into energy --> she moves on with life, never giving her pancreas a second thought.

During this process, none of her other organs are harmed.  She doesn't develop another battle (such as cancer or some other horrible, terrible outcome) to fight.  She does not have to take medications with harmful/uncomfortable side effects in order to maintain her quality of life.  Sugar simply lives.  Healthy, happy, and carefree with insulin/glucagon production to regulate her blood glucose automatically in order to prevent the harmful consequences of uncontrolled blood sugars.

My friends, my concern over a cure -- regardless of which research results in such -- goes far deeper than the lab it is created in.

I'm concerned about the complications unknown.  I'm concerned about the long term effects of medications.  I'm concerned about what the effects are if the autoimmune response is triggered for a second time, causing a relapse of Type 1 Diabetes to occur. 

I'm concerned about rushing out to sign Sugar up for her cure without a hefty amount of long term evidence to support that, indeed, her quality of life will be enhanced instead of potentially making it harder.  As I mentioned in Jen's comments, I have a hard time believing that, one day, this veil of uncertainty will be lifted and the grass will automatically be greener on the other side.

I mean the grass is ALWAYS greener, right?

Not.


It is my position that God is in control.

Heather quoted me in her post...

"In all things, I must constantly remind myself that I am an ambassador for Christ. Christ cared less about authority and more about people.  The hurting, broken, fallible people.  I care about these families and I trust that God is in control.  In the end, it doesn't matter how much money the JDRF raises...a cure will only come in God's timing, using God's authority.  It all belongs to him anyway."


Matthew 19:26  "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."

This is the Bible verse our family walk team uses to inspire our journey in support of the JDRF.

I believe the Bible to be true, and I strive to live by it's teachings.  I believe that, if the Word of God says that the impossible is only made possible with God, then that's all there is to it. 

I have prayed for a cure.  MANY mothers have.  Many fathers.  And other loved ones.  And strangers too.  If a cure is revealed, I believe it will only have been made possible with God's provision.

What if that cure arises from ESCR?

Once there is a substantial amount of evidence to support that the long term risks and complications would not make Sugar's life harder.....

Well....

I believe that God answers prayer.  And, sometimes, answers to prayers are revealed in ways you might never expect.  I do NOT believe a healthy, lifelong cure is possible without His hand.  If Sugar's cure is found, I believe it will only be possible because He provided the knowledge, wisdom, and ability to make it happen.

Until then, I will continue to advocate for improved technology.  Improved quality of life.  Improved insulins.  Improved health care coverage.  Improved access to supplies.  Improved support networks.  Improved education.  Improved legislation.  Improved everything as it relates to Type 1 Diabetes.

I will continue to support the JDRF, because they support all of these efforts.

God is in control of both the journey and the cure.

I am in control of how I respond.