Schlepping Schtuff

Write about what’s in your bag / purse / backpack every day

Type 1 Diabetes = Stuff

Meters, lancing device, strips, low blood sugar supplies, back up supplies...

Figuring out how to tote all this jazz around remains a work in progress.

We've used various systems that have worked well over the years,

but it seems this is one area that is always evolving around here.

A couple years ago, I told you about our kit.

It worked great...until it didn't.

Sugar's tastes have evolved, preferences have emerged, and I'm

learning that things which used to work, don't always work now.

At Friends For Life, I had the opportunity to see a Skidaddle Bag.

With the discount being offered, and not having to pay for shipping, we (*I*)

decided to invest in one and give it a whirl!

The Verdict:

She loves it!

It keeps everything organized and easily accessible.

It slides nicely into her backpack, making it a great way to manage her supplies at school.

(FYI -- Her mind is subject to change without notice.)

In case you're wondering, here's some highlights of the stuff we keep in her bag:

• Glucolift Tablets
• Level Gels
• Quick Sticks
• Dex4 Glucose Liquid
• Keto-Diastix -- these are urine ketone strips that also detect glucose.  I dip these in her drinks while we're away from home (especially fountain sodas).  She was given a regular soda once, while we were at a movie...

N E V E R    A G A I N!!!

• Yes...she's 9 and she has a cell phone.  She keeps it in her bag at all times, so it's not something she's toting around like a teenager.  It's been a great tool in helping us work towards greater independence.  I'm not exactly sure what we used to do without cell phones.

So, anyway, that's our bag!

And PS (No one paid me to write this.)

Day 4 of National Health Blog Post Month 2012.

Just Sayin'

A post about a conversation with your doctor

Sugar needed to make a trip to an urgent care a few months ago...it went a little something like this:

"So, she has diabetes?"

"Yes."

"Does she need insulin?"

"Yes.  She was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes shortly after her 2nd birthday."

"So how long has she needed insulin?"

"Well...just like everyone else, she's needed insulin her entire life.  Unfortunately her body stopped producing it somewhere around the age of 2.  Since then, she's needed an external source of insulin, and that's why she wears an insulin pump."

"So how often does she need to wear her pump?"

"All the time."

"Well, she had some glucose in her urine so she's obviously not getting enough insulin or not wearing her pump enough.  You'd better be careful, because keeping her uncontrolled like that can cause a lot of problems later."

"Okay.  Thanks.  Unfortunately diabetes can't be controlled.  The best we can do is to manage it.  Controlling it isn't an option.  For the past 5 or 6 years, her A1c has consistently fallen on the low end of the target range for her age group, so it seems we're doing an okay job of managing it for now."

"Well, all I'm saying is that glucose showed up in her urine today, and that's a problem."

Thanks, Doctor.  You might consider learning a thing or two about the diagnosis before you start lecturing me.

Just sayin'.

Day 3 of National Health Blog Post Month 2012.

Weird.

Write about the weirdest thing about your health

The weirdest thing?

Well.  Maybe it's the tumor thing with hair, skin, and lung tissue that led to the removal of my left ovary when I was 14 weeks preggo with Sugar.   That was pretty weird.  And, even weirder, that I'll be bidding my right ovary farewell pretty soon for the same thing.  Hello Menopause!

TMI?

Well, then I'll just say that it's weird to have celiac disease, but not to have experienced obvious symptoms.  I would never have known I had celiac if not for Sugar's diagnosis in 2008.  We had the entire family tested because there was about a 20% chance that someone else would be affected.  

I guess I was the lucky one.

But, here's the thing...I've tested those limits.  I've blatantly eaten gluten to see if anything would happen...and...aside from possible canker sores...nothing.  I don't get tummy aches.  I don't feel sick.  I'm not miserable.  Sugar, on the other hand, will be sick for more than a day if she's exposed to gluten.  She'll have severe abdominal pain, and complain about feeling horrible.  

I know...I know.  Just because I don't feel the damage, doesn't mean there isn't any.  As the result of so many undiagnosed years, my initial endoscopic biopsy revealed "near 100% villous atrophy", and the list of complications resulting from untreated celiac is intimidating.  

It's just weird, that's all.

Day 2 of National Health Blog Post Month 2012.

“My favorite thing about social media / the internet / online health communities…”

Virtual friendships turned real-life.

Day 1 of National Health Blog Post Month 2012.

Five Things That Changed My Life.

Today's NHBPM writing prompt:  5 things that changed my life. For better? For worse? List 5 things that changed your life as a patient, caregiver, or Health Activist and how.

1)  My brother's death.  He was 9...I was 5.  He drowned in the community pool at our apartment complex while we were living off base in Puerto Rico.  Mark's death taught me that life is short, and nothing should ever be taken for granted.

Lesson:  Don't waste time waiting for someone else to solve a problem.  You cannot wait for change to happen -- you must actively seek change before it's too late.

2)  Living in the Philippines.  The experience of witnessing true poverty left an imprint that will stay in my mind forever. Every person has value, regardless of their economic status. Money cannot buy happiness.  To this day, some of the happiest children I've ever met wore torn clothing and played barefoot with rocks.

Lesson:  Joy is a choice.  Difficult circumstances should not have the power to steal it.  Choose Joy.

3)  My marriage.  It's not always easy.   Or glamorous.  Or fun.  Marriage takes intentional dedication and attention to detail.  Being loved unconditionally is the best gift I could ever receive.

Lesson:  Don't be quick to give up on something you're passionate about.  

4)  Motherhood.  After the birth of my children, I began seeing other people as someone else's child.  I found myself treating others the way I want my children to be treated.

Lesson:  Even if you're being spit up on, pooped on, and constantly interrupted, you still must be kind to others.

5)  Faith.  The world around me was created by a loving God who knows my needs, and has demonstrated time and again that He is capable of providing for them...even when an answer feels impossible.

Lesson:  Just because you cannot physically see something, doesn't mean it ceases to exist.

This post was written as part of NHBPM – 30 health posts in 30 days: http://bit.ly/vU0g9J

Inaugural Blue Friday

Wear BLUE each Friday in November!

Each Friday in November, wear blue.

Then post a picture of you (or someone you love) wearing blue to the 

Blue Fridays Facebook Page.

You might even win a prize!

(Details HERE)

Today I wore BLUE.

Did you?

I realize it's not much...but it counts!

This post was written as part of NHBPM – 30 health posts in 30 days: http://bit.ly/vU0g9J

Dear 18 Year Old Wendy,

You've always been a "strong and resilient" one.

By now, you've already learned that life probably won't work out the way you envision it. You're afraid to make plans for your future, because you already know something will go awry. When you were 5 years old, and witnessed your brother's catastrophic death, it was painfully clear that life isn't going to be fair.  Your family fell apart after that tragedy.  Right now, you're frustrated with family dynamics, and have come to realize that other people's lives are going to move on, with or without you.  It will be up to you to figure out how to fit into their new lives.  You will experience a great deal of difficult emotions, but hang in there. Eventually, you're going to realize just how well you really can stand on your own two feet. Being "strong and resilient" are characteristics that will serve you well in the years to come.

Even though your family is a mess right now, try to go easy on your parents.  You're going to grow up, and realize that they're only human.  You'll sit in their shoes one day, and come to accept that they did the best they could with some crappy situations.  While you may wish things were different, just keep looking ahead.  The best is yet to come.

I realize that, right now, you are stuck between wanting to go back in time and wanting to make time move faster.  Something has been knocking on your heart, nagging in your mind, and sitting in the forefront of the major life decisions that wait ahead.  Don't worry.  You're going to make the right choice.  You will choose to leave the path that has already been laid out for you by an organized religion you don't believe in.  It will be a few more years before you take your final stand, but, in the end, you will find a genuine relationship with God and His son, Jesus Christ.  Fear not, 18 Year Old Wendy.  It's going to be okay.

The years you live with Lisa in the shack on a hill, behind the County Jail are going to be awesome.  When that chapter ends, you're going to be a little sad, but you will have had one of the best times of your life.  Hang on to those moments.  Once you graduate from nursing school, "real life" is going to begin...and it will never be the same.

I'm not your mother or anything, but please be careful.  The combination of spiritual struggle, family turmoil, and newfound independence isn't always going to be pretty.  You're fresh and innocent right now.  There's a few things coming down the road, that would be easier if avoided...but...you've never really done anything against your better judgment, so you're going to enjoy testing those limits.  Just try to keep your head on straight, okay?  In the midst of your wild moments, keep in mind that, one day, the mere mention of the word "tequila" is going to be enough to elicit a gag reflex.  Try to take it easy on the lemon drop shots, would ya?

Oh, and listen here, 18 Year Old Wendy.  Let's get one thing straight:  You're a hottie.  Stop worrying about every imperfection you think you have.  I wish you could see yourself today the way I see you now.

When you're 26, you're going to meet a man who will change your life.  He will be the best thing that could ever happen to you, and you'll marry him when you're 28.  He's going to love you, despite the effects that age, child bearing, stress, and sleeplessness will have on your body.  He's going to work hard to be a provider for you and your children.  He's going to stick by you when the world feels overwhelming, and he's going to love you, even when you fall to pieces emotionally and physically for a few years, after the birth of your 3rd baby.  Be patient. True love awaits.

18 Year Old Wendy, one day, you're going to be tasked with raising three little girls.  There will be moments that you wonder how you'll survive another day.  It's not going to be easy, but they will bring you immense joy, and fill your days with childhood wonder.  Savor those moments.  Kiss their noses and their toes, look into their eyes, and listen to them when they're trying to talk to you.  They will need you, and you will need them more than you can ever imagine.

Today you dream of going to Broadway (well, anywhere that you can sing with a group of performers on stage, really), but you already know that isn't going to happen.  You're going to start nursing school soon, and it is a career choice that will be a bigger blessing in your life than you can ever imagine right now.  Something that has never crossed your mind is that, one day, you'll be raising a child with Type 1 Diabetes and Celiac Disease...and that you'll have Celiac Disease yourself.  You will never plan to grow up and become an advocate for Type 1 Diabetes and Celiac awareness, but that is where you will find yourself.

Stay strong and resilient, 18 Year Old Wendy.

See ya soon,

39 Year Old...

NHBPM, Day 3 -- Dear 18 year old me. Write a letter to yourself when you were 18. Be sure to tell yourself what to do more of, what to do less of, and what you have to look forward to in the next few (or several) years.  This post was written as part of NHBPM – 30 health posts in 30 days: http://bit.ly/vU0g9J

Switching Gears.

"Something is wrong.  Her eyes.  She's pale.  I gave her a cheese stick and now she's 44 after she ate it, and drank a Capri Sun."


"JUICE!  There's juice in her bag.  She needs juice.  Give her juice!!!!"


"Well she's drinking another Capri Sun and she just ate a cheese stick.  They were on the trampoline.  She came in and told me she was hungry, but when I turned around, she was going down fast.  I could see it happening.  I just knew something was wrong because she looked so bad."


"I'll be right there."

I yelled to the two 4 year olds who were playing in my living room to get their shoes and get into the car.  I grabbed my phone, and called Tiara's playdate to let her know I wouldn't be home at the time we planned.  I rushed as fast as I could -- up the hill and around the corner.

THIS ad kept flashing in my mind.

When I arrived, an empty juice box sat crumpled in front of her, and she was finishing a little pack of Skittles.  In the blink of an eye, her color improved, she hopped off the bar stool, and was running off to play with her friends with a BG of 115.

Then I remembered about dinner in the oven and the boiling pot on the stove.

Reality check.

Life goes on.

Switching gears is hard sometimes.

One minute, I'm in fight or flight mode -- adrenaline pumping, heart pounding, palms sweaty, focused, and intent on saving the life of my daughter.

The next minute, I'm thinking about dinner.

Just like that.

If my blog were to be turned into a TV show, it would be a series called "Switching Gears". Each week, a different blogger from my Cookie Jar would be highlighted, and the entire DOC would chat on FB/Twitter while watching that week's episode.

It would be a pajama party every day :)

___________________

Wait.  Did I just switch gears there?

Okay.  I wasn't going to do it.  For some crazy reason, I decided this evening to join in on National Health Blog Posting Month.  Somewhere between flight and flight, dinner, and bedtime -- yeah -- I decided to jump on the bandwagon.

So there ya go.  Day 2...check.

This post was written as part of NHBPM – 30 health posts in 30 days: http://bit.ly/vU0g9J

Looks Like We Made It

Between you and me...

I had some Halloween anxt.

I was seriously stressing about getting it all done.

I needed some gluten-free pumpkin pie (PS...I ended up making THIS  pumpkin cobbler using Jules Gluten Free Flour.  Call me lazy, but I just wasn't up for rolling out a pie crust.  Besides, my cobbler was better than pie!) so Sugar could participate in a pumpkin tasting.  I also needed a round gluten-free sugar cookie for yesterday's cookie decorating party.  Which also meant I'd need to order some gluten-free licorice so her cookie could be turned into an edible spider.

There was plenty of measuring, weighing, and carb counting (guessing) along the way.

On Halloween morning, I went to the pumpkin patch with Tiara's kindergarten class.  I was there for most of the fun stuff, but then had to leave a little early so I could book it back to Sugar's class before the cookie frenzy.  I was nervous about the frosting.  I just wasn't sure she'd use it all (and she didn't)...plus it was a PE day, and I had heard a rumor about a fire drill.

It's crazy to think that something like FROSTING would send me racing home like a mad woman.  But it did.  I really only trust my SWAG (scientific wild assed guess) skills for that kind of stuff.

Ahhh...but we made it.

Three hours later she was ready to grab her pillow case, 

and fill it to the brim with trick or treating.

Whew.

Another Halloween down...

a lifetime to go.

This post was written as part of NHBPM – 30 health posts in 30 days: http://bit.ly/vU0g9J