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I had Covid and a child with Type One.

Well, it happened. The moment I have been terrified of for the past year. I washed my hands for 20 seconds. Wore a mask. Stayed away from friends, gatherings, and unnecessary shopping. Still it happened. So how you may ask, did it happen? A coworker who was not as careful. A coworker who felt it wasn't necessary to not come into work after someone tested positive in their household. So here I am, now day four from the spare room. The first night was awful. My daughter's site failed. Her insulin mysteriously gone bad in the course of a day and a half. I woke my husband once, twice...six times. Every hour alerting him from 8 ft away, mask on, that Emily needed a site change. Followed by two boluses. Followed by a cartridge change. Followed by more boluses. Helpless. Unable to touch my own sleeping child. I had to just sit back and return to my imprisonment and watch the number on the blaring dexcom climb higher and higher. It was the worst feeling. After 6 years of being the supe
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Not Ready

I understand that people are just trying to be helpful, but trying to push me to push my child into managing her own type one just pisses me off! I know there are a lot of children, even younger then my own that take to diabetes management right away. I think that's great, and have no issues with children that are more mature in doing so. Now that E is 9, more and more people keep asking me why she can't do her own management? "why can't she put her own pump site on?" BECAUSE SHE ISN'T READY!!!! Period. She is a happy go lucky child without a care in the world. She wants to play with her toys, her friends, go to the park. She doesn't want to think about this never ending asshole disease that never gives her a break. She has zero interest in how her pump works, what insulin is, or how any of her devices keep her alive. She just wants to be a regular kids and eat Oreo's and play Robloxs. If you were to ask her right now what type one diabetes is, sh
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The Sleepover

A wise woman once said to me...."If your child did not have diabetes would you let them do/eat that?" Touche Moira McCarthy Stanford. Touche. Hence the request for a sleepover. The first one was a doozie. My daughter's 8th birthday. She had been asking for quite sometime and finally I gave in. I had her pick 3 of her other T1 friends. Yes I said that right. THREE other type one girls. Giving me a total of 4 to watch over. Why on earth would I take on such chaos on purpose? Well I looked at it this way. Our kids may not always be the ones picked for sleepovers. Parents don't want to take on such responsibility or kids might be scared to ask their friend over because simply kids can be dicks. I was determined to tackle this head on. All the girls had CGM's which was a blessing for me. 3 Dexcoms and 1 Libre. 2 girls had insulin pumps. 2 girls did not. I had juice and low snacks galore. I made sure I knew all their carb counts and insulin ratios. My true goal was
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The Search for Compassion. Job Hunting.

So it happened. I was laid off from a job I have been with for almost 6 years. A job that allowed and understood the need for me to take care of my daughter. So here I am looking for another job that will allow me to do the same. Right now it feels impossible. How do explain to a potential employer that you are going to be a dedicated employee but you need to watch over your child at the same time? Most places won't allow cell phones by your side. Most jobs don't care that I have a special circumstance. Honestly I feel lost. I had one interview that I was fully honest about my situation. I have a child with Type one. I need to watch her via my cell phone as she is completely unable to make any decisions herself and is unaware of what to do. I need to be able to reach out to the school nurse/ FASA if necessary. Yet I am still able to be a productive employee. Yeah....I never got the job. In fact I got a instant reply of "we've decided to go with someone else."
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Thinking Back

My parents were just here visiting and it made me sit back and think about life as a kid. I am a product of the early 70's. My folks didn't have a lot of money. We ate what mom cooked and if you didn't like it or were picky you ate it anyway. There was no second choice. Vegetables were canned and the meat in your casserole was spam. We drank milk and soda....oh man did we drink soda! And kool aid, must not forget the buckets of cheap colorful sugar water we downed by the gallons. Which totally explains all my cavities as a kid. Our parents did not play with us unless it was board/card game night. We entertained ourselves with play kitchens, records and our imagination. We went over to others kids houses and played in our own neighborhoods until dark and the porch lights came on. We caught fireflies in jars and climbed trees. We rode in the back of trucks and cars without seat belts. I even rode on my moms lap in the front seat. We watched a black and white TV and di
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A Quick Word about Fiasp

When the endo told us about this new amazing insulin that was going to come out over 6 months ago, we were really excited. We are told so many things about how the newest devices and insulin are going to be SOO amazing that I'll admit, I was kinda skeptical. The endo handed us a free sample a little over a month ago and I am very happy to say that I absolutely LOVE this new insulin! We have been using it in Emily's pump now for about a month. The first thing I did was dial all her settings back. WAaaay back. I was scared that just a tiny bit would have her bg plummeting. I was wrong. I know several people so far that have been using Fiasp. Some hate it some love it. Here is what we have experienced so far......(your diabetes may vary) I have always tried to pre bolus for Emily's meals. I'll admit I'm not always good at it. Mostly because when she wants to eat, the food starts going in the mouth much faster then me and my trusty Ping remote. I'm lucky if I ca
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Just a Small Token of Appreciation

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Every year I make a video as a thank you of sorts to JDRF. I think about all the good that has come from Emily being diagnosed. Sounds strange but it's true. I really didn't have but a couple friends here. Neither did Emily. Once she was diagnosed I reached out to JDRF for help. I met a ton of parents and people who not only understood exactly how I was feeling but accepted us as apart of their own family. Emily became a Youth Ambassador and after a few years I became a volunteer mentor to newly diagnosed families. It has given us not only purpose but a community. I am so grateful for that. So if making a little video once a year helps to raise a little money to fund technology, research, and maybe, just maybe that one thing we all so desperately are hoping for....a cure. Then I'm glad I could help.
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