A Day in the Life

This post was written for Diabetes Blog Week

It is hard to explain a day in the life with diabetes because it is so ever changing. When I think about the hundreds of things that can affect blood sugar I know that one day is never the same as the next. Of course, we have our regular check times, but so often in the course of a day the plan has to change.

 What the day is like depends on the day itself; is it a hot day, a cold day, or somewhere in between? We all know how temperature can affect blood sugar.

What the day will be like depends on what we will be doing that day; will we be swimming, skiing, playing on the playground in the blazing sun, hanging out in the ice shanty (where its 80 degrees inside and 10 degrees outside), or will we be curled up on the couch watching movies?

 What the day will be like may depend on whats going on in school that day; will there be a test, will there be an exciting field trip or guest, will there be a great after school activity like rock climbing, will she be doing something that will make her nervous like playing the piano in the school performance?

And of course, last but not least, what the day will be like will depend on what she eats that day. This is where I really begin to micromanage. I pack S's school lunch and snack, but what if someone brings in a birthday treat? Will anyone consider the best time to eat that sugary snack based on the one diabetic child in the building, and can I really expect them to plan around her? What if that sugary snack is passed out at snack time when she will be going back to class to work for another hour and a half without being able to run it off? What if phys.ed. class time changes will anyone consider that her snack time may need to change also? Maybe not, so we always have extra snacks and sugar on hand. What if we go out for dinner and the menu just doesn't work for D? What if I promised desert tonight, but her blood sugar was 350 before dinner?

Every mother or father of a diabetic child has these "what ifs" and more running through their minds all day, everyday. Running right next to all of these thoughts is remembering that we want them to have a "normal" life. We want our diabetic children to enjoy the birthday treats, go skiing and swimming, and do the cool after school activities. Over the last four years I have learned that she can do it all we just need to plan.  Life is more fun when it can be spontaneous, and when your mom and dad are saying "of course you can" instead of "no, because you have diabetes." Our spontaneous just needs to be a lot more organized than other peoples spontaneous. That helps make life easier for our kids with diabetes while making life just a little harder for those of us who love them. All parents worry about their kids and plan for their day, but  Moms and Dads of diabetic children worry and plan more. We can't let our guard down.

So, God Bless all of you Moms and Dads who so diligently care for your diabetic children. God Bless all of you diabetic adults that give us such insight on what it is like to have diabetes, and God Bless those of you who don't directly live with diabetes, but read this blog because you care so much!

Yvette