Even though I am not a parent... I have an experience taking care of a child with diabetes. Through conversations I have had with my parents, and the opportunity I had taking care of a newly diagnosed 5 year old girl with diabetes, I have learned that this is a difficult but incredible experience.
This past summer I was contacted about a family looking for a babysitter who was familiar with Type 1 Diabetes as their daughter was recently diagnosed. The knowledge I gained and the experience I had made this summer one of the most memorable for me.
Working with this family was incredible; it was so rewarding to see the progress of this newly diagnosed child and how she got more comfortable with every aspect of T1D. After having diabetes for ten years, everything becomes so natural that you forget all the small things. Through managing her glucose levels I gained a huge amount of knowledge which I was able to apply to my own health. By taking care of her, it made me more aware and accurate with the amount of carbohydrates and insulin she would be getting, thus what I would be doing for myself. I learned to appreciate all the little things with diabetes, that I found so natural now. I am so proud of everything she accomplished just in this summer; how she learned to test herself, give her own insulin shots, understand the way her body feels in response to her blood sugar, and so much more. For parents with newly diagnosed diabetic children, all of these soon become very natural, and it is honestly incredible to take this journey and see the progress your child has made with their new lifestyle.
Some things that made my experience as a "caregiver of a diabetic" easier was being able to openly communicate with her about what I was doing. I would let her know where her numbers were at and what we had to do in response. In addition, as I was I have T1D, I was very open about my experiences and what I needed to do, hoping to inspire her to do the same. In return I found her to be very comfortable talking about diabetes which was incredible to see. She loved sharing with her peers all about the devices she wore and what she had to do now that she had T1D.
There are now have so many tools to allow people with T1D to take better care of ourselves. When I was newly diagnosed Dexcom's Continuous Glucose Monitor was not yet created, but I am so appreciative of that device for the experience I had this summer. I found that this device did not only help in the moment of where her numbers were at, but also allowed me to see some trends that exercise or certain foods would do to her blood sugar. Through this device, you can learn to make plans to avoid rollercoaster glucose levels, and overall it allows the transition into this new diabetic life so much easier.
Being able to be taken back to this transition into this new lifestyle, I relived many frustrations through her that I used to have. The thoughts of "why do I have to test", "why do I need a shot", "why do I have to have diabetes". Due to this all being so new, nothing was natural yet. I learned to communicate with her reasons to this, and showing her how awesome diabetes can be. It is something that makes you different from others around you; everyone has their one difference, and ours is diabetes.
This past summer, I also got the opportunity to go to a summer camp with her. Here I acted as her aid, managing her numbers and helping her prepare for kindergarten when she would have a larger responsibility of her diabetes. I helped her get into the habit of going to the nurses office for snack, lunch, and anytime her numbers were out of range. At first, this was obviously difficult because you do not want to leave all your friends to go take care of your blood sugar. I even remember when I was younger and had to travel to the nurses, and it was frustrating. But one tool that helped me was that I would bring a friend with me so I did not have to do this alone. Additionally, what I recently learned when I was talking with some friends about diabetes, is that they always loved to be the one I picked to bring with me. I suggest that if your child is having trouble, try this technique because it does make it easier. With the girl I babysat, she enjoyed the idea of bringing a friend because it did not only mean she was not alone, but also she loved showing them how she had to test and give insulin.
If you are parenting a child with diabetes, kudos to you. I am so appreciative of everything my parents have done for me to help me through my journey. They were and still are such a huge part of managing my diabetes and I cannot thank them enough. The journey is honestly incredible, and I hope as a parent you can recognize all the progress your child has made with their diabetes. At first, it may seem super hectic, but I want you to know that it soon becomes natural. Counting carbohydrates becomes easier; I can even estimate most of my meals now, and be accurate and if not extremely close. Finding trends comes with time, and helps you manage your numbers to keep them better in range. Everything soon becomes routine, and a part of your life you do not even realize you are constantly thinking about.
I am so appreciative for the family that allowed me to take part in this experience with their newly diagnosed daughter as it opened my mind up to another side of diabetes, taking care of an individual with T1D. I would not have exchanged this for anything else, so thank you!
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