A week ago today our lives were turned upside down in a matter of about 2 hours. A week ago today our lives were changed forever.
Last Monday I took my 4 year old daughter to her doctor she had the flu about 2 weeks earlier and just never got better. She was tired and drinking a ton of water so we assumed she was just getting over the flu or maybe had hit a growth spurt. The Saturday before I took her to lunch and shopping. I noticed holding her hand that they seemed so boney she seemed so malnourished which I didn't understand because she was eating a ton. She wasn't loosing weight according to our bathroom scale but still something didn't seem right. Sunday we went to grandmas for dinner. She is usually up and playing with her cousin, running around the house as happy as can be. That night she wasn't she spent the whole time curled up on the couch completely exhausted. That was the last straw my husband and I decided there has to be something wrong because she just wasn't getting better, I got her into her doctor the next day.
My husband mentioned diabetes that morning, he said he kind of recognized some signs, we brushed it off because our healthy 4 year old would never get anything like that. Stuff like that happens to other people....not us.
On the way to the doctor I started thinking about what he had said I knew absolutely nothing about diabetes. We got to the parking lot and she just cried the whole time because she was to tired to walk. I was getting frustrated with her and flustered. By the time we made it to the office she had to go potty I was kind of thinking maybe a UTI so they took a sample. We got to the room and shortly after her doctor walked in he was white. He asked me her symptoms and what I had noticed. Then he said that glucose had shown up in the urine test and that she had juvenile diabetes (or type 1 diabetes) and needed to be rushed to primary childrens hospital ER . I WAS SO ANGRY. How could he tell that from one test? He hadn't taken any blood he hadn't even really looked at her. He said he was going to call the hospital and let them know we were coming. I called my husband crying and told him what the doctor said, the nurse over heard me and said that there should never ever be glucose in urine that the only time there is is with diabetes. It all started sinking in. My husband left work the doctor came in and said her sugar was greater than 700 and that we needed to leave now and that an endocrinologist was waiting for us. Normal range is 100-200 so this was a big deal (remember I didn't know anything about diabetes then) It was the longest 35 minute drive of my life I have never been so scared. We got to the ER and it was all a whirl wind from there. We were told her pancreas was failing and she needed insulin. We let the doctors do what they needed to as we were watching our very sick daughter play, her only worry in the world was getting the dress on her Barbie. They got her stable and was eventually able to be put on insulin. They moved us up to a different floor and checked us in to stay the night. They said it would be a long night and they were right. My baby girl had lost 3-4 pounds in a week she was weak because her body didn't have insulin and couldn't break down the food in a way she was starving to death. The whole time we thought it was the flu. She just layed in the hospital be and cry because she was so hungry and thirsty but at the time all she could have was ice chips. She was so small laying in a hospital bed covered in tubes and wires monitoring everything they could.
For those of you who don't really know about Type 1 Diabetes the pancreas stops producing insulin so it can't break down the sugar so the body stops getting the nutrience it needs.
That night was crazy we and nurses and doctors coming in every hour to test blood and sugar and cognitive ability and who knows what else. We knew she was out of danger and that she would get better but we also knew that diabetes wouldn't go away and our lives had just changed forever.
As parents we kept praying it was a bad dream we wanted to start over with our healthy little girl with no care in the world, not this...we didn't want this....we didn't ask for this...she doesn't deserve this....she is only 4....she is only 4. She was pretty out of it through the night. We watched Cinderella, I layed in the hospital bed holding her every time I closed my eyes the room was spinning I kept hearing, 700, ER, diabetes, never going a way, insulin, shots, tests. No way this can't be happening to our little girl but it was and there was lots to learn.
Tuesday we spent the day training and learning about how to take care of her with hopes that we could take her home that night. She was looking so much better after getting the insulin in her system. She was able to get off the IV and eat which she was thrilled about. We were devastated but it was time to take action and learn everything we can about T1D.
We learned carb counting and insulin ratios and snacks and bed time and everything in between. Diabetes is a very serious disease and can't be taken lightly everything has to be done correctly. The first insulin shot she got I had to turn a way but later that day Trent and I were practicing on each other so we could give it to her. We were so excited when they said we could take her home that night (we were very lucky) we just need to go back for more training and doctors appointments but we were ready to get her home.
It was all such a whirl wind our lives changed in a matter of 2 hours but the night we got her home we decided that diabetes was not going to control us it was just going to be apart of the new normal. We cried for a few days, we almost had to grieve in a way. Melodee is so strong and a week later the shots don't even bother her she is back to her normal self and eating like crazy which is awesome. She is even starting to understand sugar and insulin
With T1D she can eat what ever she wants it just needs to be with insulin. It doesn't go a way with diet or exercise. It is what it is and it isn't going away. She gets 4 to 5 shots a day and it's hard.
It sucks and it is SO hard but we will make it like everyone else. We were shocked like I am sure most parents are.
I didn't know anything about T1D a week ago and now I am learning something new every day. I am still sad. I remember walking through the store and a nice employee said how are you and I said fine thank you but in my head I was screaming "I'm terrible things are so hard how can you be so happy when my little girl is so sad" I am past that phase now and this is a start of a new week and our fresh start. There is life after and during diabetes and we plan to live it. We need to spread awareness, there are so many children going through this and they need all the help we can give them.
I'm not sure the exact point of this post but I just know I needed to put it our story out there. If you ever have any question that your child might being showing signs don't hesitate take them in even if it's just for your peace of mind.
So there might be more posts here about T1D but it is apart of our life and my life as a mother and that is what this blog is about. I'm not going to sugar coat anything. Part of getting though this life is trials and raising strong children and that is exactly what I plan to do.
Last Monday I took my 4 year old daughter to her doctor she had the flu about 2 weeks earlier and just never got better. She was tired and drinking a ton of water so we assumed she was just getting over the flu or maybe had hit a growth spurt. The Saturday before I took her to lunch and shopping. I noticed holding her hand that they seemed so boney she seemed so malnourished which I didn't understand because she was eating a ton. She wasn't loosing weight according to our bathroom scale but still something didn't seem right. Sunday we went to grandmas for dinner. She is usually up and playing with her cousin, running around the house as happy as can be. That night she wasn't she spent the whole time curled up on the couch completely exhausted. That was the last straw my husband and I decided there has to be something wrong because she just wasn't getting better, I got her into her doctor the next day.
My husband mentioned diabetes that morning, he said he kind of recognized some signs, we brushed it off because our healthy 4 year old would never get anything like that. Stuff like that happens to other people....not us.
On the way to the doctor I started thinking about what he had said I knew absolutely nothing about diabetes. We got to the parking lot and she just cried the whole time because she was to tired to walk. I was getting frustrated with her and flustered. By the time we made it to the office she had to go potty I was kind of thinking maybe a UTI so they took a sample. We got to the room and shortly after her doctor walked in he was white. He asked me her symptoms and what I had noticed. Then he said that glucose had shown up in the urine test and that she had juvenile diabetes (or type 1 diabetes) and needed to be rushed to primary childrens hospital ER . I WAS SO ANGRY. How could he tell that from one test? He hadn't taken any blood he hadn't even really looked at her. He said he was going to call the hospital and let them know we were coming. I called my husband crying and told him what the doctor said, the nurse over heard me and said that there should never ever be glucose in urine that the only time there is is with diabetes. It all started sinking in. My husband left work the doctor came in and said her sugar was greater than 700 and that we needed to leave now and that an endocrinologist was waiting for us. Normal range is 100-200 so this was a big deal (remember I didn't know anything about diabetes then) It was the longest 35 minute drive of my life I have never been so scared. We got to the ER and it was all a whirl wind from there. We were told her pancreas was failing and she needed insulin. We let the doctors do what they needed to as we were watching our very sick daughter play, her only worry in the world was getting the dress on her Barbie. They got her stable and was eventually able to be put on insulin. They moved us up to a different floor and checked us in to stay the night. They said it would be a long night and they were right. My baby girl had lost 3-4 pounds in a week she was weak because her body didn't have insulin and couldn't break down the food in a way she was starving to death. The whole time we thought it was the flu. She just layed in the hospital be and cry because she was so hungry and thirsty but at the time all she could have was ice chips. She was so small laying in a hospital bed covered in tubes and wires monitoring everything they could.
For those of you who don't really know about Type 1 Diabetes the pancreas stops producing insulin so it can't break down the sugar so the body stops getting the nutrience it needs.
That night was crazy we and nurses and doctors coming in every hour to test blood and sugar and cognitive ability and who knows what else. We knew she was out of danger and that she would get better but we also knew that diabetes wouldn't go away and our lives had just changed forever.
As parents we kept praying it was a bad dream we wanted to start over with our healthy little girl with no care in the world, not this...we didn't want this....we didn't ask for this...she doesn't deserve this....she is only 4....she is only 4. She was pretty out of it through the night. We watched Cinderella, I layed in the hospital bed holding her every time I closed my eyes the room was spinning I kept hearing, 700, ER, diabetes, never going a way, insulin, shots, tests. No way this can't be happening to our little girl but it was and there was lots to learn.
Tuesday we spent the day training and learning about how to take care of her with hopes that we could take her home that night. She was looking so much better after getting the insulin in her system. She was able to get off the IV and eat which she was thrilled about. We were devastated but it was time to take action and learn everything we can about T1D.
We learned carb counting and insulin ratios and snacks and bed time and everything in between. Diabetes is a very serious disease and can't be taken lightly everything has to be done correctly. The first insulin shot she got I had to turn a way but later that day Trent and I were practicing on each other so we could give it to her. We were so excited when they said we could take her home that night (we were very lucky) we just need to go back for more training and doctors appointments but we were ready to get her home.
It was all such a whirl wind our lives changed in a matter of 2 hours but the night we got her home we decided that diabetes was not going to control us it was just going to be apart of the new normal. We cried for a few days, we almost had to grieve in a way. Melodee is so strong and a week later the shots don't even bother her she is back to her normal self and eating like crazy which is awesome. She is even starting to understand sugar and insulin
With T1D she can eat what ever she wants it just needs to be with insulin. It doesn't go a way with diet or exercise. It is what it is and it isn't going away. She gets 4 to 5 shots a day and it's hard.
It sucks and it is SO hard but we will make it like everyone else. We were shocked like I am sure most parents are.
I didn't know anything about T1D a week ago and now I am learning something new every day. I am still sad. I remember walking through the store and a nice employee said how are you and I said fine thank you but in my head I was screaming "I'm terrible things are so hard how can you be so happy when my little girl is so sad" I am past that phase now and this is a start of a new week and our fresh start. There is life after and during diabetes and we plan to live it. We need to spread awareness, there are so many children going through this and they need all the help we can give them.
I'm not sure the exact point of this post but I just know I needed to put it our story out there. If you ever have any question that your child might being showing signs don't hesitate take them in even if it's just for your peace of mind.
So there might be more posts here about T1D but it is apart of our life and my life as a mother and that is what this blog is about. I'm not going to sugar coat anything. Part of getting though this life is trials and raising strong children and that is exactly what I plan to do.
Oh, my heart goes out to you! I learned my daughter had Juvenile Arthritis a few weeks after she collapsed in a grocery store at age 7, so I understand about suddenly having to learn all about a disease you had barely heard about before. And realizing that it won't go away (oh how many times I have been asked if she will outgrow it. If only.) Sending you prayers and a big virtual hug.
ReplyDeleteOh, my heart goes out to you! I learned my daughter had Juvenile Arthritis a few weeks after she collapsed in a grocery store at age 7, so I understand about suddenly having to learn all about a disease you had barely heard about before. And realizing that it won't go away (oh how many times I have been asked if she will outgrow it. If only.) Sending you prayers and a big virtual hug.
ReplyDelete