#DAM Broom Closet Bolusing

While I admired his initiative, a broken insulin pump, mid-vacation, at 7:30pm, on a weekend is not a time for amateur hour.

This past summer...during vacation...while we were eating dinner with family...

Joe's pump failed. He excused himself from the dinner table to replace the pump. He's been independently changing pump sites since he was 9. So, when I heard the 'Mom, I need help!' yelled down the stairs, I was surprised 😳.

As I entered the bedroom, Joe gave me the lowdown. He apparently tried to change his pump, but the pump had malfunctioned, gave an error message requiring a call to the company. Joe apparently looked up the pump company's number on his phone. He called the pump company where he and the representative attempted to revive the pump to no avail. 😳 I guess it was at this point the pump company rep realized Joe was a minor...🙄

'Mom, you need to call them back...they need to talk to someone over 18 to ship out a new pump.' 😑
 
🤐(*#$ #@$& $@&#)🤐

The abbreviated version of what transpired after: I called Omnipod. Pump was broken. 😑 They overnighted one to us on vacation. Which was actually two days.. because late hour on a weekend day😢. Luckily (or maybe not) I brought a 9 year old, discontinued "back-up" pump. 😟 PROBLEM...pump LED light could only be barely seen in pitch-black broom closets🤬...and piston sounded bogged down (by sand?)😵. Anyways, I decide to go the shot route for basal insulin and plug him into pump for boluses. PROBLEM...we didn't have basal insulin. Called on-call MD for Lantus order. Ran to pharmacy to get Lantus and syringes. Next two days consisted of broom closet bolusing 🤓and a shot of Lantus.
 
#omnipod #animas #makediabetesvisible #t1d #travelingw/t1d

#DAM It Is Not

12 long years ago Diabetes Awareness month became a 'thing' I think about on November 1st. He's living well. He's strong. He's grown up ahead of his years. I don't say much about it these days, in part because everyone has their 'thing'...know this, we are still here doing fingersticks, counting carbs, dosing insulin, battling highs and lows day in and out. We make it look easy. It is not.

#makediabetesvisible

1

The Mirror

As we walked side-by-side through the parking garage into the hospital yesterday, his 6' frame towering over me...he said 'I don't really even think about having diabetes except on Endo days and sometimes when I have to check a number.'

'Really?'

'Yeah'

He then went onto say something that briefly caused my eyes to sting.  He said, 'it's weird, but when I look in the mirror...I don't see my POD anymore.  I don't see the CGM.  I just see me.' 

When Joe thinks of himself, he says diabetes doesn't even enter his definition of who he is.

The Endo appointment went well.  Joe continues to do the majority of his care.  He is an active high school freshman and manages to juggle school, being an athlete, and managing diabetes successfully.  His A1C was 7.  A fine number considering his growth and his independence.

He turns 15 at the end of April.  We discussed his drivers permit with his endocrinologist.  You see, driving with diabetes adds another element of risk to just the act of driving.  People with t1d need Medical Clearance Paperwork, in order to get their driver's permit or license.  When Joe starts to drive, he should check a blood glucose prior to driving and every hour if he is driving for more than an hour's time.  He should not drive unless his blood glucose is 90mg/dL, or higher.  Driving low is more dangerous than driving inebriated.

I'm not sure how I am doing with all of this.  Actually, that's a lie.  I do know how I've been doing.  I've been fairly anxious.  High school has been more of an adjustment for me...than for him; I think.  I have had to back off as a hands-on pancreas and trust that I have taught him well.  I have.  Can I just say, at this age, sometimes having that damn Dexcom is a blessing and a curse all in one.  Watching his blood sugar remotely can cause my mascara-fringed eyeballs to bulge outta their orbits when his number is tanking to the 40's, while he is at school or at a hockey practice.  There isn't a darn thing I can do to help him.  I watch.  I wait.  I worry, then I hope and I trust things will be OK.

A day-in-the-life update.