So I almost called this entry “Blogger, Not a Blogger” because it’s been so long since I’ve written anything. I don’t have a ton of followers so I’m sure nobody really noticed that Primary Treasures fell off the grid. Well today, I’m back. I’m back to explain where I’ve been and what I hope the future holds.
It all started when we decided to add a little bundle of joy to our family. When I got pregnant with Hutson I decided to take a break from Primary Treasures and TPT. When you are your own boss you can take whatever leave you want or need, right?! Since I work full time on top of having a family I figured it would be hard to keep it all going so I took a break from the blog. As soon as Hutson was born I would be right back at it….creating awesome resources for elementary classrooms! Right? Wrong.
When Hutson was 4 weeks old (you know the age….only sleeps in 2 hour bursts and CRIES. A. LOT.), our oldest son, Jackson, got sick. Really sick. He started sleeping all the time. And he was constantly asking for water and running to the bathroom every hour. It became such a problem that we started writing down how often he asked for a drink and how often he was using the potty. He was 5 years old and had been potty trained for a long time so when he started wetting the bed every single night we knew something just wasn’t right.
At Hutson’s 4 week check up with the pediatrician we mentioned Jackson’s symptoms to see if we should be concerned. At most, I thought he may have a kidney infection. Our super awesome pediatrician, Dr. Shawn Reathaford at Pediatrics of Florence said he wanted to do a simple urine test to see if Jackson’s blood glucose was ok, just to rule out a few possibilities. When he came back with the results, we could tell right away that something wasn’t right. He said that Jackson’s blood glucose was registering higher than their machine tested….over 500. To be 100% sure, he performed a finger prick and the results were the same. I’ll never forget the words…., “Your son has Type 1 Diabetes.” We were immediately sent to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital where we spent 3 days trying to learn how to become Jackson’s new pancreas….because his old one just quit working.
I’m not going to lie. It was awful. Granted, I had a 4 week old baby and was still recovering from a C-section so I wasn’t in the best condition to handle another major life change. I cried every day for about 2 weeks. It was just too much. As moms, we want to fix everything and this was something that I just couldn’t fix. And I somehow convinced myself that this was my fault. I’m responsible for everything he does and somehow I let him get diabetes. I felt like I had failed. It took a long time for me to understand that Type 1 Diabetes is an autoimmune disorder and it’s not caused by anything you eat or do. You’re literally born with the genetic marker and it’s just a matter of time before it’s “triggered.” A nurse at the hospital finally told me exactly what I needed to hear. She said, “You have to stop this. Jackson’s attitude about his diabetes depends on your attitude. If you keep crying then it’s going to have a negative effect on him.” She was right. I hadn’t thought about it but if I wanted Jackson to tackle this head on and be strong then I was going to have to do it first. So, I pulled it together and over the next few months my husband and I learned how to be Jackson’s pancreas.
So if you don’t already know, diabetes sucks. It’s really complicated to manage. We check Jackson’s blood sugar every three hours to make sure he’s not too high or too low. If he’s too high (and hasn’t had insulin in the last three hours) then we calculate a correction dose of insulin and give him a shot. We also count carbs at every single meal and we use that number to calculate how much insulin he needs for the food he just ate. Right now he gets one unit of insulin for every 25 carbs that he eats….or drinks. That’s right, even drinks have to be calculated. Carbs are carbs and whether they come from food or beverages they can send his blood sugar through the roof. We also have to watch him closely when he’s active. He’s 6 years old now and like most kids his age he likes to run and jump and just play. For Type 1 diabetics that can mean a drastic drop in blood sugar. So, before he’s going to be active we have to check his blood sugar and depending on what his number is he may need to be given some carbs to keep him from dropping too low during the activity. Whew. Did you get all of that? And that doesn’t even cover the long acting insulin that we have to give him before bed every night or the special steps we have to take when he gets sick. Or when he has a growth spurt and we have to adjust all his doses because with each growth spurt his insulin needs increase. It’s. A. LOT.
Now that you have the basics, let me follow with this….it’s doable. If I could take it away from him I would, but I can’t. My husband and I make the best of it and we make sure Jackson’s attitude isn’t affected by ours. He never sees when I start to get overwhelmed or feel defeated. Sometimes we do everything right and for unknown reasons his numbers are off the wall. It’s frustrating and scary. If I need a good cry, my husband takes over and I take a time out to get it out of my system. And that’s ok. With everyone’s efforts, Jackson is a very normal kid. If he wants to play football…and he is this year…..then we let him. If he wants to try basketball, we let him. I refuse to let this crappy disease decide what kind of life he gets to have. He will be healthy. He will be happy. And he will be active. And cupcakes…he will have cupcakes!!! (occasionally…with the appropriate insulin dose…)
And now that we have a decent routine with the baby and Jackson’s diabetes, I am jumping back in to Primary Treasures. You’re going to be hearing more from me! What does that look like? Well I have no idea. I guess we’ll see!! Welcome back….to me!
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