Q & A - Part Two

Q&A part 2


Question 4: Do you hope to find a cure?


Of course! If a cure was offered today it would be almost a miracle considering the years and years of research to find a cure. I have hope in foundations like JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation), ADA (AMerican Diabetes Association), and Lilly Diabetes. All of these foundations have dedicated so much time and money towards finding a cure. With technology use increasing there have been many people come up with a temporary cure, such as insulin pumps and even in some cases bionic pancreases. Each year scientists have gotten closer and closer to finding a cure with new technology.


Question 5: How do you manage school, sports, and dealing with Diabetes?


Well, it's not easy! High school has definitely taught me the hard way how to manage those things and more. Picture your life now, school for 8 hours, after school sports or another extracurricular activity practice for a few hours, or if you're really ambitious, you participate in more than one activity. Following those practices you may or may not have a job, and after your job a ton of homework to do at home... if you do have all of those things to do then it is a loaded day! Or a loaded schedule, all the time. At times you may feel as if you don't have time to sleep, eat, or even breathe!
Well for diabetics it doesn't work like that, sleeping and eating (especially) are a MUST. Living with diabetes requires me to eat almost every meal. Sometimes with snacks in between.
High school has shown me that I have to make major adjustments, learn how to check my blood sugar more often, bolus (give insulin) more often. Eat and drink healthier too. Every meal requires a blood sugar check, a bolus, and possibly a “check up” blood sugar test post meal. Not eating can cause blood sugar levels to drop too low and then I wouldn't be able to do any of the activities I skipped eating, to do. Changing my pump sites and refilling insulin every 3 days also has to be added to my crazy schedule.
Diabetes can't be put on the back burner. With a (PMA) positive mental attitude, and support, diabetes won't be put on the back burner. It has become a natural flow of everyday life.
Really the thing that has helped me most is having my diabetic friends from camp to text when I'm having bad day with blood sugars and just rant about how much diabetes sucks, or having that friend to message and say “hey my blood sugars have been great today! How about you?”
Managing diabetes on top of living is definitely the most difficult part of diabetes. I like to say it as I'm being my own pancreas. And if you don't know, the pancreas does A LOT.
Don't get me wrong, diabetes sucks, but I have learned more while managing my diabetes than I have from any other life experience.


Question 6: Could you go through a day in the life of Allison? From the time you wake up until you sleep, what do you have to deal with on a daily basis?


I actually did this in a previous blog post!
But to summarize…
When I wake up I check my blood sugar, I correct the number with insulin if it is high, or correct with food if it is low.
Eat breakfast. Bolus.
Go to school.
Check half way through the morning. Do the same corrections as applied earlier.
Check for lunch, eat, bolus.
Check for after noon time, follow same correction procedures.
Go home.
Check for dinner, eat, bolus.
Check before bedtime, follow correction procedures.
And every 3 days a pump site change (takes 15 minutes).
Add checks for every time I feel high or low.
Add checks and boluses for random snacks.


Sounds easy right? Not really. Haha. Just imagine that on top of your regular life. And not every blood sugar will be perfect either. Which adds different symptoms, moods, and feelings.
To fully answer the question, feel free to read my other blog post!!

Q & A - Part One

Questions and Answers:

This blog is a more interactive blog post including questions from classmates that I will answer.

Question 1: How has diabetes affected your life?

Well, that is kind’ve what this whole blog is about. Explaining what diabetes really is and the opportunities I have had and how it has changed my overall perspective. To answer the question though, diabetes has affected every single part of my life. Growing up in elementary school was definitely one of the most difficult times, trying to fit in with younger kids who didn’t understand what was really wrong with me. I had to overcome many challenges and learn how to use a positive attitude to make it through the day. Meal time is different of course, I can not just sit down and eat, I have to check my blood sugar, count carbs, calculate insulin doses, and bolus insulin. Every. Single. Time. I. Eat. Yes I know - that must be tiring! It can be but I have had diabetes for 15 years now and I am really used to the whole routine. Diabetes affects my activities too, I have to make sure my glucose levels are in good range before participating in activities. Diabetes affects everything. I could write an entire book about this.

Question 2: When did you first discover you had diabetes?

In July of 2001, I was very sick with the flu. I could not get better no matter what my parents or doctors did. I slowly started losing flu symptoms and having more symptoms like frequent thirst, urination, hungry, irritable, etc. My aunt is a nurse and she mentioned to my mom that she thought I had diabetes. So on October 23rd, 2001, after about 2 months of battling symptoms and many trips to the doctor, I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. I was in the hospital for about two weeks while doctors got my glucose levels under control and my parents started to learn how to take care of me. October 23rd is what I like to call my “Diaversary.” A few days ago I had my 15th Diaversary - bittersweet.

Question 3: Is there any foods you're not allowed to eat entirely?

Well, for those of you who know me personally would know that I can not eat gluten. Diabetes is not the reason I am not allowed to eat gluten, I live with another chronic illness - Celiac Disease. Celiac Disease is a disease in which the small intestine is hypersensitive to gluten, leading to difficulty in digesting food. So therefore, I eat a gluten free diet in order to maintain a good internal balance of digestion.

To answer the question though, Diabetes does not really restrict a person from eating any certain food ENTIRELY. However, because sugar and starch filled food raises blood sugar levels it would not be smart to eat something like a Reese cup with a blood sugar of 200 or above. On the other hand, sugar and starch filled foods can be helpful when glucose levels are low and the body needs sugar and energy. Diabetes requires a balanced diet with strict management, but nothing is completely off limits.  

The Impact of Family

    After attending Camp Carolina Trails for the first time, I knew I had to go back. I was hooked. The whole environment, from the positivity to the “normalness,” it was all something so inspiring I could not stay away. I attended camp carolina trails the next seven summers. Making my way up the totem-pole of camper life from two years in the Explorer program, three years in Discovery, two years in Voyagers, and my final year spent in Navigators. Each year when I returned to camp I had the opportunity to catch up with all of my friends that continued to attend camp as well. Of course, there were the campers that would come and go, they just were not cut out for the camper life; however, the majority of the campers that attend CCT return the next year and attend for as many as allowed. Like me. Each program had something new to offer, Explorers being the youngest have  a lot of fun and games and just being able to be a “normal” kid while managing diabetes with peers. Discovery, the middle school ages (6th-8th), being able to enjoy your time with your friends you made in the previous years and learning how to become more independent with diabetes. Voyagers (9th and 10th grades), this group is extremely fun and each person will learn how entering high school and managing with others and working as a team works with diabetes. Last, but not least, the Navigators, I think it is safe to say that anyone that attends CCT for all age groups, would say that Navigators is the best.

The Navigator program is designed towards leadership, it is for students entering the 11th grade only. It is also the last year a person can attend camp as a camper. The navigators have a different camp experience than the rest of the campers, they sleep in a tent. The whole week is spent focused on making each individual a better leader and example all while managing diabetes. The Navigator program buddies up with the explorer program for a “big/little sibling” relationship throughout the week. The Navigators have to organize and plan games and activities for the explorers to do with them. It teaches leadership and working as a team to older campers and discipline and encouragement to younger campers. Being able to do such events with younger campers is sort of like an inspiration technique, teaching them that you can still do anything even with diabetes. Throughout the entire Navigator program week every camper is encouraged and pushed to better their leadership and really learn how to take charge of managing diabetes independently (alone). The best part about ALL of these programs at camp is that every one is “normal.” We all have something(s) in common that we most likely don’t have in the outside world (not camp).

 Attending the camp for eight summers has taught me many things, one of those being that when you have camp-family to support you, you are never managing diabetes “alone.” The middle of the night bad blood sugar checks don't have to be spent alone, my camp friends are a phone call away. I have made many friendships through CCT, even one of my best friendships ever. I talk to one of my friends from CCT daily just to keep and touch and it also is a good way to keep yourself from feeling alone when diabetes decides to kick you a little harder sometimes.

I am beyond blessed to have been able to attend Camp Carolina Trails as a camper; however, the counselors at CCT were and still are such an inspiration and encouragement to me that I am currently working on the leadership training to become a CIT (counselor in training).

This November I will complete my training and be qualified to apply for a CIT position for the summer 2017.

Attending CCT as a camper was amazing, but being able to give back and have the same impact on kids that I once experienced will be like no other.

A New Home

Picking up where I left off…
     

     After the lengthy check in process, a counselor escorted me and my parents to the cabin I would call home for the next week. On the way to the cabin, the counselor, who was a former camper, talked to me about her experiences with CCT. Arriving to the cabin, I was welcomed, with big smiles, by two new counselors who would be my cabin leaders for the next week: Those counselors were also former campers at Camp Carolina Trails. After unpacking and getting settled in, my parents told me goodbye and gave me their last hugs for a whole week. It was hard for my parents to leave me to people they had just met; however, the welcoming environment among the counselors and staff set their minds at ease.

   

     Since I was in the youngest age group at camp, there were only a few girls in my cabin out of twelve who had been there before; which was helpful, we weren't starting out “alone.” The first few hours at camp were spent getting to know things about each other such as: names, where you're from, age, grade, school, pets, family, etc. Among that list of things we talked about, there was one topic in particular that would not be discussed at a typical summer camp, How long have you had diabetes? When it came my turn to answer that question in the group, I told them I was diagnosed at age 2 (meaning I had diabetes for nearly 9 years at the time). After answering the question, there were no responses such as, “Oh my gosh you were so young.” or the typical “Oh wow so I guess that means you can't eat sugar.” I realized I did not have to explain myself or diabetes to anyone there, they already knew because they were just like me, and for all of us, that was normal.

   

     When it came time for the first meal at camp, the cabin counselors escorted me and the rest of the campers in the cabin to the dinner hall. Dinner time was very hectic, older campers running around from table to table giving each other hugs and reuniting (probably) for the first time since last summer. Even the counselors were meeting up with old campers and counselor friends, briefly catching up on life the last year. While sitting at my cabin table I watched as old friendships reunited, it was a sense of encouragement and assurance that CCT is a special place.

The Search for "Normal."

A major part of my journey growing and maturing as a diabetic was at the summer camp, Camp Carolina Trails. To most of you Camp Carolina Trails, or as attendees like to call it “CCT,” may just sound like an ordinary summer camp. CCT is located at YMCA Camp Hanes, in King, North Carolina. The camp lasts from a Sunday to a Saturday in June, one week long. The week is packed full of fun, games, and activities all week long for campers entering grades third to eleventh. During CCT, campers stay in cabins furnished with six to eight bunks, a locker for each person, and a three stall bathroom with a shower. Typically, around 12 people stay in each cabin, ten campers, and two counselors. Activities at camp range from swimming, hiking, crafts, campfires, dances, etc. Although camp is full of fun and games, there is one major thing about CCT that makes it different from a typical summer camp, almost everyone lives with Diabetes. Camp Carolina Trails is a summer camp for diabetic children to come and experience the fun of camp while in a safe, learning, positive environment. The majority of the counselors and staff at Camp Carolina Trails are former campers, which means they also have diabetes. Since diabetes is not the minority at camp, being at camp allows everyone there to feel comfortable and “normal.”

All of that being said about Camp Carolina Trails, I will now tell you about my personal experience with CCT.

Let me rewind a bit...

Before I was introduced to Camp Carolina Trails, I only knew maybe three other people that had type one diabetes. Living in such a small town minimized my circle in the diabetic community. Growing up not knowing anyone else “like me,” was (is) not easy. My parents were, and still are, the biggest support in my life when it comes to living with diabetes. The many questions I had while growing up for them, such as, “why am I the only one checking my blood sugar?” or “Why do I have diabetes?” “Why me???” I was constantly having to explain myself to people and answer questions that were asked to me daily from my peers and others, “Why do you get a snack and I don’t?”or “What is that weird box in your pocket?” Those are the thoughts I had daily, the questions, and the constant mental battle of the difference between normal and different.

“What made ME different?”  

As my parents began to realize I needed clarification and a support system to help manage living with this disease, they started researching, that is when CCT was introduced for the first time to my family. My endocrinologist (diabetic doctor, you could say) talked to me and my parents about CCT, after a year of research and working out my nerves, my parents filled out my application for CCT. After a few months of an anticipated wait, I received an acceptance letter from the director at CCT, “Congratulations Allison! Welcome to Camp Carolina Trails!...” I wasn’t sure, being only 9 years old, what I was about to get myself into (little did I know). The weeks before camp were hectic, it was my first time ever going away from my parents for more than two days (over night), I do believe my mom was more nervous than I was. The last few days before my departure were spent packing everything I could possibly need for seven days and six nights spent in a wooden cabin in the middle of nowhere, including enough diabetes supplies (test strips, sites, lancets, insulin, etc) to last three years. On arrival day at camp, I knew from the moment I stepped into the gymnasium to check in that something there was different, or maybe even normal. Every camper checking in also had a pump, meter, or some kind of diabetic tool, with them while talking to a camp nurse during the check in process. Even though the only people I knew during the check in process were my parents it felt like everyone around me already knew everything about me. I felt at home and I had never been more comfortable being me.

24 Hours With Diabetes

Living life with diabetes is not just eating sugar free food and drinking diet soda. In fact, it is the complete opposite of the stereotypical “diabetic diet.” Diabetes is a lifestyle that a person must work into their daily routine of life. Following this introduction I will explain some of the things a diabetic uses in their everyday life.

• Insulin - a hormone produced by the pancreas that regulates glucose in the blood. Insulin is a VERY important hormone in the human body, day to day life is not possible without it. In 1921, Frederick Banting, a Canadian physician, discovered insulin in the pancreatic extracts of dogs. Since then, insulin is produced by many different companies and is produced in two different forms. There are two types of insulin for controlling blood sugar: long acting insulin is typically used in injection form, which is given in large amounts and lasts a few hours per day, depending on the person. Long acting is also known as basal, which is used in pump form. Long acting, or basal, is administered to regulate the natural glucose fluctuations in the human body. Fast acting insulin is the most common form of insulin used in pumps. Fast acting is given to correct high glucose levels and to bolus for food. Insulin is needed all the time, the human body is in a constant state of change and insulin is a major key to keeping the body maintained. When a person’s blood glucose levels are too high and when a person takes food into their body are two of the most crucial times insulin is required. Injections and Pumps allow people with diabetes to have ways to deliver their insulin when needed. Since insulin is always needed, long acting insulin for injections and short acting insulin for basal are very crucial to a diabetics life.
• Injections - a procedure used to give insulin doses. Injections are used to give long acting insulin and short acting insulin.
• Insulin Pump - a small device that works as an insulin delivery system for people with diabetes. Before these devices were created injections (shots) were the main method for insulin delivery. Insulin pumps are manufactured by several different brands: Animas, Medtronic, OmniPod, T:Slim, etc. T:Slim is the insulin pump that I use, it is the first touch screen insulin pump in the world. Insulin pumps have different parts: cartridge, tube, and site. The cartridge, or reservoir, holds the insulin. The tube transfers the insulin from the reservoir to the site which is inserted into my skin.
• Glucometer (meter) - device used to check BG (Blood Glucose).
• A normal BG level is between 80 and 190. Any number below 80 is considered “low” and any number above 190 is considered high.

The following is a log of my diabetes management from Tuesday, September 6th through Wednesday, September 7th.

Tuesday, September 6th :

10:00pm: Pump site and cartridge change. The video with this blog is a demonstration of changing my pump site and cartridge. I have to do this process every two to three days.

T:Slim Pump Change Video

10:20pm: bedtime BG - 248

     Insulin correction - 2.0 U (units)

Wednesday, September 7th :

7:10am: morning check - 59

             Correct with juice and fruit snacks

7:45am: before driving to school check - 79

  Breakfast casserole - 25g (carbohydrates)

  Insulin - 1.88 U

11:04am: lunch check - 141

              Sandwich, chips, water - 40g

   Insulin - 3.6 U

1:15pm: afternoon check - 102

2:44pm: during band practice check - 61

  Correct with fruit snacks

4:13pm: After practice/before dinner check - 92

  Baked potato & salad - 40g

  Insulin - 4.0 U

9:00pm: after dinner check - 244

 Insulin correction - 1.25 U

11:27pm: before bed check - 145

As you can see, my everyday life is not like the average person. When I wake up, the first thing I do is check my BG, and if my BG is in a normal range I continue with my day until the next time to check. My BG levels are not always good though, when my levels are high or low, I have to set time apart from my regular routine to take care of myself before continuing my activities. The information above is just one cycle of 24 hours in my life. Diabetes does not give breaks or vacations. Everyday many diabetics, including myself, go through many different emotional and physical changes due to blood glucose levels rapidly changing. Diabetes affects every aspects of my life, and my life affects every part of diabetes.

I hope this blog post helped those of you who are not as informed about this disease, learn more about what it REALLY is. 

Introduction to Type One Diabetes

On October 23rd, 2001, at the young age of two years old, my life was changed forever. I was diagnosed with Type One Diabetes. For those of you that aren't as familiar with Type One Diabetes, it is a chronic illness that must be monitored 24/7. Type One Diabetes is an autoimmune disease in which a person's pancreas stops producing insulin, a hormone that permits a person to get energy from food. Diabetes is the result of when the body’s immune system attacks and destroys beta cells, insulin producing cells, in the pancreas. There is no one explanation for why people develop diabetes, scientists have concluded that genetics and environmental science is involved. Currently there is no permanent cure for Type One Diabetes, but with modern technology diabetes health care has improved tremendously in the past ten years. Statistics in 2012 show that approximately 1.25 million Americans have been diagnosed with Type One Diabetes and 40,000 new diagnoses are made every year. Type One Diabetes does not only affect the life of the person diagnosed, but also the family and friends in that person's life too. Type One Diabetes is considered the Juvenile type of Diabetes, but research has shown that more adults are being diagnosed as well. People with Type One Diabetes have a full time job of managing their health. Managing includes, five to eight blood sugar checks per day, insulin injections or doses via pump before or after every meal, consistent diet, and monitoring symptoms. Symptoms of diabetes include frequent thirst, urination, hungry, tired, loss of weight, shaky, sweating, etc. These symptoms occur when a person’s blood glucose level is not within normal range. For those of you that are not familiar with diabetes, you probably did not know that there is actually more than one type of diabetes. No pun intended, haha. There is actually four types of diabetes, Type One, Type Two, hyperglycemia, and hypoglycemia. Type One, the most common in juveniles, is when the pancreas completely stops producing insulin. Type Two Diabetes is known as the insulin resistant type, this type usually occurs in people as they age, lose track of diet, poor weight maintenance etc. Once again, there is no one reason for why people are diagnosed with any type of diabetes. Many people have parents, grandparents, or maybe even a pet with Type Two Diabetes. Due to the fact that Type Two is more common, the stereotype of diabetes around the world is that people get diabetes from eating too much sugar. Prepare yourself for what I am about to say, that stereotype is false. People do not get diabetes from sugar. People do not get diabetes from fat. People do not get diabetes from McDonald's. Need I say more? Obesity is a common trait that some people with Type Two Diabetes have. Obesity is not the main cause for diabetes to occur. The main reason is currently undiscovered. So, the next time you see a chocolate cake and think “Oh, this is going to give me diabetes.” Think again. The most it could do is give you a stomach ache from the rich chocolate, so do not freak out over eating sugar. Many people have a misunderstanding of Type One Diabetes because the majority of the diabetes population has Type Two. Type One Diabetes needs to be understood and made aware in the world today. I hope this blog helps those of you that are not informed about diabetes more aware of the illness that a great number of people live with today.