Diabetes Blog Week year 2, day 1

The list of things that I am not good at is extensive, it’s embarrassing really and it includes writing for Diabetes Blog Week. Here’s the honest thing... I don’t read other people’s blogs very often and these topics always have to do with other people. I wish that I did read more of what is out there but I don’t and for many good reasons. They are:

I don’t have time...  I don’t like to read... I’m afraid that my grammar is atrocious and that I’ll figure out just how bad it is when I see good writing. But mainly...

I want my blog to be as unique as I can make it and I’m afraid that I’ll be too influenced by all of your amazing writing and begin to lose my voice. Goofy? Maybe. High-minded and over-thought, perhaps but I promise not in a uppity way and it is a real fear.

Don’t get me wrong. If I follow you or you follow me I’ve read your stuff and there are a number of blogs that I make my way back to rather frequently. I think of it like when a therapist goes to a therapist. You have all helped me in so many ways that I could never properly say thank you. That said and I know how strange this will sound but when I started Arden’s Day I had never seen a diabetes blog, forum or even spoken to another parent of a T1 child. I was all like, “look at my honest blog about parenting type I kids, why hasn’t someone else already thought of this? I’m going to make a YouTube video... Look out Chris Columbus coming through!”, or something like that. Then I realized that you were all out there and I felt like I left England to find the New World but it was 1974.

I almost stopped blogging once I realized how many people were out there. I thought that this world that I “discovered” didn’t need another voice. I was especially worried that I seemed to be the only father in a rather large group of wonderful Moms and I felt out of place. So I began to just use the blog to hock people for Arden’s JDRF walk. Then one day I got the first of what now is countless emails thanking me for writing about Arden’s day. People were being helped by my want to be transparent about diabetes. The first email I ever got said, “your website saved my life in the first months of my son’s diagnosis” - you can bet that made me cry. So I stayed. I worked on my writing and I found enough courage to be even more transparent. 

Now back to Diabetes Blog Week. What a great idea and thanks to Karen at http://www.bittersweetdiabetes.com for making it happen again this year! Don’t be like me, head over and check out the other writing... all promises to be better than this contrived crap I just spewed out.

My post has nothing to do with the topic again. I can’t write from a prompt, my brain just doesn’t work like that. So, okay that’s the difference that I admire in all of you. Ugh, I’m being too literal with the topic aren’t I? 

Let’s end like this... there are a ton of thoughtful people out in the world living with some really terrible shit, a hand full of them write about it on the internet, something that I do and have a great amount of respect for. I’ve seen blogs come and go, this August will be my fourth anniversary and I hope that you all keep it up and that others continue in this tradition. You never know when you might write something that will save another person from losing their grip - funny thing is it helps you as much as it helps them. Good stuff!

Follow me on Twitter @ArdensDay. If you do I promise that I’ll do better on Day 2 of Blog Week. It’s letter writing day, free form baby... I can do that!

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The following are archived comments from this post. You can post new comments below.

Meri

I've had to distance myself for months from reading blogs, it goes in ebbs and flows.  But there is a strength to be aquired from the power of "same."  

You should give yourself some more credit, you have a voice, and it needs to be heard!  :)

Monday, May 9, 2011 - 05:19 PM

George

The way I see it, we all have a story to tell and someone out there will connect with us when those stories cross. That is what I love about this community. We can learn so much from one another.

Monday, May 9, 2011 - 09:57 PM

D Blog Day

Today is D-Blog Day and this is my addition to the blog topic that everyone is writing about...

Topic: Six Things You Want People to Know About Diabetes.

1. 1. Everything
   

2. 2. See Above
   

3. 3. See number one
   

4. 4. Refer to number two
   

5. 5. and on
   

6. 6. and on...
   

I want (rather wish) that everyone knew everything about diabetes even though I realize that isn’t possible.  Heck in a world where I can’t trust that everyone knows how to merge into traffic, walk on the right side of the grocery isle and not spit on a sidewalk, asking to be as immersed in this world as we are is, of course, ridiculous - doesn’t mean that I don’t wish that it was possible.  

If you read this site you know that it has a few goals; pass on what we’ve learned, be a friend to those in doubt, raise money and awareness by supporting the JDRF but mostly I want to bring transparency to type I diabetes - it’s my way of sharing 6,000,000 things that I wish people knew about diabetes.

In my mind there are a ton of D-Bloggers making these lists today and they will all likely make them better then I could.  So I want to take this opportunity to say this...

I don’t feel as though I have the right to be disappointed when a stranger asks Arden if she, “should be eating that”, angry at the school lunch lady that referred to the rest of the student body as, “the regular kids” or expect the Superintendent of our school district to be completely versed on type I the day he meets us.  It’s just not reasonable to expect.  My best friend (when I was younger) had type I and I quickly realized when Arden was diagnosed that I didn’t understand diabetes half as much as I thought I did.  I wondered why I didn’t know more and soon realized it was because he didn’t want me to.  All of this is not to say that I can’t hope that the people in our lives will take an interest but trying to “teach’ them is a plain waste of time, I’d rather show them.  I treat diabetes education the same as parenting - I teach by example.

We test in public, speak openly to anyone that is interested and generally just don’t hide any aspect of this disease.  What I’ve seen is that people start to catch on when they are exposed a few times.  That exposure builds interest, the interest spurs understanding and just like that I’ve created an advocate for Arden (and hopefully your children too).  Moreover, the exposure creates another person with the knowledge of how to fight a low blood glucose, choose a healthy meal, look for signs and symptoms and all of the rest of the stuff that comes with having diabetes.

That’s all I have - be transparent even if it’s embarrassing, even if it breeds “stupid” questions.  You never know, one day Arden may need help and one of the people that this fantastic community touches may be there to lend a hand.

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The following are archived comments from this post. You can post new comments below.

shannon

Thank you for your perspective, it's given me something to think about when my first reaction is frustration and ager about ignorant comments.

Tuesday, November 9, 2010 - 11:03 PM

Scott

Shannon,

I'm really grateful that you took the time to read my post.  I understand your reaction and I'm glad that you are reconsidering it.  I've had it myself in the past but it's so emotionally based that it does no one any good.  Best of luck to you and your daughter!

Wednesday, November 10, 2010 - 10:26 PM

Leighann of D-Mom Blog

I love that you are "transparent." We too test in public. We don't feel there is anything to hide and try to make it as much a normal part of our lives as possible.

Thanks for the D-Day post today!

Thursday, November 11, 2010 - 05:19 PM

Yoga

Just a quick update for diabetes Blog Week, day 5’s topic:

Day 5- Let's get moving. Exercise . . . love it or hate it? Do you have a regular exercise routine? Or do you have trouble finding your exercise motivation? How do you manage your insulin and food to avoid bottoming out during your workout? Today is the day to tell us all about your exercise habits, or lack thereof.

Arden is of course only five years old but we wanted her to have an exercise regiment that she could carry with her throughout her life.  After much thought we decided to try yoga.  Yoga is fantastic for Arden, it is a high-return, low impact exercise that has very little impact on her BGs.  Yoga keeps her strong, flexible and moving.  I hope she does it for the rest of her life.

I think I may sign Arden and I up for the parent/child class when the next classes begin... I could definitely use it!

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The following are archived comments from this post. You can post new comments below.

Sherry

I LOVE yoga!!  Been considering signing my girls up for it too.

Sunday, May 16, 2010 - 10:42 AM

It's not the heat its the Glycemic Index

Carbs, carbs, carbs, my entire life is counting carbs. I hate it! Some days I’m not good at it and other days I’m the carb counting champ of my town and the surrounding counties.

What a slog - This food brings you up quick, that one is no good for a low... OMG, don’t eat that before bed.  Scales and cups and measuring spoons, I see them in my sleep (the sleep I get between 3 and 6am).

Today my advice is quick and to the point...

Pick up the book, “Pumping Insulin” and turn to page 82.  Read and re-read it until you understand what Glycemic Index and Glycemic Load mean.  Read page 82 until your silly face falls off, read it until you can recite it, read it until people start talking about you right in front of you because they think you won’t hear them as all you do is read page 82 of Pumping Insulin.  When you’ve finished just sit back and watch your A1c go down.

Say it with me, “It’s not the carbs, it’s the Glycemic Index”.

After you’ve mastered page 82, flip back and read the entire book, it’s the surest way to improving your insulin pump skills.  If you don’t use a pump... well, I think you should get one if at all possible.  I’d rock the OmniPod if I was you.

If you missed my other additions to blog week... my day one blog is here, day two is here and day three is here.

I’m not affiliated or compensated by any of the products that I mentioned, they are just great and in my opinion the way to go.

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The following are archived comments from this post. You can post new comments below.

Tracy

Hi!  I'm new here.  My son was diagnosed in early March. 

Question....first, we're not pumping yet, so I don't have Pumping Insulin, but I am reading Using Insulin by the same author.  So, I'm learning about tlycemic Index.

Here's my question....at one point in the book, he says it's best to try to avoid eating foods that have a GI above 60.  Do you do that with your daughter?  Do you give the insulin earlier?  

Thanks!

Thursday, May 13, 2010 - 06:20 PM

Scott

We avoid them as much as possible and pre-bolus meals as best as we can. Right now Arden is a little too young to trust that she'll always eat everything on her plate.  Pre-bolusing definitely cuts the spike out of a BG rise.

We hope to have a CGM very soon to aid us in understanding the way different carbs react in her body.

Stay tuned!

Best to you,

Saturday, May 15, 2010 - 10:46 AM

You are your best support

There are a few links in this piece to past blogs, I think that all together they make today’s point very well.

I could without a doubt write a piece on how my wife is my greatest support system, I could also make the case for mysister in law who is our only babysitter, the people that frequent this blog, oh or the donors to Arden’s JDRF walk, my friends that ask how I am, the nurses at school, Arden’sOmniPod - I could definitely make a case for the people at Insulet...

However, as I thought about today’s Blog Week topic, “Your biggest supporter” I couldn’t imagine giving any of those people more of my gratitude then the other.  They all play a vital role in me not losing my mind.  Instead, I want to talk for a second about you...  you are your best support system.

Type I is horrible and I, just like many of you, have a complete and searing notion of what it means for my daughter to have it.  While it is true that I would have likely fallen to pieces ten times over without the people in my life, it is also true that I am ultimately responsible for how I react to the world around me.  I know people that succumb to the drama far too easily and it’s my assertion that some do it quite willingly.  Our children’s health is far too important for us to give in to the feeling that we can’t, don’t want to or just shouldn’t have to deal with type I diabetes.  You can, you will and fair has nothing to do with this.

Before I had children I thought about what it would be like a lot. I may be different then some men but I was very much looking forward to having a family.  I imagine that everyone has that noble thought before they have kids, you know the one, that you’ll do anything for them.  You imagine that you’d step in front of a car if it meant saving their little lives.  Funny thing is, many of us don’t live up to that noble thought and when push comes to shove, far too many let that metaphorical car run their kids over.  

If the pilgrims can make it to Plymouth Rock and forge out this country, you can pull back your $200 comforter and check a BG at 3am.  Things are only ever as bad as you let them be.  

You are tougher then you think, more able then you can imagine and you can do this.  Sleep is for the weak and stress only effects those that let it.  If you remain positive, your resilience will be endless... then you’ll be your own best support system.  Those other people in your life will all just be icing on a cake that makes your kids BGs go crazy.

That’s about as chicken soup for the souly as I get...  Go kick some type I ass.

Thanks again to Karen at http://bittersweet-karen.blogspot.com/ for hosting this fantastic week of diabetes blogging!  Head over there to see countless other blogs about the topics that I’ve covered... all likely far better then mine.

If you missed my other additions to blog week... my day one blog is here and day two is here.

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The following are archived comments from this post. You can post new comments below.

Tristan

Great post!  Beautifully done.  I agree that we all need to believe in our own power and rely less on other people dictating our worth.  We still have love and support from others but we are in charge of our own destiny.

Wednesday, May 12, 2010 - 01:35 PM