The day Sydney was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes, our world felt like it fell apart. We were thrown into two days of intense training to learn how to take care of our little girl. We learned to check blood sugar, count carbs, figure insulin dosage, and give shots to keep our child alive. And then we were sent home, terrified that we didn't know enough. That was just the beginning.
The first night, I don't think I slept much if at all. Checking her before I went to bed, setting the alarm clock for 2 am, getting up checking then, checking as soon as she awoke the next morning. We dosed insulin and fed her breakfast.
We took little sister to daycare and began our day of picking up prescriptions and grocery shopping. Our next shock was the pharmacy. Yesterday on our way home from the hospital we had dropped off Sydney's prescriptions. We had to get double of some things (glucagon, glucose tablets, and keytone strips) because she needed those at school too. I knew it would be expensive, but I didn't realize the extent of it. I left the pharmacy with two brown bags filled with all the supplies we would need to take care of Sydney. When we got home I spread out all the supplies we had and I cried. It was enough supplies for a three month period, but there was so much. I wondered how we would be able to afford it every three months and how fast we would actually go through it. It was a lot to take in.
After we dropped the prescriptions off at home, we went back to town to shop for foods Sydney could eat. This was the third shock we got. About halfway through the aisles, I again wanted to sit down and cry! The things Sydney loved were full of carbs. We learned at the hospital that she can still eat almost anything she wants, but much smaller amounts. Her original carbs was 15 for snacks and 45 for meals. We tried our best to hit those exact numbers. She needed things for school lunch and snacks. She needed regular meals. We found some things to get us started and returned home. That afternoon, she helped me as we counted objects and put in bags and labeled with the carb count to take to school for snack. We had bought Hug drink boxes to send to school due to low carb count and made a pile in the floor with supplies, snacks, and drinks to be ready to take to school the next morning.
Our meals at home didn't change much. We just had to measure and count Sydney's food. She did get better at eating. Prior to diagnosis Sydney was not the best eater, she would eat a meal and multiple little snacks between meals, etc. Once she knew she had to eat what she said she would because we gave insulin prior to eating, she ate much better. She knew that she had to eat what she said.
That night my mom and dad came over to visit. It was time for Sydney's shot and due to her being such a champ always having a finger ready to be pricked, and already knowing where she wanted her shot, we asked who was going to give it to her. She looked around and said "Papaw", so I got the shot ready, walked him through how to give it and he did! It was a wild day, but we made it through.
~Heather
The first night, I don't think I slept much if at all. Checking her before I went to bed, setting the alarm clock for 2 am, getting up checking then, checking as soon as she awoke the next morning. We dosed insulin and fed her breakfast.
We took little sister to daycare and began our day of picking up prescriptions and grocery shopping. Our next shock was the pharmacy. Yesterday on our way home from the hospital we had dropped off Sydney's prescriptions. We had to get double of some things (glucagon, glucose tablets, and keytone strips) because she needed those at school too. I knew it would be expensive, but I didn't realize the extent of it. I left the pharmacy with two brown bags filled with all the supplies we would need to take care of Sydney. When we got home I spread out all the supplies we had and I cried. It was enough supplies for a three month period, but there was so much. I wondered how we would be able to afford it every three months and how fast we would actually go through it. It was a lot to take in.
After we dropped the prescriptions off at home, we went back to town to shop for foods Sydney could eat. This was the third shock we got. About halfway through the aisles, I again wanted to sit down and cry! The things Sydney loved were full of carbs. We learned at the hospital that she can still eat almost anything she wants, but much smaller amounts. Her original carbs was 15 for snacks and 45 for meals. We tried our best to hit those exact numbers. She needed things for school lunch and snacks. She needed regular meals. We found some things to get us started and returned home. That afternoon, she helped me as we counted objects and put in bags and labeled with the carb count to take to school for snack. We had bought Hug drink boxes to send to school due to low carb count and made a pile in the floor with supplies, snacks, and drinks to be ready to take to school the next morning.
Our meals at home didn't change much. We just had to measure and count Sydney's food. She did get better at eating. Prior to diagnosis Sydney was not the best eater, she would eat a meal and multiple little snacks between meals, etc. Once she knew she had to eat what she said she would because we gave insulin prior to eating, she ate much better. She knew that she had to eat what she said.
That night my mom and dad came over to visit. It was time for Sydney's shot and due to her being such a champ always having a finger ready to be pricked, and already knowing where she wanted her shot, we asked who was going to give it to her. She looked around and said "Papaw", so I got the shot ready, walked him through how to give it and he did! It was a wild day, but we made it through.
~Heather
