Samuels 3rd diabetic birthday.

This occurred the day after our clinic appointment this year. It went by without any drama, he went to school and I was given strict instructions to buy sweets and take them into school for his friends. He is like the Queen and has two birthdays each year!! Basically anything goes on this day and he chooses what we have for dinner, which with Samuel usually involves the words 'take-away'. If you were to ask any parent of a diabetic child about this day you would probably get a mixed response. Some find it a really upsetting and traumatic, and others are more laid back about it. However, we all will use the day as a day of reflection. Three years.......it seems to have gone so fast, and although I remember his diagnosis as if it was yesterday it is hard to remember what life was like before. Everything is different now and we have learnt so much. I have a great network of friends, who, even though I have never met I know I can turn to for help, who understand, as they are in the same position. That said I also feel that I have so much more to learn and that we are only at the very beginning of this long journey. As yet, Samuel has never been ill, so I have not had that to deal with. He is not old enough to rebel as such, I can't wait for that stage, and at the moment I am in control. I know that as time goes on I will have to hand some of that control over, maybe on his 10th diabetic birthday. What I know for sure is diabetes keeps us on our toes, but another year can be crossed off, another one under our belts. One, where we can hold our heads up and say that it will not get the better of us, we are stronger, and every year that goes by, the stronger we get, because knowledge is power, and we are learning every day.

Left clinic feeling a little disappointed

Well, March has been busy in the Warrington household with regards to diabetes. So what follows will be a series of shorter blogs because each event deserves a title of its own.

Let's start with clinic *sigh* I have to admit I came away from this particular appointment feeling a little disappointed. Despite the night testing, the correction doses and really trying hard to get ontop of Samuels random levels his HbA1c went up! Not by much, 8.4 from 8.0, but still it is going in the wrong direction.
Yes, I know it is only a number, and yes, I know it is not a big leap, but any parent with a diabetic child will tell you that this number is a big deal, well it is to us! This number is what we feel we are being judged by. Who won this quarter? Did diabetes win or did we? Diabetes did! Has all the hard work, the carb counting, correction doses paid off? NO! Do I feel like I have failed? YES!!
I should point out that absolutely no one in clinic makes me feel this way, this is my own personal battle, mummy vs diabetes!!

We came away with only one change and that is moving Samuels lantus back from morning to evening, which is causing me no end of trouble, I keep forgetting!!

The other outcome from clinic is that they are no nearer to providing pumps, well I say no nearer I think that they have made some progress, and apparently Samuel is top of the list to have one, so we will just wait a little longer.