The Road to Recovery

I’ve shared the story of what we went through when Carter was first diagnosed with diabetes (here and here) but today I want to share what happened in the days immediately after his diagnosis, when we were still in the hospital. His condition was so bad he stayed for several weeks.

We were originally in the pediatric ICU, but eventually were transferred to a small private room. In there, Carter had a crib, a rocking chair and a tv. Kyle and I sat, slept, and ate right next to Carter. We were quite fortunate because Kyle was able to get time off from work to be with me and Carter. My mom and brother brought Norah a couple of times to see us.

The nurses would come in every two hours and check his sugar. Because he was so small they would prick his heel. Carter had bruises and his legs, ankles, and arms from all the different nurses who tried to get an IV started. He was so tired that he slept for about 12 hours. After that he would move or fuss when the nurse came in to check his sugar. I was nursing Carter so when I held him he would fuss and turn his head to nurse. It became easier for me and him to not pick him up until the doctor gave us the ok for him to eat.

We meet so many different people the first couple of days. Different nurses and doctors would come in and help us. We were given a note book with different articles on diabetes. A counselor came into our room and told us she was the person in charge of insurance. She said she would report Carter's case to CCS (California Children’s Service). I started crying because I thought she meant CPS (Child Protection Services). In a panic, I told her we didn't know he was diabetic and why did she need to report me to CPS. She smiled and put her arm around me then quickly explained what CCS was. Kyle started laughing and said, “Why did you think CPS? We didn't purposely give Carter diabetes!” I learned that CPS is a California funded program that helps families with children who need medication for life. The program helps with copays and doctor care and our counselor did all the paperwork for us so we didn't have to worry about a thing. This is truly a great program!

Carter was not allowed to have food and water for three and a half days. He laid in his crib and slept. His lips were really dry so I soaked a pink sponge in ice and rubbed it on his lips and mouth. I used a wash cloth to wipe his little chubby body off. After two days, Carter's heels were covered in dry blood spots from being poked so much. His color was normal again but he was very drowsy. He cried a little every time the nurses would check his sugar. He was on the road to recovery, thankfully, but Kyle and I weren't getting any sleep at all...

Diabetes: A Background

Today, I'm going to give a little medical background on T1D and T2D.

First off, you need a simple explanation on how your body works. For all the doctors/science nerds reading this largely simplified explanation, deal with it. I’m no smarty pants. So here is how it goes: You eat food. Your body eventually breaks the food down into glucose (a type of sugar your body needs in order to keep you walking and talking). However, in order for the glucose to get into your bloodstream and be used, it needs insulin. So your body makes insulin, which attaches itself to glucose and as friends, they enter the bloodstream.

Insulin and glucose. Friends like Sam and Frodo. All out to accomplish a bold mission.

The problem with diabetics? Their body doesn't properly make insulin. Sometimes, it makes too much. Sometimes, too little. It all depends on whether you have type 1 or type 2 diabetes. What are the differences?

T1D:
*Your pancreas doesn't make insulin at all.
*Requires an insulin shot or insulin pump in order to stay alive.
*It is not preventable. No eating habit, workout routine or surgery can fix it. Their body is just broken.
*It is generally diagnosed at a younger age. Carter was diagnosed at six months, his dad at three years.
*Individuals with T1D are usually thin. Kyle is thin, but Carter still has his adorable baby rolls!

Those rolls are NOT messin' around!

T2D:
*Your body makes insulin, but for various reasons, the cells stopped responding.
*Those various reasons mainly include bad diet and exercise.
*Generally, with proper diet and exercise, the individual can reverse T2D effects.
*It is generally diagnosed at an older age, but as Americans have become increasingly fat and lazy, it is showing up in younger and younger children. Go Amerucka!

Feel a bit more educated? Good. So do I! The point is...we love Carter!

Kyle's Diabetes

While this blog is for Carter, he isn’t the only member of our family who has T1D. I’ve mentioned before that my husband Kyle also has T1D. This is my story of how I was first affected by Kyle’s blood sugar.

I meet my husband in 2006. He told me he was diabetic and I just thought it meant he couldn't eat sugar. He ate anything he wanted and drank a lot of soda; occasionally he would have a diet soda. For the most part Kyle monitored his own sugar and took care of his shots. He would tell me things about his diabetes like how he felt when he goes high and symptoms of a low. He would tell me if he ever went low it would seem like he was drunk. He also warned me to put honey under his tongue if he was low.

We got married in the summer of 2007. About seven months later Kyle and I were talking at the table. He stared to seem confused and was having trouble talking. I asked him if he was okay. He just gave me a blank state. He stood up and took a couple of steps. His legs buckled and he fell to the floor. My heart was racing because I wasn't sure what was wrong with my husband. I started to panic and remembered what Kyle had told me about low blood sugar. I went to the cupboard and got a bottle of honey. I put Kyle’s head on my lap as I put the honey under his tongue. After about twenty minutes, Kyle’s color stated coming back and he was able to talk. At this time we didn’t even own a glucose monitor! I sat on the floor with Kyle and told him we needed to talk. I made an appointment to see a doctor.

At the doctor’s Kyle took an A1C test, a common blood test used to diagnose diabetes and gauge how well it is being monitored. A normal range is between 4.5 to 6 percent. Kyle was at 15. The doctor gave Kyle a prescription for all the diabetic supplies and most important, a glucose monitor. He told us that Kyle needed to check his sugars 2 hours before and after meals and bedtime. Kyle explained how to check his sugar, the sliding scale and carb counting. I learned a lot about diabetes but I never checked his sugar or my own or gave him any shots. I did start buying foods with more protein and made sure Kyle ate better. He now has a A1C of 7! But it wasn't until Carter was diagnosed that we changed our entire life style and I learned more about diabetes then I could ever imagine!

Strong man

While waiting for grandma in the car, Carter showed me his strength by hanging himself from the car, grabbing the handles for more than two minutes.

Connect on Facebook!

For those of you on facebook, we've got a page for that! Like us on Facebook! Carter's Cure Facebook

Carter's website

Carter's new website is now online! Please check it out. You can donate, learn about the JDRF run (Walk for the Cure) and buy homemade JDRF t-shirts!

Carter's Cure

Walk to Cure

So here is the deal. We all love Carter, we want to help him, but none of us are exactly medical experts on the brink of finding a cure for diabetes.

However, we can support those people who really are medical experts on the brink of finding a cure for diabetes. JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation) is a wonderful organization that supports type 1 diabetes families. On Sunday, November 4, 2012, they are hosting a Walk to Cure Diabetes. Carter's whole family will be participating in the walk, but they need sponsors! Team Carter has a goal to donate at least $200 to this great cause, but we need YOUR help! Will you please donate? Every little bit helps!

$1 could get you four bubble gum balls at the machine in front of the grocery store OR it could help find a reliable way to help diabetic children receive their insulin without a shot.

$5 could get you a three tickets to a dollar theater movie showing (because, come on, we all know it isn't really $1) OR it could help examine diabetics' blood sample in an effort to understand the way insulin works in our bodies.

$10 could get you half a gallon of gas OR it could help fund prevention treatment for T1D. Also, anyone who donates $10 to Team Carter will receive a small thank you gift.

$20 could get you Taylor Swift's new album (in stores Oct. 23) OR it could help experts find a way to fix pancreas that no longer produce insulin. In addition, this level of a donation will provide an even sweeter thank you gift.

How can you donate? If you personally know the Whites or Montgomerys, talk to them! They know what to do.

If you don't know them, live too far away from them, or just don't want to see them (it's okay, if you donate, we won't be offended), click HERE!

Thank you so much! Let's fight diabetes, in any way we can!

Carter's story (Part 2)

It had been a long day. I had spent most of my day with my son at the hospital. I left the room for a quick break and when I walked back in around 7:30, there were several doctors waiting for me, including the doctor from the previous night who told me to go home and rotate Tylenol and Motrin.

An older, male doctor looked and me and said, "He is a diabetic." I was confused. My thoughts started racing. Why were telling me my husband is a diabetic? I knew that. I needed to know what was wrong with my son. I turned to my husband. "Kyle, what did doctor say about you being diabetic?" I saw my husband's eyes tear up as he looked at me.

"Honey, Carter has diabetes."

"No, he doesn't. You do."

"No. Carter has diabetes."

I laid across the table on my baby and started kissing him. I was so over whelmed. I could not believe my son had diabetes. When my husband and I started having children, we asked doctors whether our children would inherit diabetes from their father. We were assured diabetes doesn't carry over from the father. My family doesn't have a history of diabetes. We were not prepared for this.

The nurse who asked all the family history medical questions came in the room. She told me Carter's sugar level was so high, it didn't register on the meter. When we got the results, his sugar level was at 980. The average baby should be between 100-120.

The room began to spin as the doctors and nurses moved into action. Two nurses from the ICU came to our triage unit and started an IV. We were told we needed to consider getting a pic line for him. Carter started an insulin drip and couldn't eat for 3 days till his sugar came back down. We spent the next several weeks in NICU with Carter learning more about diabetes and how to take care of this six month old baby who couldn't even tell us he felt yucky or that the needle hurts.

Since then, I've learned a lot about diabetes. I'm grateful for those who helped take care of my boy. But I'm committed to improving the world for diabetics and their mothers. This is why I started this blog.

Carter's story (Part 1)

I'll never forget the day my little boy was diagnosed with diabetes. Not only because that day radically changed my world, but also because it was exactly one day before I turned 27. Some birthday gift, right?

During the early morning of February 17, 2011 Carter started having breathing problems and was very fussy. I thought he had a very bad cold, so even though it was the middle of the night, I took him to the emergency room. The doctors told me he had a cold and flu and I should take him home and rotate Tylenol and Motrin.
So we went home. He couldn't sleep. His breathing was so deep, as if he a lot of phlegm in his throat and chest, but I couldn't hear an echo of anything being in his chest. I tried to get some sleep on my couch with my helpless little 6 month old on my chest. We would doze off for a couple of minutes, then he would let out a little whine. This continued for several hours.

Finally around noon, my mom came over to see Carter. When she saw him, her eyes filled with tears and she begged me to take him back to emergency room. I told her that they would just send us home again. She insisted we go. I asked her to come with me because at this point, Carter was not doing well. He was very weak and pale. His lips were shriveled up and purple. He couldn't hold his head up, drink a bottle, cry or sleep.

We went back to Kaiser and this time, they thought it was a respiratory infection. They ordered breathing treatments for him. They put us in an ER triage and a nurse came by every fifteen minutes to give Carter air from an oxygen machine. I sat on the bed holding my baby, crying as my son became increasingly lethargic.

My husband arrived at the hospital at 6 pm. A nurse came in and quizzed us on our families' history of health disorders. Asthma? No. Diabetes? My husband was diagnosed with type 1 when he was three years old. Was Carter eating a lot? From the day he was born, he ate a lot. Did he have a lot of wet diapers? Yes. Lately, Carter's diapers were so wet, if I was holding him, the pee would run down my legs. I would change his diaper every two hours or so.

At this point, I needed to step out of the hospital room. I needed some fresh air to collect my thoughts. As I left, the nurse said she wanted to check his sugar. I was only gone for ten minutes, but in that short time, everything would change.