Last week I asked:

How often would you like to interact with other families who have a child with diabetes?

This week I’m completely changing topics…

When I began reading other blogs written by parents of children with diabetes, I heard about TrialNet. Some parents were entering their non-diabetic children into the study and/or being tested themselves.

(And this is absolutely in no way judgment of other families for the decisions that they make. We all have our own reasons for what we choose to do or not to do. I support you in the decisions that are right for you.)

I thought long and hard about whether I would want to know if my other child had an antibody present that may or may not indicate that he may or may not eventually develop diabetes. We ultimately decided that we don’t want to know. However, when he is older, if he chooses to participate for the sake of the study, we would support him.

That being said, I am all for them taking a blood draw from my husband and myself in order to see if there is something in our blood that might help them figure this all out.

We aren’t located near one of the testing centers, so it hasn’t been convenient for us to get tested. But when we traveled to Chicago this summer for the JDRF Family Day, TrialNet was there and we were happy to get our blood drawn.

We were informed about the study, signed some paperwork, and had our blood sample taken. Easy peasy. Except that the person drawing the blood tied my tourniquet WAY too tight. Ouch!

A month later we received our results in the mail:

“The result of your screening test was negative. This means that no diabetes-related autoantibodies are present in your blood at this time. This is not a guarantee that you will never develop diabetes. It does mean that you are currently at a lower risk than if you tested positive.”

From the TrialNet website:

The Natural History Study is part of the TrialNet Type 1 Diabetes studies. The goal of this study is to learn more about how type 1 diabetes develops in “at-risk” individuals. Close relatives of people with type 1 diabetes are being studied in three steps (phases): Screening, Baseline Risk Assessment, and Follow-Up Risk Assessments. Participants in the Natural History Study may be offered the opportunity to enter into prevention or early treatment studies when these become available.

The purpose of screening is to identify people at risk for developing type 1 diabetes. Individuals at greater risk may be offered the opportunity to continue on to other phases of the Natural History Study to receive close monitoring for the development of diabetes. They may also participate in studies testing new treatments to delay or prevent the onset of diabetes. If participants develop diabetes during the Natural History Study, they may be eligible to participate in studies aimed at slowing the progression of type 1 diabetes.

My question this week is:

Have you entered yourself or your children in this study?

(E-mail and feed subscribers click over for embedded survey.)

I’d love for you to give an answer to the poll and also leave a comment explaining your thoughts about TrialNet.

Have an idea for a Sunday Survey? Please let me know.

{Sunday Survey} Type 1 Diabetes TrialNet is a post from: D-Mom Blog

The information provided here is for entertainment purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Please read the disclaimer, disclosure, and privacy policy statements.

Last week I asked:

If you could eliminate low blood sugars OR high blood sugars from your child’s life with diabetes, which would you choose?

This week, we are returning to the topic of how often you see other parents of children with diabetes and how often your d-kids interact with others.

Sarah, who can be found on Twitter as @Mod4acure, wanted to know along the same lines how often you want to interact with other d-families. Are you getting enough in person support or would you like more?

My question this week is:

How often would you like to interact with other families who have a child with diabetes?

(E-mail and feed subscribers click over for embedded survey.)

I’d love for you to give an answer to the poll and also leave a comment explaining your answer.

Have an idea for a Sunday Survey? Please let me know.

{Sunday Survey} Enough Facetime? is a post from: D-Mom Blog

The information provided here is for entertainment purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Please read the disclaimer, disclosure, and privacy policy statements.

Last week I asked:

How often does your d-kid get to interact with another child with diabetes?

I’m switching gears this week…

Recently on Twitter, my friend Ginger Vieira who is the community manager for dLife, in addition to writing and v-logging at Living in Progress, asked if we’d rather eliminate low OR high blood sugars. I was very quick to respond:

I’d say low blood sugars bc they pose an immediate threat. High BG’s can be corrected. I’d rather Q be high on a playdate than low!

If you could say that Q would never have a low BG, it would give her every freedom other kids have!

For me, I feel that most of Q’s restrictions come from not wanting her to go low when she is with someone who isn’t trained to respond properly. If she didn’t go low, then she could get dropped off at gymnastics or day camp or girl scouts or a play date. I can deal with a high blood sugar when I pick her up, if that’s the case.

But people get very nervous about how to test her blood sugar (if Q isn’t capable) and heaven forbid, how to use the darn Glucagon kit! Not to mention that it completely freaks them out when you use the words unconscious and seizure.

And I get very nervous that the situation won’t get handled!

My question this week is:

If you could eliminate low blood sugars OR high blood sugars from your child’s life with diabetes, which would you choose?

According to those who responded to the survey, 60 percent would rather end low blood sugars, while the other 40% would end high ones. The comments here and on Facebook were interesting and I think that (and this is my unscientific observation) that many parents of younger children want to eliminate lows because of immediate threats and the possibility that their young child can’t handle it themselves (or that caregivers can’t), while parents of older children aren’t as worried about that.

I’d love for you to leave a comment telling us which you choose and why.

Have an idea for a Sunday Survey? Please let me know.

{Sunday Survey} High or Low? is a post from: D-Mom Blog

The information provided here is for entertainment purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Please read the disclaimer, disclosure, and privacy policy statements.

Last week I asked:

How often do you get to talk face to face with another parent of a child with diabetes?

This week I have a question about how often your d-kid gets to interact with other d-kids.

We recently attended a JDRF Family Day at an amusement park. The trip was 150 miles from home and we just happened to meet a family that lives two miles from us. Their child has only recently been diagnosed. Since meeting, we’ve had one playdate together. The kids just played as kids do, but the mom and I chatted.

Q has a friend in her school that she adores, but unfortunately she’ll be moving along to middle school in the fall. She also has a cousin, but we don’t see him very often.

So my question this week is:

How often does your d-kid get to interact with another child with diabetes?

According to the poll, the majority of d-kids see other kids with diabetes once every few months. I’d love for you to leave a comment about the importance of d-kids meeting other kids like them. How do you find other d-kids to interact with?

Have an idea for a Sunday Survey? Please let me know.

{Sunday Survey} D-Kids Facetime is a post from: D-Mom Blog

The information provided here is for entertainment purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Please read the disclaimer, disclosure, and privacy policy statements.

Last week I asked:

How satisfied are you with your child’s most recent A1c?

Completely different topic this week…

There is another child at my daughter’s school who also has diabetes. It was great because they paved the way for us and even guided us through the 504 process. I often get to speak with the mom (and sometimes the dad) for a few minutes on the playground after school or in the parking lot after morning drop off. Sometimes our conversation is about diabetes, sometimes it isn’t. But it’s nice just to have someone who “gets it.”

We are sad that she will be in middle school next year and we will no longer have these regular interactions.

My question this week is:

How often do you get to talk face to face with another parent of a child with diabetes?

According to those who responded, a third of you see another d-parent once or more a month and another third once every few months. Is this enough interaction for you?

Have an idea for a Sunday Survey? Please let me know.

{Sunday Survey} Face to Face is a post from: D-Mom Blog

The information provided here is for entertainment purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Please read the disclaimer, disclosure, and privacy policy statements.

Last week I asked:

What was your child’s most recent A1c?

I had a completely different question in mind for this week, but as I saw responses coming in and read comments, I thought of a separate, but related question.

The reality is that some families might be ecstatic to see an 8.0 because they’ve been struggling, while someone else might look at that 8.0 and be frustrated because it has always been lower.

My point is that it is all relative, isn’t it?

So my question this week is:

How satisfied are you with your child’s most recent A1c?

Survey Results

Wow! Seventy percent of people who responded are happy either because their child’s A1c continues to be in range or because it has improved since last time. I personally am part of that 30 percent who aren’t happy right now. But we’re working on it. That’s all we can do, right?

I’d love for you to leave a comment telling me how you feel about your child’s most recent A1c.

Have an idea for a Sunday Survey? Please let me know.

{Sunday Survey} A1c Part Two is a post from: D-Mom Blog

The information provided here is for entertainment purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Please read the disclaimer, disclosure, and privacy policy statements.

Last week I asked:

How far is your one-way trip to the endo?

This week I have a question about your child’s A1c.

I come away from some endo appointments feeling a bit triumphant if I’ve managed to get Q’s A1c down…or held it steady. But it’s so deflating when it goes up. Sometimes we can blame growth hormones, or illness. But sometimes us D-Moms and D-Dads feel like we’ve done everything we humanly can and we still don’t like the number that comes up.

At the endocrinologist this month, Q’s A1c held steady at a number that I wasn’t happy with. I’m not sure what to do to bring it down. And the nurse practitioner we saw was not very much of a help, but that’s a post for another day!

All I know if that it’s sometimes good to see what other A1c’s are because you see that you are not alone.

So my question this week is:

What was your child’s most recent A1c?

Results

From the responses, it looks like about 50% of d-kids (who’s moms and dads read D-Mom Blog) have A1c’s between 7 and 8. I know that our endocrinologist recommends that our six-year-old have an A1c under 8.0. Not that we are ever always in that range!

I’d love for you to leave a comment telling me how you feel when you hear your child’s A1c. And you’ll have to see the next Sunday Survey question that this week’s topic prompted.

Have an idea for a Sunday Survey? Please let me know.

Further Reading

Estimated Average Glucose

A1c Ugh!

A1c Work in Progress

A1c Yes!

{Sunday Survey} The Dreaded A1C is a post from: D-Mom Blog

The information provided here is for entertainment purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Please read the disclaimer, disclosure, and privacy policy statements.

Last week I asked:

Do you correct for high blood sugars at bedtime or in the night?

This week I have a question about how far your trip is to get to the endocrinologist.

Since diagnosis, we’ve been seeing an endocrinologist in the next state over. It is 180 miles each way! It’s a huge production to go. I know some families in our area who drive down and back in the same day, but boy is that tiring.

Q likes to go the night before and spend the night in a hotel and do sightseeing. But this week she and I went there and back, spending a couple of hours at the zoo.

Seeing the endocrinologist is mentally exhausting, but the long trip just makes it even more so!

So my question this week is:

How far is your one-way trip to the endo?

Results

Luckily for most of you, it’s not a major undertaking to get there. 36.6% of you travel under 10 miles, while another 30.5% travel 10-30 miles. And I see that some of you share my pain of long car rides!

I’d love for you to leave a comment about traveling to see the endocrinologist.

Have an idea for a Sunday Survey? Please let me know.

{Sunday Survey} To The Endo We Go is a post from: D-Mom Blog

The information provided here is for entertainment purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Please read the disclaimer, disclosure, and privacy policy statements.

Last week I asked:

Would you send your child to day camp?

This week I have a question about high blood sugars.

Our endo and CDE are always telling us not to give corrections for high blood sugars at bedtime or in the night.

Our overnight basal is set to keep our daughter even through the night (as it should), so if she’s high at bedtime, she will likely be high at breakfast. And I fear that 8 or 9 hours above range will wreak havoc on her A1c.

So my question this week is:

Do you correct for high blood sugars at bedtime or in the night?

I’d love for you to leave a comment about how you deal with bedtime and overnight high blood sugars.

Have an idea for a Sunday Survey? Please let me know.

Read all Sunday Survey topics.

{Sunday Survey} Nighttime Corrections is a post from: D-Mom Blog

The information provided here is for entertainment purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Please read the disclaimer, disclosure, and privacy policy statements.

(Updated below with survey results!)

I am considering sending my daughter to day camp for a week this summer. This is not a diabetes-specific camp. The camp does not have a nurse on staff, but several of the staff members work in the local school system including one teacher who knows my child and herself has a child with diabetes. The camp is from 8:00 am to 12:00 pm and includes a snack time and swimming. The camp is located just five minutes from my office.

I want her to be a carefree kid and have the same experiences as her peers. She would have so much fun at this camp, I think!

So my question this week is:

Would you send your child to day camp?

Survey Results: 78% of respondents said they would send their child to day camp is a staff memeber would be trained to check blood sugar levels, portion snacks, learn signs of hypoglycemia, and how to use glucagon.

I’d love for you to leave a comment about your experience with day camp or thoughts about non-diabetes camps.

Have an idea for a Sunday Survey? Please let me know.

{Sunday Survey} Day Camp is a post from: D-Mom Blog

The information provided here is for entertainment purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Please read the disclaimer, disclosure, and privacy policy statements.