Wednesday, January 12, 2011 at 8:45AM 
Tuesday, January 11, 2011 at 7:00AM I could not stop laughing when I saw this.
Enjoy!
Monday, January 10, 2011 at 10:01AM Irene and Madison Mallano are a mother/daughter team who wrote the book "Mommy, What is Type 1 Diabetes?" Irene, mother of Madison, sent me a copy of the book they wrote and offered to sponsor a giveaway right here, which is the first time I have ever done that! Very cool!
Both Irene and Madison were kind enough to let me ask them some questions about diabetes, the book, and the future!
Madison, how old were you when you were diagnosed and do you remember what happened?
It was right after my 4th-birthday, when my little sister was born... I remember my mom went to CVS to buy a blood tester because she said I was getting up at night asking for water and to go the the bathroom alot. After she did it, the number said 559 and she said something is wrong so we have to get in the car fast and go to the hospital where I was born. I was very scared but my mom stayed with me, then she said we had to learn lots of stuff so we could leave. Finally after a few days I got to go home and was so excited about doing fun things again, but I had to take needles everyday too. That wasn't fun and I didnt like that! I asked my mom lots of questions. My mom explained diabetes to me, then I got an Animas pump and that made me happy again!
Irene, did you know of anyone with Type-1 before Madison was diagnosed?
No, and I didn't even know what "juvenile diabetes" was at that time. I was completely shocked and so was my whole family! I was pregnant the year she was diagnosed with a new doctor that insisted on explaining all the risks associated with being pregnant, including diabetes, and thank god he did. I read everything he gave me and more to ensure another perfect pregancy. Shortly after I gave birth, I figured my new mommy hormones had gone crazy because I thought Madison had the symptoms I had recently read about. Since there's no harm in checking, I said let me do it and see what it says. I didnt know what the number meant then and there was no levels listed on the box, so I called the 1-800# on the label. They said they couldnt give medical advice but to see a doctor right away. It was late at night so off we went to the hospital, with the tester in hand,,,the doctor on call said I saved her life since her blood was crystalized and she had very high keytones...Sadly, but gratefully I was glad I had the courage to check. It's one of those times when you really wish you weren't right. Diabetes was a sudden harsh reality to us that I dont think you ever truly get over, but we did learn to overcome it with knowledge and it started to become less scary the more we learned.
Writing a book together is a pretty cool idea. What inspired you to do it?
Madison wanted to learn all about what she had and asked me if we could make a book for everyone to understand. Together we wrote her story along with my own thoughts and included helpful facts, as well as create all the pictures to bring life to the book. The reason we wrote and named the book "Mommy, what is type-1 Diabetes?" is because we wanted all families to learn about juvenile diabetes from a child's and mothers view. We thought about all the things we wanted to know after diagnosis and put it into a positive storyline. Our mission is to raise awareness of symptoms and give support when needed. Thats what also let us to also create the website full of resources for anyone. Our biggest wish for the world is a cure, and more medical advancments along the way, so a portion of each book is donated to JDRF as noted on our back cover. Thank you for your suuport!
Madison, how does your family help with your diabetes life?
My mom is a huge part as she is the only one I like to change my insulin-pump sites or give me a needle. She gets up in the middle of the night to check my sugar, because I'm sleeping and wakes me up if I need to drink juice. My mom taught me how to work my pump and cover for the food I eat, count carbs and also how to check my own finger. Now I'm learning how to do a needle on an orange. I love when she bakes delicious low-sugar goodies, helps other people and cheers me up when I'm sad with smiley faces, & I love her!
So what do you want to be when you grow up? And what are you favorite hobbies?
I want to be doctor or a dentist. My favorite hobbies are reading, I really love to read a book everyday. Soccer is lots of fun, Im really fast on the field. Playing the Wii, backgammon and checkers with my family is cool too. My mom says I can be anything I want to be, as long as I go to school and learn.
Irene, any thoughts on another book and what is next for you?
Madison would like us to make another book together, so she is thinking about what it should be. I'm excited to see what that will be. I also recently became a local Jdrf Mentor and coffee mom in order to provide support and connect families when needed.
And what do you think the next step is Madison?
Madison: The next step is, believing in yourself!
Irene: Never let diabetes stop you from what you want to do
Thank you both for letting me interview you and thank you also for giving away a book to one of my readers. Is there anything else you would like to say?
Madison: The heart on our logo my mom made for me to make me smile when I got diabetes and I wanted him to make everyone smile like he did me__I named him JD."
Irene: Thank you for the opportunity to share our story and we are always available to chat, anyone can email us at mommywhatisdiabetes@live.com.
[To be entered into the drawing for a free copy of "Mommy, What is Type 1 Diabetes" send me an email (you can leave the body of the email blank). The winner will be announced next week!]
Friday, January 7, 2011 at 11:59AM Yesterday I was high all day long. I bolused and bolused over and over and nothing seemed to work.
Is it my site? That’s the first thing I think.
So I pulled it out. I figured I would see some blood or a bent cannula but no dice. All looked good.
I assumed it must be scar tissue so I moved it to a spot on my leg that was not used much because it hurts but I figure I should just deal with the pain to get a good site in.
OUCH! I put it in and bolused. A lot.
Still I floated right around 300.
“Screw it, I am just going to go to bed and see where I am in the middle of the night. I am sick of this.” I stormed out of the living room and went to bed.
I woke up around 2AM and grabbed my Dex on the nightstand. I saw the HIGH ABOVE 200 screen. “ugh, lame.” I verified the bg with a finger stick and then rolled over and went back to sleep. The last thing I wanted to care about was diabetes.
But then I thought about the insulin. What if the insulin went bad? I never ever think about the insulin being the problem! Of COURSE! That has to be it!
So I decide NOT to change it right then but to just do it in the morning. I was tired and annoyed.
At about 5AM my bg tanks. According to my Dex it dropped fast and then leveled off. I tested when I woke up at 114.
And so far, my BG has been doing it’s thing all morning.
And that my friends is a great example of how diabetes does not play nice at all and ANYONE who says “you can ‘control’ it” is wrong.
I have this image of an insulin bubble under my skin waiting to erupt and THEN my body absorbs it. Why else would this happen right?
Wednesday, January 5, 2011 at 10:42AM
Much to my surprise, I was awarded the “Most Creative Blogger” award. Thank you all who voted for me. That was very cool and unexpected.
I never really consider myself “creative” so even the nomination was a surprise. But last night I thought I should tap into this creativity and come up with my own awards.
Like the “Ninja Nunchuck” awards!
So here it goes!
Best CGM and CGM Owner – Molly with her awesome sidekick/CGM/dog Dixie.
Best Non-Certified Diabetes Educator – Wil who does amazing work for PWD’s in need.
Best Humanitarian – Sara, for her trip to Haiti and her love of their people.
Best Tweets About iPad & iPhone cases not to mention the V series – Jenny aka Wyldceltic1
Best Place to Read About the Newest Diabetes News & Stuff – Amy’s blog, diabetesmine.com
Best Slam Poet in the OC – Hannah at Dorkabetic
Best Diabetes BFF – Gina Capone
I could go on and on.
Here’s the thing, I think the OC is so great that I can come up with an award to give everyone. That is what makes this community so awesome. We are all unique and special and awesome in our own way. We each do something different and better than one another but that is not the point. We all are here to share and care about one another.
This community should be celebrated and I am just the Ninja to do it!
