Diabetes Blog Week – Page 3

A day in the life. — Just another day with diabetes.

Thanks to my fellow North-Easterner, Karen, for coming up with the idea of Diabetes Blog Week. I’m excited to be undertaking this week of blog posts with so many who have become my friends over the past year or so. I’m guessing my RSS reader will explode. Assuming yours will too, I’m keeping my posts short and sweet.

There’s something extra special about this week’s posts – they will be Caleb’s. This is Caleb… will actually be coming straight from the horse’s mouth.

So here we go.

Day 1 – A day in the life…with diabetes.

How would you describe your days in terms of diabetes?
It’s kindof whacko when you think about it, but I feel normal about it. When I wake up, I just feel like it’s any other day. It doesn’t bother me to check my sugar or do the other things I have to do.

It can sometimes make me busy. I check my blood sugar all the time and I sometimes have to take a break from what I’m doing. Sometimes I feel low and I feel crummy.

How much of your day do you spend thinking about diabetes?
Not much.

What about school?
It’s really busy at school because I have to do a lot of school work and I have keep a routine about my diabetes, like checking with the nurse at 9:30, at lunch-time and before I go home, plus anytime I feel low.

Pod changes?
Changing my Pod can be stressful because it hurts sometimes, but I’m pretty used to it so lots of times it doesn’t hurt too much at all.

Eating?
Why do I have to talk about eating? Everyone eats. I have to bolus myself for whatever carbs I eat and Mom writes them down in a journal for school, but I can still eat whatever I want.

I chose the above picture for this post because of the story it tells. I took it to commemorate Caleb’s first day of baseball. Upon closer examination, I noticed several reminders of diabetes. The tiger striped medical ID bracelet, the SPIbelt that holds his DexCom receiver, the open cabinet with his diabetes supplies peeking out, and even the stack of newspapers with the recent article of Caleb and his diabetes. Just another day.

Day 2’s topic will be: “Making the low go”. See you tomorrow!

A little over a year after Caleb was diagnosed, when the fog had cleared, we had experienced all our “firsts” and things were more or less chugging along, my attentions shifted. The present was under control, now what about the future?

I made my first video. The intent was to bring attention to work being done to find a cure for type 1 diabetes. It turned into so much more than that. It entered me into a world I hadn’t realized existed, or at least one that I could be so much a part of.

Caleb, his face, his story, his personality, have all stretched across the world and brought me, and him, within reach of a support system that we would not otherwise have. I am so grateful for this unexpected byproduct.

This is my first work. When I made it, I could not watch it without crying. No matter how many times I watched it, I would choke up. Now when I watch it, there are two things that I note: (1) how much more effective my message could have been had I made it more succinctly (yes, it’s long – sorry), and (2) how my perspective has changed. The story is still true. The spirit of the message still resounds. But now I know the Caleb who has been living with diabetes for almost three years. He has adapted. He has flourished. He has shown me what perseverance is. Diabetes does not define Caleb. He just happens to be living with it. I can watch the video now without tears because I know that Caleb.

So, as this and other videos I have made begin, This is Caleb…

At least a part of him.