I am a Type 1 Diabetic Warrior

New Year Resolutions

2025-12-28T23:05:15.426-06:00

Post a comment with your New Year Resolutions!

TCOYD video on the Dexcom G7 and discontinuance of G6

2025-12-14T09:40:48.078-06:00

https://youtu.be/3utcyR9AKlE?si=FnihGvidynIvVnoo

Dexcom TCOYD video about the switch to G7. I personally am not excited about the switch. The failures, inaccuracy and inability to restart.

I started on the 7 plus and it was a huge battle with my insurance to get it approved.

Hormones and my hair loss journey

2025-12-06T09:15:42.752-06:00

Type 1 diabetes is complicated and exhausting to manage. It becomes even more challenging when you’re a woman dealing with constantly fluctuating hormones. Hormonal shifts directly affect insulin sensitivity, and trying to balance the two can feel like an impossible task.

For some reason, many people believe that once you’ve lived with Type 1 long enough, it becomes easy—that you simply “figure it out” and coast through life. I’m not sure why that misconception exists, but I truly wish the general public understood Type 1 diabetes better. Most people don’t take an interest in a disease unless they or someone they love is battling it, and that lack of understanding can feel very isolating.

For several years, I’ve felt that something was off hormonally. Not long ago, if you told a general practitioner or nurse practitioner that you suspected hormone imbalance or wanted to explore hormone replacement therapy (HRT), they often dismissed you. If you weren’t in full menopause, they acted like you were imagining things. Thankfully, the recent HRT movement has opened doors for women in perimenopause and menopause to finally be heard and supported.

My own HRT journey started in March of this year. I began with progesterone, then added testosterone cream. I don’t remember the exact month, but I do remember my hair starting to fall out. Later, I saw another doctor about adding estrogen, and once I started it, the hair loss increased dramatically. I eventually asked my nurse practitioner for oral minoxidil, which can push hair follicles through the shedding phase into growth. Unfortunately, the combination of everything—plus what was probably a naturally timed shed cycle—caused me to lose nearly half my hair.

I stopped all HRT and minoxidil and started taking a DHT-blocker supplement I found on Amazon. Within a month, the hair loss completely stopped. The next month, I restarted HRT. I paused it in September and resumed again in November, and now I’m experiencing the most dramatic regrowth I’ve ever seen. I have my normal hair length—and underneath it, what looks like a two- to three-inch buzz cut growing in everywhere. It’s wild, but I’m so grateful it’s coming back.

If you’re struggling with hormonal hair loss, this is the supplement I use and love:

➡️ DHT Blocker

(Using Subscribe & Save can also knock a percentage off, depending on how many subscriptions you have.)

Beyond the hair journey, HRT has been life-changing for me. My arthritis and back pain have almost entirely disappeared. I’m sleeping better than I have since I was a teenager. I have more energy, can work out harder and longer, and I’m seeing strength gains I haven’t seen in nearly 20 years.

I’m so grateful to finally feel like myself again.

How Hormones Can Increase DHT and Cause Hair Loss

Hormones play a huge role in how our bodies function, and that includes how our hair grows. One hormone in particular—DHT (dihydrotestosterone)—can have a major impact on hair health.

DHT is made when your body converts testosterone into a stronger form using an enzyme called 5-alpha reductase. Everyone has DHT (women included), but problems start when hormone levels shift and the body begins producing too much of it.

Here’s how it leads to hair loss:

Hormonal changes—including menstrual cycles, postpartum shifts, perimenopause, PCOS, or even stress-related hormone fluctuations—can increase the activity of 5-alpha reductase.

When that enzyme becomes more active, more testosterone converts into DHT.

Excess DHT shrinks the hair follicles, making the strands grow thinner and weaker over time.

Eventually, the follicles can become so small that they stop producing hair altogether.

This process is known as androgenic hair loss, and it’s extremely common. The frustrating part is that it’s not about “doing something wrong”—it’s a hormonal response your body creates on its own.

Understanding how DHT works can help you explore the right treatments, whether that’s reducing inflammation, supporting hormone balance, or using products that block DHT production at the follicle.

Hair loss and peri menopause

2025-10-28T19:27:00.003-05:00

Im back to my blog!! Super long hiatus and a ton of life changes. I needed to share this product with you all, it's saved a little bit of my sanity through this life transition. I will post more soon about everything.

For those of you who have ventured into peri menopause or menopause and have started HRT like I have, the hair loss is real!

I lost half my hair and so I freaked out and stopped taking it. I went on this supplement from Amazon, the hair loss stopped and my hair is growing back. I started taking this then went back on HRT including testosterone and my hair is still growing, not shedding!

https://amzn.to/4hy8xGH

How incredibly dangerous the stomach flu can be with t1d.

2022-04-18T22:29:00.002-05:00

I have sat and thought about this blog post over and over while writing it in my head without putting it into actual text many times. I don't want to come across as ungrateful for my knowledge of type 1 diabetes (aka t1d) or ungrateful that my child has a disease she can, God willing, live a long lifetime with. I do, however, feel it is necessary to share just how dangerous a stomach/gastrointestinal virus can be with t1d.

My little warrior had a crazy day, which I blogged about on April 8th. Well unbeknownst to me she was coming down the the stomach virus/flu as we all tend to call it. She woke up at 430am on Saturday, actually made it downstairs and puked. Then puked a few more times. Then her blood sugar started falling. After lots of crying and begging her to eat some smarties, just like glucose tablets, she ate a few and her blood sugar came up a bit. Incredibly scary moments.

That whole week was something like out of a nightmare. I ended up creating a sick day profile on her insulin pump and it was actually off, she needed almost none or very little insulin for 6 days. Her pediatric diabetic team and on call doctor gave us Zofran, thank God, because it stopped the puking and a lot of the nausea by Saturday. I had to give my daughter an abdominal exam over the phone with the doctor and have her jump up and down to try to rule out appendicitis. I had no clue anyone in her class was sick with the stomach flu at this point in time. I did later find out her best friend had in fact had the stomach flu.

Then the ketones came because she was basically having starvation ketones, which people who eat a keto diet strive for because it means you are burning body fat. That's great if you are trying to lose weight. Not so much if you are a 5 year old small person with t1d and have zero weight to spare. I got those flushed out with more water, some food and a teeny bit of insulin.

Then the large ketones came, which teeters on the edge of diabetic keto acidosis. Which is bad because you can slip into a coma, have brain swelling and die basically in a nut shell, it's a very dangerous condition. So more fluids more food and a lot more insulin. I got those flushed out in about 3 hours or it was out to Iowa City E.R. for her! She ended up losing 2 pounds from being sick for a week and it wasn't water weight because I was pushing that hard. We have been working so hard to get weight on her since she had gone undiagnosed for an unknown time and was under weight. So I am hopeful she can put it back on easily.

Forcing a kid with the stomach flu to eat and to keep eating because her blood sugar kept going low was very stressful and very hard on this momma's heart. She cried a lot and was clearly very mad with me and even more mad she has this damned disease.

If I didn't have the Iowa City Children's Hospital CDE Nurses to talk to and help me through all of this, we would have been admitted for the entire week. I have no doubt about it. It was so very scary and so very stressful. I can't thank her nurse, Sue, enough she has got to be an angel in disguise.

If she had needed an emergency shot of glucagon to bring her blood sugar up in an urgent sort of manner, it would not have worked. Her glycogen stores in her liver were completely depleted. I even tested this theory when she dropped to 60...and was not coming up. So she drank some more juice, with sugar which is not our normal stock, and more smarties and she came up. I even made her eat a spoonful of honey, which she hates.

I can't thank my parents enough, because my Dad got juice, Zofran, saltines and ran it all out to our house. We live out in the country. My mom checked in all the time and came out to see her when she was feeling much better and had no more puking. She also brought us more pedialyte which ended up being desperately needed. Her energy levels were scary low and the amount of sleeping she did was also very scary and totally uncharacteristic of a typical virus for her. The pedialyte helped, though now she hates it and forcing her to take bites of food.

It was so very scary. My brother told me he had also had a very scary experience with the stomach flu. I had the stomach flu and so did my little warrior a few months before her diagnosis so I was shocked that we got it again so soon. I also needed much less insulin and I don't think I needed any insulin for the tiny amount of food I was eating. It was definitely not a normal situation. It scares me to think how close she probably was to diabetic keto acidosis back then and I had no clue.

So with all of that being said we were totally unprepared for her to catch this stomach flu with her being newly diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. A parent must have on hand; regular juice, Zofran, pedialyte and saltines or some other bland food that doesn't cause stomach upset.

She started feeling a lot better this past Friday, after we flushed the large level of ketones and on Saturday she felt a whole lot better and then today she was 100% back to herself. I turned her pump back on and she is back to needing insulin for basal/background insulin and bolus/to cover food insulin. I am still hesitant to over do her insulin and send her low but I think tomorrow I can try harder to be less scared.

I'm crossing my fingers that preschool goes ok tomorrow and there are no crazy stupid low blood sugars that they have to fight her over. Also crossing my fingers I don't have an emotional break down over her going to school tomorrow.

Thanks for reading and following along on this incredibly stressful journey and hopefully soon I can be less angry about her diagnosis. It's going to take some time.

Honeymoon phase

2022-04-08T14:47:00.001-05:00

My little warrior's pancreas is working overtime lately. She has had only basal insulin all day, not a single bolus. Honeymoon phase is insane and insanely frustrating! The other day her pump site somehow managed to get near a blood vessel, which I had no idea about until her bolus sent her crashing into the 50's then of course her dinner hit full force since the insulin was in and out so fast so then she shot to the 300's. I love insulin pumps except for when crap like that happens. I only knew that was the issue after pulling the site the next day and the cannula was full of blood. Go figure. Somedays I really feel like pulling all my hair out and just crying until my tears dry up but I know that won't accomplish a damn thing. So I pull myself out of it and say this is just another day in the life of type 1 diabetes=just do the best you can do for today and tomorrow is a new day, start fresh. After years of managing my own type 1 diabetes and now my little kid's diabetes I am not sure how I will have any sanity left by the time she moves out some day....then my worry will shift to worrying about her because she is not in my care anymore. For the love of God PLEASE someone cure type 1 Diabetes before my baby moves out. I wish there was a way to navigate the honeymoon phase but there is not and there is no way to even know or guess what it is going to do. I wish this disease was easier to manage and not like a total crap shoot most days.

Fitbit Versa 3 mechanical issue

2022-03-30T08:48:00.001-05:00

I have had my Fitbit Versa 3 since November 2020. It broke last night with a known issue. I contacted Fitbit via their lovely chat feature within the app and told them the side button had stopped working. They told me this issue is not something that can be fixed with troubleshooting. Ah, it's a known mechanical failure of this watch. I'm out of their warranty period by 4 months. My $200.00 watch was only good for 16 months. Awesome. So they sent me a measly discount via my email to buy a new one. So glad I'm a loyal fitbit user. For whatever reason I bought the Square Trade warranty when I got the watch, it was 45.00 and Square Trade deductible was 30.00...so I'm not really sure it was worth it but a new Versa 3 is now down to 179.00 go figure. So now I will wait for my watch to arrive so I can continue to be able to monitor my blood sugar and most importantly my little warrior's blood sugar with the ease of looking at my wrist and have it vibrate when she or I go above or below the limits I have set up.

Insulin price cap and links to help you get your insulin.

2022-03-08T21:57:00.001-06:00

"US pharmaceutical companies and insulin manufacturers react to proposed legislation that would cap insulin costs and prevent significant rises in the costs of prescription drugs."

https://diatribe.org/president-biden-supports-35-price-cap-insulin-state-union-address/?omhide=true&utm_source=diaTribe&utm_campaign=49480fc8ca-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_3_7_2022_15_34&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_22467a8528-49480fc8ca-15519791

"Here’s more information on how to get insulin at lower cost:

How to Get Diabetes Drugs for Free
Novo Nordisk: People who need help paying for their medicines can access these programs at www.novocare.com
Sanofi: Commercially insured people are eligible for co-pay assistance programs for Adlyxin, Apidra, Lantus, Soliqua 100/33, and Toujeo.
- Uninsured people are eligible for the Insulin Valyou Savings Program
- You may be able to access medications for free through the Sanofi Patient Connection program
Lilly: Anyone who is paying more than $35 per monthly prescription of Lilly insulin can call the Lilly Diabetes Solution Center at (833) 808-1234 or visit insulinaffordability.com for more information."

Diabetes stigma and how hurtful it can be.

2022-03-06T22:04:00.001-06:00

When I was on insulin shots I faced a lot of really horrible comments, horrible looks and I even once got turned into h.r. for taking a shot in the break room at a really crappy job I had. They actually suggested I take my shot in the dirty germ infested bathroom!! Seriously. Assholes.

What have you had to deal with when taking your insulin shots?

I have been on an insulin pump now for almost 13 years out of the 21 years I have had type 1 diabetes. I do not ever plan on going back to shots and all of the terrible comments, stares, looks of complete disgust and how much my staying alive was ruining their lives. Their lives.

I'm incredibly grateful for pump technology and now having my little girl on a pump because I really needed to spare her from some of the ugly sides of living with a life long incurable disease as much as I could. She still hates having the pump attached to her nonstop but she is enjoying not needing 10-15 shots a day, there is a lot of snacking when you never stop moving and burning your energy off, and now being able to go back to her normal ability to eat when she is hungry and not have to debate it for another damn shot. I'm not sorry for saying insulin shots suck royally. A pump is so much better, more accurate and easier to adjust and not live with the never ending lows from long acting insulin. I seriously despise long acting insulin.

Don't stare at a person giving themselves an insulin shot, don't say shitty mean comments, put yourself in their shoes- look at the world thru their eyes. It sucks, it's hard, we hate it...don't make this shit any harder than it needs to be. Most of us know what we are up against, don't need the hey you can go blind or go into kidney failure or lose a leg or foot thing....yeah....do not need to hear that shit one more time. Seriously. Especially not about how diabetes killed your family member...that is not helpful ever in any situation. We know, we have also lost loved ones to this disease and it scares the crap out of us.

Having my little girl get diagnosed with this damned disease had really ticked me off, made me angry again, lit a fire under me and makes me want to protect her from all the hurt that she has to deal with. I can deal with this for myself but for her it kills me to my core, smashed my heart and reignited all the pain and suffering I went thru in the beginning. I don't know how to navigate this ship but I'm trying my best and I want to change the way people feel entitled to comment on other people's diseases or conditions in negative ways.

Im feeling beat down

2022-02-22T10:22:00.000-06:00

#Diabetes #Dexcom #TandemDiabetes #Type1Diabetes #dsma

I try so hard not to let Diabetes beat me down or make me feel like I am losing control but this week has been really hard, like crushing my heart hard. I know having my little warrior on an insulin pump will give her the best life and best possible outcome for longevity with type 1 but holy crap it is hard. She has cried every day about how much she hates Diabetes, hates having the pump attached to her and hates the way the site feels. It is such a huge adjustment and really huge when you are little.

I remember adjusting to the pump was hard for me and pump sites always hurt but I could cope with it because I was an adult. Every time she cries I swear my heart breaks a little bit more for her but I put on my brave mom face and try to let her know it will be ok and she will get use to it, even though it is bullshit she has to get use to it.

Why don't we have a cure for this disease yet! Every time someone says something insensitive I try hard to brush it off but man it is like a dagger to my heart because I hate this shit too. All the harsh things people say start to add up. They all compile in my brain and I know someday they will crush her too. Diabetes isn't unlike any other disease and I don't understand why people feel like they can say horrible things to the people living with it.

Type 1 Diabetes sucks enough as it is without people making comments about how they could NEVER do it or NEVER wear a pump, NEVER take a shot, NEVER be able to count carbs, NEVER be able to poke their finger, NEVER this or that or the other. NEVER is NOT AN OPTION! You do it or you DIE.

Let that sink in, you do it or you die, there is no other option, no choices, no vacations, no breaks ever. Me and my little warrior will be diabetic for the rest of our lives and we will fight the complications and blood sugars every single day. To add the bullshit people say on top of it is just too much. Tell people they are brave, strong, courageous and that they are doing a great job living with Diabetes and that if you had Diabetes yourself, you would hope to do as good of a job living with it.

I have never once ever heard anyone say the mean terrible things they do about Diabetes for any other disease. I have never once seen a meme or joke about any other disease online other than Diabetes. I have never heard anyone joke about getting Cancer, MS, Parkinsons or any other disease, but yet people joke about Diabetes and how doing this or that will give them Diabetes. Its just not funny and its confusing as hell to little kids living with this shit.

Stop joking about DIABETES, its not funny EVER and it sure the hell isn't FUN to live with.

Tandem Control IQ Alarm Fatigue

2022-02-21T21:46:00.001-06:00

@TandemDiabetesCare #tandem Guys/gals at Tandem for the love of GOD can you PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE let us be able to turn off CONTROL IQ ALARMS?!?!?! They are literally keeping all of us awake way too often and too much at night. I have to set all my alarms to vibrate other than CGM alarms so I can get some sleep but the damn vibrations for control iq still wake me up and many of us up and we are GOING INSANE! I am literally nearing shutting control iq off at night just to get some sleep!

My little warrior is on an insulin pump

2022-02-21T13:11:00.001-06:00

My little warrior's insulin pump went on Friday. Everything from my perspective went well but how on Earth do I help her accept the feeling of an infusion set and the level of discomfort it brings along with it? She is thin like me so I am always aware of my site and sometimes they hurt no matter what, but as an adult I can cope with it. This is the 2nd most stressful part of having your child plus yourself have type 1 diabetes. The first was most definitely diagnosis and giving her multiple daily shots.

Diabetic eye exam day

2022-02-17T14:08:00.001-06:00

Had my oh so marvelous dilated diabetic eye exam today and got the all clear. Eyes haven't changed and no leaky blood vessels!! That is always GREAT news! Sitting inside with sunglasses on since my eyes currently look like they are all black and light is not my friend. 🤣

My little warrior's pump arrived today

2022-02-11T16:13:00.001-06:00

My little warrior's Tandem x2 insulin pump arrived today. Today is both a good day and a really heart breaking day wrapped into one.

My child is excited and I am hoping to be able to keep her upbeat and positive about it. So far I think I have done a really good job. It would help tremendously if people would stop making the comment about how horrible it truly is. We know, we all know TRUST ME, but staying positive helps everyone, especially her.

Positive things people could say would be like oh you have a Dexcom that is awesome or you are getting a pump that is going to make it so much easier and free you from ( she gets 5-10) insulin shots a day! I don't want this disease to knock her down or take away her very happy and spirited personality.

So if you know us, try to be positive and upbeat, don't make her feel any worse about it. We are excited for her to have a better tool to control her diabetes and have less low and high blood sugars.

So here is to kicking Diabetes' ass a little bit more!

On a side note THANK YOU Kaj our Tandem Rep, Sue our CDE and Dr. Alexandrou for letting me push our treatment plan faster to a pump because the smallest insulin syringe isn't small enough for my small fry and using NPH has been great but that 3 hour peak has been a bit of a wild ride. I would have lost my mind without the team at Iowa City Children's Hospital. You guys ROCK!

Dexcom G6 App Compatibility Issues

2022-01-18T21:25:00.002-06:00

If you are like me and bought an Android phone that is not compatible with the G6 app you can get it off Reddit for any phone. Go to: https://www.reddit.com/r/diabetes/comments/8ja38m/oc_build_your_own_dexcom_app_now_with_g6_support/

You can also download Xdrip+ in place of the G6 app and you can also use Xdrip+ for Follow App if your phone isn't compatible. I use Follow and Xdrip+ to follow my 5 year old because it gives much better predictions and it alerts me sooner for lows. Get Xdrip+: https://github.com/NightscoutFoundation/xDrip. To use Xdrip+ for Follow you do not need a nightscout website to use it. You can use Dexcom data source.

#Diabetes #Dexcom #TandemDiabetes #Type1Diabetes #dsma

Living with type 1 and trying to wrangle your child's t1d at the same time.

2022-01-10T19:41:00.001-06:00

The weight and stress of having type 1 Diabetes and having your child also have type 1 Diabetes is back breaking. My sweet little kiddo must be making some insulin again, pancreas is trying to sputter, and was low over and over last night and today even with no insulin on board. Today I finally told the CDE that it's time to try an insulin pump. Even nph is too powerful and every little thing the kid does causes a low and even when there may only be 0.5u or 1.0u on board....HOURS later. On a plus side my hair that all fell out from diagnosis is growing back...I look like I am growing out like a half pixie cut all over my head, it's great. Even the excitement of school is causing lows...how on earth are we suppose to navigate this mess....did I mention yet that I HATE type 1 Diabetes? 🤬 Starting the process to get the tslim x2 like I wear. The kid needs smaller than .5u doses.

Free at home Covid tests for all but if you have type 1 Diabetes and cannot afford your insulin the government is ok with you dying.

2022-01-10T19:35:00.001-06:00

The United States Government will mail anyone who wants an at home covid-19 tests sent to them for people who may or may not get sick for when, not if, they catch covid-19. Yet the hundreds of thousands of people who live with type 1 Diabetes WILL DIE without insulin and yet thousands of us cannot afford the cost to pay for the life saving insulin we need to SURVIVE?! How about the Government mail insulin to everyone who cannot afford to pay for it?! This is insanity!!!

Please get your kids blood tested with Trial Net

2021-11-26T20:36:00.001-06:00

I so hate this fricking disease. I can't even explain how much I am still pissed off my 5 year old now has type 1. So mad at the world still. I don't know how I'm suppose to get over this anger and sadness.

All of you with type 1, PLEASE get your kids tested with Trial Net. Don't be blind sided like I was and am. They are trialing medication to delay the onset of Type 1. They haven't stopped it but at least they can delay it. At the very least you can keep your babies from getting this shit for a little while longer.

https://www.trialnet.org/

20 days for Solara to get my 5 year olds Dexcom set up approved

2021-11-26T16:05:00.002-06:00

Solara called me on 24th to let me know that they were finally going to ship my 5 year olds Dexcom setup. 20 days of a 5 year old on insulin, though it is life saving it is also deadly. Since starting insulin, of course, her pancreas is trying to work again and so she has been having a lot of low blood sugar readings. If I had not already had her on borrowed parts she surely would have passed out or had a seizure by now.

It has been a bit of a nightmare but I'm glad I had the knowledge to get us through and knowledge of how to push for the approval process. I am very grateful for our insurance plan and how well they moved quickly when they finally got the paperwork at their office.

20 days is not acceptable and the amount of confusion I had to deal with from Solara and their employees was horrible. I got phone calls from people who had no idea where we were in the approval process to one guy who called to tell me she was approved when in fact she was not. I didn't trust the guy knew what he was talking about so I called back to verify and nope, it was not approved and they had no idea what he was talking about. It was complete chaos trying to deal with them. I was also told I wasn't able to talk with any other department and that was also untrue, you can talk to the documents team who gets all paperwork ready for the prior authorization team. So if you get stuck in a corner with Solara and are getting no where with your prior authorization or your childs', call back and ask for the documents team. I wish for a medical field where patients didn't have to push so hard for the stuff they need to stay alive. It is completely ridiculous. I hope all the people who steered me in the wrong direction got some retraining and don't do that to anyone else because if I had trusted that one phone call I would still be waiting for a call from them to verify shipment. They approved urgent shipping so now I will wait and see when it will actually arrive.

@Dexcom I really wish you were still distributing your own products. Dealing with medical supply companies is an absolute nightmare and we all hate it. If I was still going direct I am sure I would have had it in my hands within one week.

Keep fighting warriors, never give up, you can do it!

Have you heard of the Gvoke HypoPen

2021-11-26T15:39:00.001-06:00

Have you all heard of the Gvoke HypoPen? It is quite the amazing device that can replace the older Glucagon Emergency Kits that has a powder and a liquid you have to mix before injecting it into someone. The Gvoke pen is premixed and easy to use. You pull the red cap off and push the yellow end onto the person's skin. You can read about it here:

https://www.gvokeglucagon.com

For those who do not know what glucagon is, it is a hormone that makes the liver release stored glucose to raise a person's blood sugar. It should be used when a person with Diabetes is having a low blood sugar seizure, unconscious or it can be used to help raise blood sugar when you are really sick and unable to eat. After administration of glucagon a person should be rolled to their side because it can sometimes induce vomiting. Someone needs to also call 911. Glucagon Kits of all kinds, however, may not work if a person has had a series of low blood sugars and has depleted the glucagon in their liver. You should call your Diabetes health care provider to have a plan in place for your diabetes and discuss what to do it glucagon does not work. Some other options may include putting a glucose tablet in the cheek area or having a tube of frosting available.

#Diabetes #Dexcom #TandemDiabetes #Type1Diabetes #dsma

I do not like diabetic supply companies

2021-11-24T12:32:00.002-06:00

TWO HOURS I have been on the phone fighting with Solara Medical Supplies to get a damn Dexcom set up approved for my 5 year old and over TWO WEEKS fighting for its approval. This is unacceptable and disgusting to think it is ok for any medical supply company to think it is ok for a 5 YEAR OLD to be on insulin and no cgm. If it wasn't for me being diabetic and having diabetic friends this little girl would have had a seizure by now for sure. She has ran low for over 2 days now as her pancreas is honeymooning and making insulin!! UNBELIEVABLE the amount of bullshit us with type 1 diabetes have to go through to SURVIVE!! I AM SO ANGRY! #Solara #wecandobetter #WeNeedaCure #DSMA #Dexcom #Diabetes #Type1Diabetes #dsma

A new Keto Friendly Yogurt I discovered

2021-11-24T10:46:00.003-06:00

I am always on the lookout for low carb or keto friendly food. I try to eat mostly low carb because it makes my life with t1d easier and I am trying to find new foods for my 5 year old so she can eat more food with less blood sugar impact. Amazingly she has always loved yogurt! So I have been on the search for a low carb yogurt that she will also eat.

I don't shop at Walmart much anymore since discovering the cost savings at Aldi and going to Kroger which is much smaller, easier to shop and have much more friendly staff. Plus they have a section with healthier foods and they sell a lot of sugar substitutes. While browsing the giant selection of yogurt at Walmart I found this brand called ratio and it had Keto in big letters. So far me, my husband and diabetic daughter like it. They also have a high protein version but the whey protein tends to spike me. So I just wanted to share that with you all.

My 5 year old Diabetic child is a super hero

2021-11-18T19:08:00.001-06:00

My 5 year old was diagnosed with type 1 Diabetes just this month and it has been an extreme rollercoaster of emotions for me personally since I also live with type 1 Diabetes. I have had many moments of tears bursting out of my eyes, to yelling and screaming at no one in my empty house to humbling moments when my little girl puts on an extremely brave face and tries a shot in a completely new area because we need to widen her shot rotation areas and I am crying inside but wearing my brave mom face.

This is every diabetic person's worst nightmare because we do not wish our disease on anyone and especially not our children. As a Diabetic I know the battles she will have to face and I know how deadly insulin truly is. My friend, who was a Diabetic Champion and was seriously kicking the disease's butt, lost her life because of a freaking low blood sugar and was home alone at the time. This was before all of us had Dexcom share available.

A Dexcom CGM is a tool that is priceless in living with type 1 Diabetes and relying on insulin to keep you alive. When my daughter was diagnosed at Iowa City Children's Hospital they actually did not have a Dexcom sample available to put her on, which blew my mind completely! I'm told the hospital board has not yet approved to put their newly diagnosed patients on a dexcom and they also do not send people home with one. I think my head almost spun off. I told them when I take her home she will either be wearing my Dexcom transmitter or I will search within my friends who are T1D to find a spare. I said I cannot believe you actually send kids home on insulin and NO DEXCOM?! There was no way I was putting her to bed the next day at home with no cgm. No way in hell! No way in hell I was going to even chance my little girl having a seizure because I didn't catch it with a finger poke. You can't rely on a kid to know what a low feels like after 1 day of insulin. She even went low in the hospital on just saline! Unreal.

So we went home and I had a transmitter from a dear friend and a spare sensor from her as well. She literally saved my sanity and almost all fears of a low seizure. We are 13 days out from paperwork being sent in for insurance approval for her to be on her own Dexcom and just yesterday they, Solara, got their shit together. While I was on the phone they asked me if our insurance required prior authorization and I told them yes so they submitted it yesterday. 14 days they expected us to go so far with NO CGM. Total insanity, this is what we diabetics have to deal with and face nonstop. They, insurance companies, expect people to have their kids, all ages even BABIES, to be on insulin with no cgm! It should be day 1 and you are on a cgm. So far my receiver from 2018 is still working by some miracle of God. I hope it hangs on until I get one for her.

My daughter has been such a hero in my eyes because she has bravely taken all her shots, which she has to take Lantus once a day and Humalog for all the food she eats, finger pokes and 2 dexcom changes so far. She has tried new places for insulin shots and waited for us to count carbs and weigh her food. She has had to adjust the things she eats and some snacks have had to be made totally carb free. I have switched a lot of things over to lower carb and she is trying so hard to learn to deal with it. I went low carb many years ago so my kids have been use to me trying new low carb recipes. It is much easier to manage this monster when you eat less carbs, or less simple sugar carbs. It's going to be very difficult to make my very picky eater make that switch but I'm hopeful she will adjust.

Diabetes has brought her down at times but she is mostly still her happy, bubbly, energetic and silly self. I know 2 weeks after my t1d diagnosis at 19, I was not happy or bubbly. I was pissed off at the world and that is a major understatement. Me and both of my brothers were diagnosed in one year! I have no idea how my mom did not lose her mind or sanity because I have felt very close to losing it all completely. This kid is my hero and one hell of a brave one. Yesterday she told me she was going to be a Diabetes Doctor when she grows up. She has been saying for a while she wants to be a doctor or a veterinarian so I know the drive is in her, she has all the persistence that I have plus more and if you know me, that kind of sounds scary, haha! I know she will do some amazing things with her life. It is my job to get her to adulthood now with no complications from this fricken disease.

The fire in me to fight for a cure had been smothered a bit but now it is reignited. My faith still lies within Dr. Faustman and her BCG trials. She has patients who can go without insulin or they need only a tiny bit of insulin to have normal A1C readings. This may not reverse the disease all together but it sure the hell beats what we can do right now. I plan on calling her lab tomorrow to see what I can do for me and my daughter and for what I can do to help raise funds for the trials. They are hoping to start pediatric trials soon, they got the green light from FDA to start trials. So stay tuned, I am back and I am going to be louder than ever!

T1D Parents with T1D kids

2021-11-18T11:32:00.001-06:00

I started another support group for those of us Parents with type 1 Diabetes who have type 1 Diabetic kids.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/618462525964584/?ref=share

Have you been searching for Pump Wear Inc like I have been? Well I finally found her company under a new name.

2021-11-18T11:30:00.001-06:00

Have any of you been searching for the Pump Wear Inc company like I have been?! Well today I finally found Julie DeFruscio PJ Creations LLC Now I can order some awesome gear for my daughter and myself and some bands that are totally smooth, no buckles or velcro to be bothersome! https://www.facebook.com/pjcreationsllc/

Also the website: https://pjcreationsllc.com/