carbcards

Charles Vanderwist Diagnosed with Type 1 at age 9

Growing up with diabetes was frustrating. As a kid, trying to remember when and what to eat, when to test and how much insulin to take was extremely confusing. It was so difficult feeling like your body was a chemistry experiment gone wrong...Imagine trying to control glucose levels for your long term health, and at the same time fighting with the horrible short-term symptoms of elevated or below-normal blood glucose!

As a young child, it was difficult for me to understand why I suddenly felt nauseated and tired or why I suddenly became lost, confused, sweaty, and shaky.
The medical community struggled with education for treatment of a disease that was not fully understood by science in these days. It horrifies me to think of what it was like living with diabetes 30 or 40 years before me. I am certain life was short. Those struggles are not gone, but they have become much easier. Medical technology, new insulin, better monitoring systems, and better dietetic knowledge and research have made diabetes a little more manageable.
I still fight the battle for long term health constantly, and endure the symptoms of poor control occasionally. Every day of my life I deal with a disease that not many understand. Anyone temporarily placed in my body and asked to cope with the stresses and frustrations of diabetes would not believe how one could go on with any kind of a normal life.

It seems that those affected by diabetes are so brave and strong in the management of their condition that those around them don't even notice how difficult it is, and how severely it can affect their health. I fear that this contributes to the reasons why diabetes is often overlooked as a disease that many are at such high risk for!

Diabetes is affecting more people than it ever has before. A disease that no one knew about or understood is now becoming more common...and this is frightening. The world is learning more about diabetes, its causes and possible cures daily...but there is so much more to be done! Those with little understanding will assume that synthetic insulin is the cure for diabetes. The truth is that insulin is merely a very makeshift treatment.

Education of the general public will be the strongest force in the fight for the cure. If more people understand how millions of people's health and daily lives are affected by this disease, it will be much easier to find a cure. If everyone could stand up and be as strong as some of the people that live with this condition, an overall positive outcome is certain for all. Some of the greatest minds in history lived with diabetes in the worst possible time! Yet, these diabetics went on to make great discoveries that benefit all of mankind! If Thomas Edison had not been able to live with his condition, the world might not know of a phonograph or incandescent light bulb. Who knows what else he could have discovered had his health not been compromised by diabetes!?

My eyes shift open at 3 am. My insides are twisting with a strange sensation that almost makes me sick. I roll over onto one side and close my eyes again. There is no way I am going to be able to go back to sleep with this internal chaos going on. Suddenly, I have no idea what to do with myself. I toss and turn and just cannot get comfortable. I am cold and yet still sweating and so tired. My mind is in a drunken stupor, but I haven't had anything to drink. I've known this feeling since age 8.....
If I were to hold my hand up in front of me I am sure I would be shaking. The last thing I want right now is to rise from my nest of blankets. That's always the hardest part about waking up like this.

I convince myself to get up...my blood sugar is low...I have to get up...this feeling is only going to get worse if I don't eat. Gathering my strength, I struggle out from underneath my mountain of covers and trudge to the kitchen....

Having low blood sugar is a hard feeling to describe to people. It is hard for people to look at you and the way you are acting and know that you are low. A lot of responsibility is put on your shoulders to be able to take care of yourself, and knowing how to handle it on your own is very important.

I remember when I was young, I would wake up and call my parents down to help me get a snack. Their support made a world of difference.

Now I am in college and dealing with it more on my own. It has helped me to talk to the people I am close to and know that they are there to help me if I need them. No diabetic needs to feel like they are alone. If you seek help from the ones who care about you I am sure you will find support.

It isn't easy however. I get tired of strange looks and comments about the fact that I always drink Diet Coke and having to explain why. I got so tired of excusing myself to the restroom to do my insulin that now I just do it wherever I am. But, in doing that, I usually have to deal with more questions and comments.

I have gone through a million emotions about being diabetic. I still get angry and depressed sometimes. I am trying to pursue a career as a performing musician and that raises a lot of worries. I am a singer and having high blood sugar dries out my throat affecting my performance greatly. I have to find the right balance before performing so I don't get low, having to stop or remain high, struggling to keep my vocals in good working order.

Another obstacle of course, being a college student is managing my diet. So, keeping track of my carbs are very important. There are many other factors that a diabetic has to take into consideration to keep in balance, such as exercise and small snacks throughout the day. It can get tough.

My advice to other diabetics is: just do the best you can. Don't let it control you. The more balance you are able to keep, the less troublesome it will be. You'll find it gets easier to deal with over time. And, anytime you feel like breaking down because of it...let yourself. It is hard and frustrating, so validate your emotions and let yourself cry or be angry. Then get up...and push on!

The most difficult thing for me in controlling my blood sugar numbers
right now is the lack of a set schedule. It is frustrating to know that
a regular schedule would make me a healthier diabetic because I don't do
well with routine. I get bored, I get depressed, but most of all I am
too busy living my life! I work full time and my hours range anywhere
from 6am to 7pm and can change day to day. I am in a working band called
Universal Measure on top of that and we practice anytime we can. A lot
of the time, actually most of the time, our practices are from 11pm to 3am!
On weekends we play shows, many out of town. I try very hard to keep my
blood sugar in check on the road, otherwise I am the one always making
us stop so I can go to the bathroom. It's embarrassing, annoying and
becomes troublesome if we are in a hurry. Blood sugar tends to run high
on road trips anyway due to lack of activity combined with food
consumption. I found the best thing for me to do is just not drink much
of anything. But this causes another problem, I need to be well hydrated
in order to sing at top performance. So it is a constant battle.
Getting low in the middle of a performance is awful, this happens
because if my blood sugar is too high my throat dries out and I can't
sing very well. I have had multiple times where trying to get my blood
sugar down before a show had made me drop halfway through our set. I
have always been lucky enough to have a friend who knows what's up be in
front of the stage so I can signal to or ask them to get me a coke. I
then have to chug half of it and of course, the show must go on. So for
the next song or two I just have to bare it. Also the exercise from a
show can burn enough sugar that I get low later that night.
Another frustration I have regularly is getting low at work. When I am
rolling on a project I don't want to stop until it is done. I had the
same problem doing chores/yard work growing up! I will know I am low but
I keep telling myself to push to the end, get to a real stopping point
or finnish the job before I allow myself to stop for sugar intake. By
the time I stop I am in pretty bad shape. Another affect low blood sugar
has on work is when I get low in the middle of the night I lose sleep.
If I wake up low I am usually late to work because I have to care for it
before I get in the car.
I was low after a long day at work one day last year and pushed myself
to drive to a Wendy's rather than stay and take care of it at work.
After getting a coke and some food from the drive through I decided I
should just drive home while eating because traffic was getting bad and
I knew it was already going to take me about an hour to get home. I just
wanted to get home so bad. Well, pulling out of the driveway I got in a
car accident. I know for a fact part of the reason was because I was
spacey from low blood sugar and not thinking at top capacity. No one was
hurt luckily, but some one easily could have been and it cost me a lot
of money and stress. Now I will not drive low, which has caused me to be
late to both work and band practice.
It's hard. It's annoying. It's embarrassing. it's misunderstood. It's
tiring. I still break down like the eight year old who first got
diagnosed. Sometimes it takes all my strength to restrain myself from
throwing my tester against a wall.....But I am alive. I am so thankful I
have the tools to keep myself breathing in the crisp morning air every
morning. I am thankful for the tools that make things easier on me, so I
can manage, control and minimize the highs and lows. Carb cards is one
of those tools. And even with my bust busy busy life, I will take the
extra time to pass it on at any opportunity. I encourage you to do the
same!