My Little Island

I have felt like I've been living on a little deserted island, isolated.  Diabetes sits beside me.  We stare at each other day in and day out.  I want to throw a coconut at it.  We are not friends.  I can't wait for a rescue ship to come by.

     
I was invited to attend an informal meeting, through JDRF, with other people who's lives have been affected by Type 1 diabetes.  I had no idea what to expect, but realized I needed to find other people to connect with, that would understand my island life.  I brushed the sand off my pants, adjusted my straw hat and headed out.

As a mom, I could not have been happier to meet other moms of diabetic kids.  D-Moms.  The information was incredible.  Being able to talk to someone who is actually living the same life as me was wonderful.  My fears of Madeline's future have become far less worrisome.

We talked about how our lives have all changed since diagnosis.  Want to go to the park for a couple hours of fun?   Running a 10k marathon backwards would be less exhausting.  So my diabetic child wants a little more independence?  Ain't happening, get over it.  Time to start school?  Here is a refrigerator box filled with all my child's diabetes necessities and 50 pages of notes that may be helpful.  Invitation to a classmates birthday party?  Sure, my child and I would love to come!  The list goes on and on.

We learned that our kids have adapted well to their chronic illness.  As parents, we have had to learn a whole new way of life, but the children have adapted, they are unchanged, and continue to just be kids.  As it should be.

As I got ready to head back to the island, I realized I no longer wanted to just sit in the sand waiting for a rescue ship.  It may never come.  If I had to live on this crap island, I was going to make some changes.  This will be my life for awhile, so might as well get comfy. Take that diabetes.

And yes, I threw a coconut at it.  Hard.