Diabetes should be the same every day. Glucose numbers should be fairly level and the intake of carbs vs. activity vs. insulin ratio should change very little. This is not such a hard thing to do. Sound like a dream?????? Well it is.
Whether you are new at this or at it for years you need to know two very important constants. One, it will be here again tomorrow. Two, the only constant is that there is no constant. So stop beating yourself up.
You are not a bad person, mother, or father when it comes to trying to understand diabetes. Snowflake disease. No two people have it the same and no two days in a row are identical. Snowflake disease.
I always find it interesting when I hear people’s comments about how ‘bad’ they are doing. I honestly do not understand what that means. I get what people think it means, but the only way you can be doing bad is if you are doing bad. Bad practices can equal bad results but GREAT practices can also leave less than optimum results. The battle is in the approach.
If you have educated yourself beyond the point of understanding as much as you can, have armed yourself (and/or your child) with all the best management tools in your diabetes toolbox; you should have good results…….usually. Now add, into the mix, a list of things that can derail your efforts; iIlness, stress, women’s issues, depression, and much more can play havoc on all of your hard work. Know that. Accept that.
If you are reading things online, and you have not a clue what people are discussing—-go find out. If you hear about a new device that you have not heard about before, find out. TAKE NOTHING at face value.
The ol’ adage about teaching someone to fish rather than just giving them a fish to eat correctly, surely comes into mind. The equalizer in diabetes management is education. The more you know, the better your life can be. Let’s be clear: not the more YOU THINK you know…..but the more YOU DO know.
Do not be afraid to say that you do not know. That is the first step to learning. “I heard from so-and-so” does not cut it. Research it. Learn it. Believe it. Utilize it. Only then will you feel comfortable enough moving forward. And even at that point, you will have a day of setbacks. Funny thing about snowflakes, they melt and come at you again; completely different from yesterday’s snowflakes. Think about it.
I am a diabetes dad.
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