Tag: Diabetesdad

Remember there is a “Best” in Banting and Best

Posted on | by tomkarlya | 2 Comments on Remember there is a “Best” in Banting and Best

November 14th, is World Diabetes Day.  This date was chosen because it’s the birthday of Frederick Banting.  Who chose this?

I’m a huge fan of Hamilton, the Broadway Musical.  In as great as the show is, I always found it interesting that Alexander Hamilton, a man who was not even president, became as popular as he did, and stayed.  Was the biggest claim to fame the fact that he was shot, and died, in a duel?   In the show, the opening number in fact, Aaron Burr announces,…..and me? I’m the damn fool who shot him.  We are lead to believe in the musical that Aaron Burr was much more popular than Hamilton and his life’s love declares that she would spend the rest of her life making sure history remembered Alexander Hamilton.

I guess it worked.  I mean I do not see Aaron Burr’s portrait on any currency.

Which brings me back to my opening sentence.  Who decided that Frederick Banting gains all the attention when poor Charles Best, lacking the PR machine that Alexander Hamilton had, becomes not much more than a foot note in this historic discovery.

Now I’m very aware that it was Banting who spearheaded this endeavor but it just seems to me that there was much work that went into the discovery of insulin.  I mean both of their names are on the patent (there is a third name as well—a different story for another time).  Banting even shared half of his money from winning the Nobel Prize.  Good. But not good enough.

The world will never fully understand the work of Charles Best in the discovery of something that literally has saved the lives of millions of people.

Insulin.

So this February 27th, the birth date of Charles Best, I say we do something in honor of the man most forgotten in a discovery that had glory enough for all.  Perhaps pass legislation on this date that makes the very discovery created to save lives, also affordable to save lives.

I am a diabetes dad.
Please visit my Diabetes Dad FB Page and hit ‘like’.

Diabetes…….Are People REALLY that Mean?

Posted on | by tomkarlya | 2 Comments on Diabetes…….Are People REALLY that Mean?

confusedIt happened again.  I was speaking with someone about what I do and why; and they proceeded to run down the entire list of what happened to their father, uncle, and grandfather in about as much unasked-for-details as you could imagine.

When they left I started to think.  I thought of how many times this has happened.

This morphed into me thinking of the enormous amount of times that I have read of horrible experiences at schools.

My thought process continued into the many conversations I have read dealing with loved ones.

These are all people who, generally, care about other individuals.  The phrase hit me like a water balloon full of ice water; when people say the things they do, and we want to grab the nearest item and ram it in their nose; I have come to the conclusion that in most cases people are not mean, they are clueless.

Schools have 9 million things on their plate; why should they even think that they have to stop and be versed in something that impacts one child when they have 5 million things to worry about that impacts 1500 kids.  Clueless, see what I mean.

Your relatives have all of the same problems you have but without the child with diabetes and perhaps with something else on their plate.  It is enough to deal with our own problems to even think about someone else’s diabetes. Again, clueless.

Let me tell you of all the horrendous things that happened to MY relatives, why would I care about your kids?  Yup, clueless.

Now I am not saying it is okay to be clueless.  It is just that I was always under the impression that when faced with what we deal with day in and day out, people became mean for some reason.  They neglected to address the problem with the importance we did.  They did not come to our aid when we needed it because they did not care.  Mean? Not true.  Clueless.

Because how could anyone who would see what was done all day long, thinking as our children’s pancreas, managing everything that we do, waking in the middle of the night, having to hold a child who is so low they cannot stand, or so high they are frantically all over the place, or are rushing to the doctor’s office or worse yet, the emergency room….if they knew; if our friends knew, if the school knew, if our family knew; they would not just turn their backs on us, would they………that would just be down-right mean.  So that only leaves; ‘clueless’…….right?

I am a diabetes dad

Please visit my Diabetes Dad FB Page and hit ‘like’.

What Face of Diabetes Should We Show the World?

Posted on | by tomkarlya | 1 Comment on What Face of Diabetes Should We Show the World?

facesI saw a commercial recently that completely outraged me……you probably saw it and I am not going to share it again, you probably have seen it, and THAT commercial is not the point of today’s article.

I started to think of what WOULD be the commercial I would create?   What would it look like?  And it got me to thinking (and we always know how dangerous that is).  In a commercial, how would I represent diabetes?  What would it look like?

Unless you have a good amount of time with diabetes-out-of-control where you could see all of the various complications; is diabetes really something we can see?  I know as parents, we see it; and we see it in all of the stages it can present itself.  Quiet and perfect blood glucose numbers, an out of control monster in our kids via tantrums. headaches, vomiting, or in a lethargic person instead of a vibrant one.

Anyone who has diabetes will tell you that the goal is to get back into life.  School, the playing field, work, good times, or whatever it may be; get it in control and get ‘back out there”.

We know.  The world does not.  Not really. 

Recently I was in a conversation and the man I was speaking with had lost his wife.  After I had just told him that I have two children with type one, he continued in graphic detail about his wife’s last few years.

“I have two children.  Did you not hear me?”

No I didn’t say that, I listened.  Many experts have shared, at the numerous conferences I have attended over the years, that diabetes does not cause complications, diabetes-out-of-control causes complications.  This thought process always makes me want to ask; “How well did your wife take care of herself?”  But I didn’t.

That man knows that the face of diabetes is a horror story for him.  His wife lived with type one for a long time, in a different era. 

What does the face of diabetes look like?  It has many faces to the many who deal with it, live with it, and/or even treat it.  It has not one face, it has many faces.  We, as parents do not want to see the ugly truth of diabetes and what it can be as to protect our kids, at the same time we want to pull the curtain back so the world sees not only the sleepless nights and the battles that rages daily but also the fear of so many complications and even death. 

We want the world to see it but we are afraid to show it because our kids may see it also; it is the ultimate two-edged sword we battle every day.

So I continue my inner battle to figure out THAT PERFECT commercial.  Every hour that goes by, diabetes has a face to show.  Which one do we allow the world to see so they understand??????…..when I figure that out; I will surely let you know.

I am a diabetes dad

Please visit my Diabetes Dad FB Page and hit ‘like’.

Two Women Who Will Make You Absolutely Laugh With Their Take on Diabetes

Posted on | by tomkarlya | 4 Comments on Two Women Who Will Make You Absolutely Laugh With Their Take on Diabetes

Nemes PixYou would think there was a good size writing team that would compare to any top sitcom hit on television  You might even think their aspirations were to enter the movie industry or take on the stand-up comedy circuit.  You might even think there is a huge amount of people dancing around comedy central and dancing with ideas to make us all laugh. But one of the most successful sites out there, providing a good laugh (or at the very least a huge smile) is run, in actuality, by two women in college studying english and environment science.

Seriously?

Seriously.

While finishing undergraduate studies and also post-graduate masters program, the two administrators of this hugely successful site are hard at work bringing joy to our day.  Meredith and Kayla met while attending an event with Connected In Motion, which plans fun events for active Type 1 Diabetic adults in Canada.  After crossing paths a few times, they became friends.  Inspired by their own university’s FB page that posted ‘memes’ which is defined as an element of a culture or behavior that may be passed from one individual to another by nongenetic means, esp. imitation.  An image, video, etc. that is passed electronically from one Internet user to another (you knew that though, yes?); the idea was born to create Type 1 Diabetes Memes.

Kayla had the idea and Meredith was quickly welcomed aboard and this site grew exponentially; in fact one could say it exploded.  Not even two years old with 17,000 people liking it is beyond comprehensible, it is downright enviable.

And if you’re someone who has not (where have you been!) yet ‘liked’ this page and you wonder if there is much humor in this world of diabetes we live in; or even if you just need a chuckle and do not have diabetes, you will love this page.  And you should go there TODAY!

The outlook on life by these two women with T1 diabetes is simply stated but at the same time so difficult for so many to master.  They have mastered it, and aren’t we the fortunate ones?  Meredith states, “Kayla and I have the same mindset about our diagnosis with Type 1 Diabetes. Everyone has their bad days, but for the most part we are really positive about it. We like to really appreciate the good things that have come out of it, rather than dwell on the bad. We both also really like to joke about it, because let’s face it, diabetics do some pretty funny/crazy things. It is really satisfying to share our experiences with others and for them to completely relate.”

So on a weekly basis a cartoon or photograph is sent in, or created, and the site challenges members (us) to come up with the caption that best fits the picture at hand.  The best caption is picked by the members of the Facebook page and sometimes a prize is given; but it surely is enough to proudly see your submitted caption added to the photo. I’m sure many just enjoy the wonderful results.

With anything as good as this, expansion continues to increase their visibility now with a Memes Twitter account and also a Tumblr Memes as well.  And as if that was not enough joy, there is an online store where you can see many of these saying on your favorite shirts or tote bags (I, personally cannot wait to see coffee mugs), or whatever you like at their Type 1 Diabetes Memes Store.

I have often stated that it is crucial for so many of us who have diabetes in our world to just “Not do Nothing”.  I have also stated that it does not have to turn into the largest organization in the world; it just has to mean something and if it changes just one person for the better; if it adds one dollar to help someone; if it is one thing you learn that helps you or your loved one to manage diabetes that much-the-better; if you raise one cent to further research; if you undertake one education project; or even if you bring joy to someone who is having a tough day…….SUCCESS.

We should all be very thankful to the enormous amount of work that they bring to Type 1 Diabetes Memes.  Meredith and Kayla reach 17,000 people a day bringing a smile, a chuckle, and all out laughter—-and when it comes right down to it, even in the world of diabetes, laughter is the ballet of life.

I am a diabetes dad.

Please visit my Diabetes Dad FB Page and hit ‘like’.

It’s Huuuuummmpppppp Day…eeeeeee

Posted on | by tomkarlya | 3 Comments on It’s Huuuuummmpppppp Day…eeeeeee

Hump dayWednesday, the middle of the work week, hump day.  After today, you are over the hump toward the weekend.  There is a commercial on now that I just love that pokes fun at Wednesday.  It’s a silly commercial but one that just makes you smile when you see it because of its silliness.

Here is the link to the commercial.

I love reading the various posts that people share when their kids do something that just seems completely outrageous.  Or they say something that is just so completely off the mark that it makes us laugh.

Years ago there was a man named Art Linkletter who had many successes and was the host of a show called Kid’s Say the Darnest Things.  Bill Cosby also hosted a version of it as well.  Kids would sit on stools and Art would just ask them questions and we would roar over the answers.  He once asked a child, “Who is the boss in your household, your mom or your dad?”  The young man responded, “They both are.”  Mr. Linkletter responded with, “You’re a real diplomat aren’t you?”  The boy simply stated, “No sir, I am a  Baptist.”

Simple laughter; can we ever get enough?

Please share with us something that made you laugh.  A favorite commercial, a favorite video (short), or even a favorite joke.   We could all use something to make us smile today, because it’s hump day.  We need to last through the weekend.

Make us laugh today.  Hump Day Humor.

I am a diabetes dad.

Please visit my Diabetes Dad FB Page and hit ‘like’.

A Reminder How Fortunate We are that Our Children are living with Diabetes

Posted on | by tomkarlya | 9 Comments on A Reminder How Fortunate We are that Our Children are living with Diabetes

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAThere are so many roads that I  have traveled in this diabetes journey.  As I reach various milestones in my life I always try to take the time, even for just a moment, to reflect about those who are not so fortunate. 

The reason I bring this up is because sometimes we feel the need to grip about things.  When I start to do that I just imagine some people reading or hearing such gripes and saying, “really?”  “I mean REALLY?”

The fact that one of my kids complained about me being too much like the diabetes police.
Really?
How many have lost a child that would love to hear those words of griping once again.

The fact that an event takes place and I get pissy because my kids may be a bit high or low and need to be treated at a particular moment.
Really?
How many events have I had in my life that so many would just want the opportunity to get angry at those moments as I do; but they cannot because that battle is lost.

The fact that I’m moaning because I’m tired because I was up all night, or even up once to check a blood sugar.
Really?
How many who have lost a child still get up in the middle of the night only to realize there is no need.

The point is simple; we will always complain and feel the pain of living with diabetes every day but we should always and in all ways remember this important crucial fact; our children are LIVING with diabetes.

Always remember that others are not so fortunate. 

I am a diabetes dad.

Please visit my Diabetes Dad FB Page and hit ‘like’.