WifeMomPancreas

Today’s theme: One Great Thing

“Living with diabetes (or caring for someone who lives with it) sure does take a lot of work, and it’s easy to be hard on ourselves if we aren’t “perfect”. But today it’s time to give ourselves some much deserved credit. Tell us about just one diabetes thing you (or your loved one) does spectacularly! Fasting blood sugar checks, oral meds sorted and ready, something always on hand to treat a low, or anything that you do for diabetes. Nothing is too big or too small to celebrate doing well!”

So you can see from the description that I am supposed to sing my own praises. I like to sing other people’s praises. I find self-deprecating behavior so much easier. I am my own worst critic. So I will start this post by singing others’ praises and we’ll see if I get around to the “tooting my own horn” part.

I was so excited to be a part of Diabetes Blog Week. I have only found a few other D-blogs even though I knew there were others out there. I just haven’t had time to find them. Being a D-mom can be lonely. You feel isolated. You feel like no one really knows what you go through on a daily, no make that hourly, basis. And if you do it well, make it look too easy, others really don’t know what you go through. So I couldn’t wait to find other D-moms to commiserate, and at times, celebrate with.

WOW.

I was overwhelmed today.

Around mid-morning at work I decided to check my personal email. Sometimes Medium’s school nurse emails me with questions or just FYI’s so I like to check it every so often. I couldn’t believe my eyes….several comments from other D-bloggers! I have had more hits today than ever before, I even had someone from Pakistan visit my blog! I’m international! And even though I started this blog for myself and to vent my feelings for myself, I have to admit, it is exciting and rewarding to know that others are reading and may be inspired, entertained, (or infuriated, as the case may be) by my words. And I have over a hundred new blogs to work my way through now! I can’t wait!

And here is the mouth-gaping-open thing I have learned about the DOC (diabetes online community). Even though yesterday none of these people knew me or knew of me or knew anything about me, today we are connected in a way that I can only share with them. It’s like when your child (or yourself) is first diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. One day you know nothing about the disease and, quite literally, the next day you could teach a class on the relationship between blood sugar, carbohydrates and insulin. Diabetes puts you on the fast track, both in education about the disease and anatomy and physiology of the human body. But it turns out it puts you on the fast track to immediate, deep friendships, too. And that part is amazing. Those blogs that I mentioned yesterday that I was in awe of, somehow each one of them found out that I mentioned them and each one of them messaged me with the most sincere words of praise, understanding and encouragement. I so wasn’t expecting it, and I actually started crying, right there at work in my chair with my coworkers looking at me like I was nuts (they do that a lot though 🙂 )

Imagine that feeling when you’ve been stranded, alone, on a desolate island and you realize that you are being rescued. That is how I felt. Those comments from those D-Moms (and others too!) were my life raft. I know it’s just a dinghy in the vast ocean that is diabetes, but I know now that I am drifting back towards civilization and these other moms are going to be my survival fuel. So a huge THANK YOU to them!  (And a special shout out to Laura of Houston We Have A Problem, for telling me how to add the banner!) I know I am going to learn so much from these women (and some men, too!) about things diabetic and not, and I am so re-energized by this. (The first piece of advice from someone will probably be to shorten my posts. I am well aware that they tend to be a little long in the tooth, but if you knew me, you would know that this is who I am. I am cognizant of it and will try my best to have relevant, educational, entertaining, passionate, SHORT posts whenever possible–but don’t hold your breath, I got shit to say! 🙂 )

So I promised to try and pimp myself out a bit, so here goes.

I am a great FAKE nurse.

I have a Bachelor’s degree (not in nursing) and worked a fancy corporate job back in the day, but quickly ditched the pantyhose (yes, we still wore pantyhose in those days) for poopy diapers when Large was born. By the time Medium came around 2 years later, I was desperate to use my brain for something other than nap time nursery rhymes and stimulating toddler talk. So I got a job as a Unit Secretary in an Emergency Room. I. LOVED. IT. I got to be near the action, but no one was going to die if I didn’t fax the correct piece of paper. I worked there for 9 years until a year ago when I went to work in the IT department for the same health system (it was time to start making a little more money for my time). I sat next to the ER doctors and nurses for 12 hours at a time learning from them. That has proven to be great training for being a D-mom.

So I do a pretty good job at all the nursey stuff that comes with having a D-kid (and there is a lot of it!) And while my time in the ER has given me more medical knowledge and experience than the average bear, I, in no way, compare to the true greatness that is a REAL nurse!