Juicebox Podcast: Type 1 Diabetes

Episode #1638 – "Heavy - Part 1"

Date: September 26, 2025
Host: Scott Benner
Guests: Jenny Smith & Bea ("Dee")

Overview

In this candid and emotionally raw episode, Scott Benner welcomes Bea, a mother whose son was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes (T1D) at 18 months old and is now two years old. The discussion—with valuable input from diabetes educator Jenny Smith—dives into the heaviness of parenting through an early diagnosis, initial medical hurdles, long-term fears, and the relentless mental and emotional toll of managing T1D in a toddler. The conversation flows with empathy and honesty, surfacing universal challenges and trading strategies for survival, self-care, and finding balance between vigilance and family harmony. This episode is a compelling listen for parents, caregivers, and anyone navigating the emotional landscape of childhood diabetes.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Diagnosis Journey: "Mom Instinct," Google, and Medical Chaos

• Early Signs & Instincts (03:15–04:17):

  • Bea describes noticing classic diabetes symptoms in her toddler (excessive thirst, frequent wet diapers, increased appetite).
  • “I just kind of mom instinct, too. Noticed that he was drinking a lot... I was noticing, hey, I've been going back to newborn days, changing diapers all the time. …Of course, I didn't immediately correlate it to that. So like everyone else, I go to Dr. Google… and then it's like, oh, it might be type 1 diabetes. And I'm like, oh, no.” — Bea (03:22)

• Immediate Reaction and ER Experience (04:29–08:26):

  • Bea's medical background as a pharmacist made her take the suspicion seriously, though her husband was more skeptical.
  • The ER confirmed T1D with a blood glucose of 600.
  • The trauma of repeated IV insertions for her toddler is vividly recalled, including a mix-up where the endocrinologist’s office turned them away, requiring a return to the ER for more IV attempts.
  • “Putting in the IV was one of the most traumatizing things… You're having to hold him down while he's staring at you in your eyes and is like, mom, why are these people doing these things to me?... Still. Still have some.” — Bea (07:43)

2. Hospital Stay: Hurricane, Frustration, and System Problems

• Hurricane Delays and Dietary Struggles (09:01–10:53):
  • Bea and son were kept in the hospital for six days due to a hurricane and uncertainty about home management for a newly diagnosed child.
  • Hospital staff's struggle with “sliding scale” insulin and inappropriate food choices (mashed potatoes, mac and cheese) led to stretched out, frustrating days.
  • “They started him on a deciding scale and they just really couldn't figure it out and they're trying to give him mashed potatoes. I'm like, this is not... so, you know, he's 300 in there…” — Bea (09:01)

3. Early Adaptation: Learning, Research, and Pre-bolusing

• Information-Seeking Beyond Standard Advice (11:11–14:24):

  • Bea talks about her drive to deeply understand diabetes management, not just rely on hospital education or “the Pink Panther book.”
  • She found Juicebox Podcast and other resources almost immediately to supplement her knowledge and confidence.
  • “If there's something that I want to learn about or need to learn about, I'm not going to just take the Pink Panther book that they give you and have that be the only thing… Let me find out something else.” — Bea (12:49)

• Approaches to Dosing & Technology (11:18–12:37):

  • Rapid adoption of strategies like pre-bolusing, even before her healthcare team suggested it.
  • Transition from multiple daily injections (MDI) to Omnipod and eventually Tandem Mobi for better management.

4. Practical and Emotional Toll—Parent Perspective

• Physical and Mental Wear (19:26–21:22):

  • Sleep deprivation continues—first from infant care, now from diabetes management.
  • Bea is open about her need for therapy and recommends it to other parents.
  • “I haven't slept a full night since… he was born. You know, I thought I was gonna… grow out of that at some point, but then he caught the diabetes and… I guess I won't, you know, sleep.” — Bea (19:39)
  • “I do about 99.8% of all of the diabetes things. So it is very much a, a huge toll and mental burden for myself.” — Bea (20:08)

• Struggles With Outsider Perceptions (21:26–23:32):

  • People often assume Bea’s pharmacy background makes managing her son’s diabetes easy, which she finds frustrating and invalidating.
  • “Anytime I tell anybody that my son has type 1 diabetes, their first thing out of their mouth is, oh my goodness. It's so great that like you're his mom. Because for some reason, because I'm a pharmacist, I just clearly know how to treat a kid with type 1 diabetes. …It is not, it's not the same.” — Bea (21:26)

5. Parent-Child Dynamic and Lifelong Worry

• Finding Harmony vs. Health (27:04–33:59):

  • Scott and Bea discuss the struggle to balance health vigilance with preserving a loving, harmonious family relationship.
  • “I think it's two decisions. You have two options, right? And neither of them are good. Am I going to ignore health right now… Or am I going to put more of the value on harmony and be harmonious but unhealthy?” — Scott (29:18)
  • The worry that focusing too much on diabetes will harm the parent-child bond as the child grows.

• The Constant Burden (35:59–36:30):

  • Scott shares the universal parental sentiment: wishing he could take the burden of diabetes on himself.
  • “I don't want to be talking about this. I don't want this. I don't want her to have diabetes. …I wish none of this happened, you know? This isn't something I want to talk about.” — Scott (35:59)

6. Individuality, Growth, and Uncertainty

• Unpredictability of Family Impact (32:31–33:59):

  • Acknowledgement that every child and family will process and adapt differently—no guaranteed outcomes with any approach.
  • “Maybe it's going to work great between you and your son, and somebody else listening right now is going to do the same exact thing, and it's not going to go as well. And who knows?...” — Scott (32:59)

• Parenting as a Moving Target (40:05–42:40):

  • Scott compares the emotional experience of diabetes parenting long-term to “having an addicted child”—no real power, high stakes, and relentless worry, yet without control.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Diagnosis:
  "Dr. Google… said it might be type 1 diabetes. And I'm like, oh, no." — Bea (03:22)

• On Trauma:
  "Putting in the IV was one of the most traumatizing things… you’re holding him down while he's staring at you…" — Bea (07:43)

• Hospital Frustration:
  “They started him on a deciding scale… then you're also trying to give him macaroni and cheese, like, come on, guys.” — Bea (09:01)

• Sleep & Mental Health:
  "I haven't slept a full night since... he was born... we need those [therapists]... 99.8% of all of the diabetes things... huge mental burden..." — Bea (19:39/20:08)

• Perceptions of a Medical Parent:
  “Anytime I tell anybody that my son has type 1 diabetes, their first thing out of their mouth is, oh my goodness, it’s so great that you're his mom... as if I should just know how to do all this.” — Bea (21:26)

• On Balance and Fear:
  “No matter what I do, I’m going to be wrong. Because if I choose harmony, when her health fails, she’s going to wonder why I didn’t help her. And if I choose health… we don’t have the same relationship.” — Scott (30:26)

• Parental Want:
  “If only I could have just... let me have the diabetes and let my kid just run off and play...” — Bea (35:59)

• Constant Vigilance:
  “The part that doesn’t go away is the part that doesn’t go away.” — Scott (40:05)

Important Timestamps

• Diagnosis Story: (03:15–08:26)
• Hospital Stay & Hurricane: (09:01–10:53)
• Pharmacist Paradox: (21:26–23:32)
• Balancing Health and Harmony: (27:04–33:59)
• Sleep and Emotional Toll: (19:39–21:22)
• Scott’s Birthday Analogy: (36:40–39:30)
• Therapy As Lifeline: (19:39/21:22/30:20/39:30)

Takeaways & Tone

• Candid, empathetic, practical: The episode is a heartfelt exploration of the unseen weight carried by parents and caregivers of young children with T1D.
• Community and validation: Both guests and hosts validate each other’s challenges, recognizing that medical experience doesn’t spare anyone from the grind or grief of the disease.
• No easy answers: The podcast underlines that strategies and feelings are highly individual and ever-evolving; there is no one-size-fits-all approach.
• Advocacy for self-care: Therapy is emphasized as critical self-care for caregivers.
• Resourcefulness: The value of seeking community and evolving beyond traditional education—like podcasts and peer stories—is called out as a survival strategy.

For further discussion and Bea and Scott’s ongoing reflections on T1D family life, listen to Part 2.