Juicebox Podcast: Type 1 Diabetes — Episode #1709

"Two Shovels, One Headache"
Host: Scott Benner
Guest: Dina (Clinical Child Psychologist, mom to two recently diagnosed kids with T1D)
Date: December 15, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode features a deeply candid and insightful conversation between host Scott Benner and guest Dina—a clinical child psychologist and mother to two children, both diagnosed with type 1 diabetes within a month of each other. Together, they explore the initial chaos of diagnosis, family genetics and risk, emotional and practical coping strategies, sibling relationships, and the complexity of cultivating resilience in kids (and parents) living with diabetes.

Dina’s expertise as both a parent and psychologist adds unique, nuanced perspectives, making this episode a valuable resource for families navigating new diagnoses, as well as those further along the journey.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Dina’s Family Story — Dual Diagnosis and Early Experiences

• Dina introduces herself as a mom to Zeke (13) and Ruby (10), both diagnosed with type 1 diabetes a month apart in 2022.
  • [02:38] Dina: “Zeke was diagnosed August of 2022, and Ruby was diagnosed a month later. September 2022.”
• Initial Symptoms Overlooked:
  • Zeke’s early signs were subtle—mood changes, tiredness, more urination and thirst—dismissed as growing pains or active lifestyle. Even with a physician husband and her own advanced training, they missed the signs.
    • [04:55] Dina: “None of it added up. We didn’t know what to look for at the time…We just were starting to notice some differences.”
  • Zeke’s A1C was 13 at diagnosis, but he was not in DKA.
• Rapid Succession Diagnosis:
  • Ruby’s diagnosis followed after noticing minor weight changes and a “wedgie” from loose leggings—something any parent might overlook.
    • [13:53] Dina: “That worry seed grew bigger. I said to my husband, ‘Something’s not right with Ruby.’”
  • Early detection: Ruby was caught at an A1C of 6.2.
  • “Mom intuition”: Dina’s gut propelled her to act despite everyone else’s reassurances.
    • [18:08] Dina: “It was the most validating and terrifying moment. Right. Of, like, I knew it. My mom intuition was right. I knew it, and I don’t want to have known it, of course.”

2. Genetic and Autoimmune Landscape

• Family history on both sides:
  • Husband’s sister has celiac and other autoimmune conditions.
  • Dina herself has thyroid dysfunction and mild vitiligo.
    • [09:06] Dina: “Now we put together all the pieces…”
  • Zeke has the “trifecta”: T1D, celiac (diagnosed a year later), and Hashimoto’s thyroiditis.

3. The Emotional and Practical Aftermath

• Feeling overwhelmed and learning on the fly
  • Dina describes the early days: “I felt crazy anyway…”; “I felt like a zombie in the beginning, like, just wandering around the house and everything felt…like somebody slapped me in the head with a shovel and then my head was ringing and they, then they were like, keep living while my head was ringing…” ([20:21])
  • Dina’s strategy: Compartmentalization at first—a lot of the emotional energy went into the kids’ adaptation, less for herself.
    • [22:09] Dina: "I think the truth is, is that I really do focus it on my kids. It doesn’t really work on yourself. Right."

4. Sibling Dynamics — Different Kids, Different Diabetes

• Two experiences, two personalities:
  • Each child’s diabetes presents and is managed differently, reflecting both their personalities and biology.
    • Zeke: sensitive skin, more “high-high/low-low,” matching his personality.
    • Ruby: more stable, prefers steady routines, less dramatic swings.
      • [26:08] Dina: “…all of their levers of independence and interdependence show up in diabetes management.”
• Impact on sibling relationship:
  • Shared experience has created intimacy and teamwork; Zeke would give Ruby her shots at school in the early days.
    • [27:31] Dina: “When Ruby was diagnosed, she would only let two people at school give her injections…the school nurse… and her brother.”
  • They also maintain a “totally normal sibling relationship,” including typical bickering.

5. Finding and Building Support and Community

• Community matters, but each family’s openness varies:
  • Some families are eager to connect, others keep T1D more private.
  • Dina describes finding community “in sneaky places”—social networks, a type 1 babysitter, a coffee meetup with another parent of T1D siblings.
    • [29:50] Dina: “I feel like I found my community in kind of sneaky places.”

6. Fostering Independence in Management

• Ongoing handoff of responsibility:
  • The family has routines for school-day management, with texts and emoji confirmations, and a gradual, individualized “slow handoff.”
    • [32:26] Dina: “We have all of these systems in place…Zeke uses a rocket ship emoji to let us know he's dosing; Ruby just texts dosing.”
  • Kids are highly motivated to master their own care but rely on parents for sounding board/support.
  • [34:32] Dina: “I tease in my professional life that I’ve coined very few terms…but one of them is, your kid is not in the book.”

7. Navigating Resilience, Privilege, and Coping with Hard Realities

• The concept of resilience:
  • Dina and Scott discuss both the celebration and “burden” of resilience in kids—a double-edged sword.
    • [40:57] Dina: “There’s part of me that loves when you tell me your kids are strong, and there’s part of me that feels sad that they have to be.”
  • Dina references Ann Masten’s “ordinary magic” research: having one adult hold a child “at the center of their world” is a key protective factor.
    • [54:29] Dina: “…if you make a difference in one little person’s life…it sort of transcended tragedy.”
  • Both acknowledge privilege, access, and the uneven playing field for resilience.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On missing the signs (reassuring for new families):
  [06:10] Scott: “So the two of you and your 17 years of combined schooling didn’t see the type 1 diabetes. That’s not comfortable.”
  [06:12] Dina: “You nailed it. Yeah, that’s exactly right.”

• On simultaneous recognition and dread:
  [18:08] Dina: “It was the most validating and terrifying moment. Right. Of, like, I knew it. My mom intuition was right. I knew it, and I don’t want to have known it, of course.”

• On living with two new realities:
  [23:24] Scott: “…it’s easy to say that both of your kids got type one, so there’s a new life to think about, but there’s actually two new lives, and you have to keep them separated … and they’re not the same. Is that right?”
  [23:44] Dina: “Oh, that could not be more right.”

• On the early days:
  [20:21] Scott: “It feels like somebody like slapped me in the head with a shovel and then my head was ringing and they, then they were like, keep living while my head was ringing…”

• On independence and gradual transition:
  [34:32] Scott: “I think about it like a slow handoff. There’s no rush to get to the answer… The goal is that by the time…you’re in your mid-20s, you find yourself thinking like, I know more than these old people…”
  [34:32] Dina: “There’s no book for that. And I think that’s the same answer here.”

• On “ordinary magic” and resilience (ref. Ann Masten):
  [54:29] Dina: “Kids who experience horrible, horrible things, trauma, tragedy, if they had one adult who just sort of held them at the center of their world… it sort of transcended tragedy… One adult makes a difference.”

• On insider vs. outsider community perceptions:
  [29:50] Dina: “I feel like I found my community in kind of sneaky places… our endocrinologists and our educators, most of them have type one and have been people in our world.” [56:22] Dina: “There’s just a relief in having a community that understands our experience…”

• On burnout and boundaries:
  [57:07] Dina: “I also experience a little bit of burnout sometimes with like the…content in general. Like, sometimes I need my diabetes info and I need to, like, get it and I need to get out…”

Important Segments & Timestamps

• Intro & Dina’s background: [00:13] – [03:09]
• Family history, missed signs, and dual diagnosis: [03:43] – [11:33]
• How early experiences shaped management: [13:53] – [20:21]
• Parental coping strategies: [20:45] – [23:24]
• Sibling management and relationships: [23:44] – [29:50]
• Building community and network: [29:50] – [32:26]
• Independence in diabetes care; family-life adaptation: [32:26] – [35:22]
• Resilience, privilege, and every family’s journey: [40:57] – [54:29]
• Ordinary Magic & Protective Factors: [54:29] – [55:56]
• Using the podcast as support/reflection: [55:59] – [57:40]

Tone & Conversational Style

Warm, direct, self-effacing, and honest—Scott and Dina balance humor and vulnerability, moving fluidly between laughter and hard truths. The conversation feels like a real-life, mid-crisis parenting kitchen table chat with empathetic candor.

Actionable Takeaways and Summary Insights

• You can “miss” early signs—even as medical pros; don’t blame yourself.
• Family history of autoimmunity can play a role; early, proactive monitoring in siblings is vital.
• Kids’ diabetes will never be “the same”—each child, even in one family, needs unique emotional and practical strategies.
• Intuition and “hyper-vigilant” parenting can be both validating and exhausting; trust yourself, but seek support.
• Shared diagnosis can deepen sibling bonds in unexpected ways.
• Facilitate gradual and individualized independence; there’s no “book” or timetable—follow your child’s lead.
• Building a support community takes effort and openness—seek connections in both expected and “sneaky” places.
• Burnout is real—allow yourself to step back or “dose” your engagement with the diabetes world.
• Resilience isn’t innate—it can be fostered by anchoring a child with at least one unwavering adult presence.
• There’s comfort and solidarity in hearing others’ stories—seek podcasts, groups, or resources that “get it.”

Closing Reflection:
This episode beautifully encapsulates both the chaos and the hope of early years with type 1, especially in families with multiple diagnoses. Dina’s voice offers a blend of expert knowledge and real life messiness, ultimately reassuring listeners: there are ways through the double-shovel “headache”—through connection, adaptability, compassion, and the “ordinary magic” of showing up, every day, for our kids and ourselves.