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- [00:00]
A
Hello friends and welcome back to another episode of the Juice Box Podcast.
- [00:15]
B
My name is Britt and I have a type 1 son who got diagnosed in May of 2024.
- [00:25]
A
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- [03:51]
B
My name is Britt and I have a type one son who got diagnosed in May of 2024.
- [04:00]
A
Okay. May. May. A year and a half. Ish.
- [04:04]
B
Yes.
- [04:04]
A
Okay. Britt, it is nice to meet you. Thank you for coming on the podcast.
- [04:08]
B
Me too. Appreciate it.
- [04:10]
A
You're very welcome. Let's find out why you're here. So how old is this child again that has the diabetes?
- [04:17]
B
He's 10 now.
- [04:18]
A
You have any other kids?
- [04:20]
B
I do. I've got two other sons.
- [04:22]
A
Oh my gosh, you have three boys.
- [04:24]
B
Three boys.
- [04:25]
A
Sounds like fun. How old are they all?
- [04:28]
B
Eleven. And then the ten year old and then a seven year old.
- [04:30]
A
Oh my. You were, you were really going there for a couple years?
- [04:34]
B
Yes. Yeah. Then put the brakes on pretty hard. Can't keep that up.
- [04:41]
A
What made you stop? Common sense. The diabetes. What, what was it? Money?
- [04:47]
B
No, it was pre diabetes, but just, I think just like we. My husband was a cop, I was a nurse. And so we had like crazy schedules, shifts, you know, worked holidays, weekends. And we kind of made it through with the first two switching off with each other, not using a ton of childcare. But then with the third, it was like, this is near impossible. And then when he was 2, Covid came along. So I ended up homeschooling my oldest with a toddler. And I think just that that whole situation was like, we can't, we can't add anything else to this.
- [05:23]
A
So was it your intention to have more kids?
- [05:26]
B
I don't know. I mean, I'm not sure. That's a great question. My husband would still like more.
- [05:31]
A
Really? What do you think he'll do with them. Oh, so many.
- [05:37]
B
I know, I know. I always giggle at this point in the podcast, marveling at people.
- [05:44]
A
I mean, if he's putting together a shoveling crew for this weekend, I would understand, but other than that, I'm not sure what to say. My God.
- [05:51]
B
I know I said I'm. I feel like I'm on the way to being a grandma more than I'm on the way to being a mom of a newborn. Like, I just cannot go back there, but.
- [06:00]
A
Yeah, no, I hear you.
- [06:00]
B
I guess we'll see. I don't know.
- [06:02]
A
I always laugh at this point in the podcast. When you marvel at people's fertility.
- [06:09]
B
It's fun.
- [06:10]
A
Oh, I'm good. I'm glad. Well, I'm glad you're part of it. Okay, so I'm sorry. The youngest has type 1 or the 10 year old?
- [06:17]
B
The 10 year old.
- [06:17]
A
10 year old does middle.
- [06:19]
B
Yep.
- [06:19]
A
How did this rear its head? How did you first figure out what was going on? I mean, you're a nurse, right? So.
- [06:25]
B
Yes. Oh, it's quite the story. This is mainly why I wanted to be on, because I'm really curious if anyone else has had anything similar to this. Okay. So, yes, I'm a nurse, but I am very much like a if you're not dying, you're fine kind of nurse. I worked in med surge and just, I don't know, have always been the kind of mom like, you're going to be okay. And most things have been okay as we've gone along. But then he wasn't looking great around Mother's Day. I kind of noticed my mom kind of said something. So this would have been like two weeks pre diagnosis, and I really didn't noticed much of anything before that, besides some thirst. His teacher had talked to me about some extreme thirst. But he's also kind of a kid who doesn't love to be in class. Likes to take little, you know, excursions as often as he can to just pass the time. So we kind of chalked it up to that. He's just trying to get out of class a lot more. It's May, you know, nobody wants to be in school anymore.
- [07:37]
A
Getting close now.
- [07:38]
B
Yeah. Tired of this. Yeah. So. So we had talked about that. But then Mother's Day came. My mom mentioned he's so pale, like. Like you were as a kid. Something like that. She was trying not to be too, you know, like intrusive and say, he doesn't look good. But she was definitely noticing something.
- [07:56]
A
When you hear that, is it like, here she goes again. Tell me what's wrong with me. Is that. What did you think it.
- [08:03]
B
I could tell she's just, like, trying to. She's trying to say, like, I see something.
- [08:07]
A
Something's up with that kid.
- [08:08]
B
But I. Yeah. But I also don't want to try and make it sound alarming. Like, I think. Yeah, I think she meant. I know she meant.
- [08:16]
A
Well, she didn't mean. Brit. I was always so upset by how pale you were when you were a child. No. Okay.
- [08:22]
B
Just like. Yeah, kind of like you were, but also, like, she's never mentioned it before. And he's eight years old, so, like, there is definitely something.
- [08:29]
A
So did that. That spark you to think, oh, that's different? She's never done this before?
- [08:34]
B
Nope.
- [08:35]
A
No.
- [08:35]
B
No. Even then, I was like, okay, yeah. I mean, looking back now, it's kind of a marker in the. In the story. But, no, I was like, yeah, he's pale. Yeah. But it was like, it's just a thing I remember now. So then as time went on that next week, sometime in the next week, he started saying very often that he was having headaches and, like, laid down in the middle of gym class, didn't want to participate. So he's had pretty bad seasonal allergies for, like, the couple years before this. And so I decided that that's probably what was going on with the headache, so I changed his allergy medication. But he kept consistently complaining of headaches. So that was kind of. That was kind of when I first started thinking something might be wrong with him. Like, for a young kid to have headaches this bad, where he's, like, not wanting to participate in gym. And sure, he might not have wanted to be in class, but Jim, you know, like a typical kid, but Jim, you want to do Jim. So that was kind of what started the alarm bells going in my head. But still, I was kind of like, well, okay, a headache. We'll just keep an eye on it. And then probably Monday, he. I guess I'll give a spoiler. He got diagnosed on a Saturday, but on Monday of that week, he started vomiting. I was like, that's. That's kind of weird. But he, like, vomited once and then seemed fine and vomited again a couple days later and then seemed fine. And so I remember asking the school secretary, like, has anybody else been out with headaches and vomiting? Because that's kind of my M.O. like, when my kids have a virus or something, I kind of check around. Is this. Does this track with what's going around and if so, I'm not going to be worried about it. But she's like, nope, haven't heard anything of the sort of. And so, yeah, then I just couldn't shake this. Like something, something is wrong with him.
- [10:32]
A
Okay.
- [10:34]
B
Yeah.
- [10:35]
A
Headaches, vomiting, thirst and something's. And he looks pale. Yes, those are the four. This does not make you think anything specific, but it does make you think something's clearly wrong. Yeah, your brain doesn't trend towards anything.
- [10:54]
B
Not until the headaches got way worse. So probably on like Wednesday into Thursday, he started like the headaches seemed like debilitating, like he didn't want to sit up. He was like light sensitive. He wasn't really eating. And so now my wheels are really turning. And at first I thought maybe he's having his first migraine. I've struggled with migraines as an adult and so I thought, oh, maybe he's having a migraine. But the head just seemed way worse. The vomiting returned and even got a little more frequent. So that Friday morning I said to my husband, if he vomits one more time, we have to bring him to the er. And if. No, not. We've got to get him to his primary on Monday because this was a Friday. Because I think something's really wrong with him.
- [11:52]
A
Were you thinking neurological at that point?
- [11:55]
B
Yeah, yeah. So. And type one. So that, that morning I had looked up, I. Yeah, at that point I was thinking, there's something to the extreme thirst. He does look horrible. Like looking at him in this headache state, I was able to realize, I think he's probably lost weight. Oh, he had been wetting the bed. He got up in the middle of the night and peed in the bathtub one time. And at first I was like, oh, this is funny. Like, what is, what the heck? He must be just exhausted. But then that morning, that Friday morning, I was like, oh, that's very weird for an 8 year old.
- [12:30]
A
Why do you think that happened?
- [12:32]
B
I think he was like, I think it was the typical like excessive urination going on. But he had been wetting the bed so much and I think he was trying not to.
- [12:41]
A
Yeah.
- [12:42]
B
So he made it to the bathtub.
- [12:44]
A
I don't quite. To the toilet.
- [12:45]
B
Yeah, it was close. It's like on the way. Yeah. And so I send my husband a screenshot. I said, I think he's got type one. I think we can keep watching him though, and get him into the doctor on Monday unless he vomits one more time. Like that was just my thing because so then it came to my mind. He has got a pineal gland cyst in his brain that was diagnosed when he was three. And yeah, I can explain more about that. But long story short about this, this pre diagnosis day I got on Marco Polo and sent to my two friends. I wish I still had this video but I said something is wrong with Lucas. Part of me thinks that I might be overreacting, but I feel like he really hasn't been well for at least two weeks. I think that this cyst in his brain is growing and causing him problems, causing the headaches and the vomiting. And I think he has type 1 diabetes. So they can vouch for my prophetic word there like I did. I do. I am glad that I knew it before he went in, but I was, I was too late. So yeah, but you, you really were
- [14:00]
A
leaning more towards the cyst being the issue, right? Diabetes comes with a lot of things to remember, so it's nice when someone takes something off of your plate. Usmed has done that for us. When it's time for Arden's supplies to be refreshed, we get an email rolls up and in your inbox says hi Arden, this is your friendly reorder email from usmed. You open up the email, it's a big button that says click here to reorder and you're done. Finally, somebody taking away a responsibility instead of adding one. Usmed has done that for us. An email arrives, we click on a link and the next thing you know your products are at the front door. That simple usmed.com juicebox or call 888-721-1514. I never have to wonder if Arden has enough supplies. I click on one link, I open up a box, I put the stuff in the drawer and we're done. UsMed carries everything from insulin pumps and diabetes testing supplies to the latest CGMs like the Libre 3 and the Dexcom G7. They accept Medicare nationwide, over 800 private insurers and all you have to do to get started is call 888-721-1514 or go to my link usmed.com using that number or my link helps to support the production of the Juicebox podcast. This episode is brought to you by Omnipod. Would you ever buy a car without test driving it first? That's a big risk to take on a pretty large investment. You wouldn't do that, right? So why would you do it? When it comes to choosing an insulin pump, most pumps come with a four year lock in period through the DME channel and you don't even get to try it first. But not Omnipod 5. Omnipod 5 is available exclusively through the pharmacy, which means it doesn't come with a typical four year DME lock in period. Plus, you can get started with a free 30 day trial to be sure it's the right choice for you or your family. My daughter has been wearing an Omnipod every day for 17 years. Are you ready to give Omnipod5 a try? Request your free starter kit today at my link omnipod.com Juicebox terms and conditions apply. Eligibility may vary. Full terms and conditions can be found@ omnipod.com juicebox find my link in the show notes of this podcast player or@juicebox podcast.com yes.
- [16:31]
B
And it was.
- [16:32]
A
Yeah. Oh, oh, oh, wait a minute, Brit.
- [16:34]
B
Yes.
- [16:34]
A
Way to bring it from two angles. Love this.
- [16:36]
B
Yeah, go ahead. Yeah. Okay. So then. So I go to work that morning. This is. That's when I was Marco Polo. Like, I was a part time math teacher. My husband was working from home so he could stay home with him that morning. And I go do my math class, but I feel just so unsettled the whole time. On the way home, I go to Walgreens, buy some Tylenol because I thought we haven't tried Tylenol yet for this headache. I've just been doing ibuprofen and maybe Tylenol is what he needs. So I buy some Tylenol, I buy him a little mini Groot because he loves Groot, Guardians of the Galaxy. And come home. And literally the second I walk through the door, I hear him screaming. And he's upstairs. My husband's down the stairs and I run up the stairs and he is just screaming about his head pain. And so I call for my husband. He comes up, Lucas starts vomiting and he loses consciousness.
- [17:39]
A
Oh my.
- [17:40]
B
Yeah. And so I say, call 91 1, which we both are like, yeah, we're. He's, you know, has this first responder background. Like, we don't, we don't call 911 for nothing. But it was. You just knew in that moment. I'm like, look, there is no other option here. And this kid is going down, call 91 1. After he vomits, he just like, yeah, passes out. He's breathing, but he's completely like not conscious. Eyes roll back in his head, not responding. Nothing. Sweaty, like, just full of sweat. I'm holding him, just praying, asking God to help him and keep him alive. My husband's on the phone with the
- [18:18]
A
Dispatch, I say, dear Lord, can you please send me a nurse and a cop? Wait a minute.
- [18:23]
B
Shoot.
- [18:24]
A
Oh, wait, hold on a second.
- [18:27]
B
We're screwed. It was. It was a horrible moment. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Knowing we cannot even. We can't even help this kid. Something is really, really, really wrong. At some point, I transfer him to my husband. He's holding him. I go in the front yard to fly down the ambulance. So when they came in, my husband had laid our son on the floor and he did regain consciousness. So it was probably. It was a good few minutes that he was just totally out. But then he came back and he could say his name. One of the first things they did was check his blood sugar and it was like 3. 313 or something.
- [19:08]
A
Okay.
- [19:09]
B
But it was odd to me because I'm like, okay, 3:30, that's really bad for an 8 year old who has hardly been eating.
- [19:14]
A
But you didn't think it would knock him out like this, right?
- [19:16]
B
No, that's not DKA material. You know, sidebar.
- [19:20]
A
When you call 91 1, do people you know show up? Like, is the rig full of people you know? Is the cop somebody your husband works with? Like, does. Is that all background happening too?
- [19:31]
B
Actually, no. I think he was familiar with one of the paramedics.
- [19:35]
A
You don't live where he works then?
- [19:37]
B
We do. Oh, he had been not a cop, actually at this point for, I don't know, two, three years. And it's crazy how fast it changes. Yeah.
- [19:49]
A
I was wondering how a police officer has a work from home day that was throwing me off. So. Okay.
- [19:52]
B
Yeah, no, the work situation had changed.
- [19:55]
A
But don't worry, everyone. It's super safe here today.
- [19:58]
B
Yeah, we've got a good. Your tax dollars are tax dollars work.
- [20:03]
A
My house is completely secure. No, okay, I understand.
- [20:07]
B
It had changed.
- [20:08]
A
Got it, got it.
- [20:09]
B
So, yeah, he. He still knows some people, but it changes fast. Yeah. So then the one paramedic looks at me and he's like, you know, you might want to get that checked out, that blood sugar. And I'm like, well, I think that might be what we're gonna go do right now.
- [20:22]
A
While you're here, Skippy, pay attention. Okay? Yeah.
- [20:26]
B
Stay focused. So. So they just carry him out, but every time he lifts his. Every time they lift his head at all, he's screaming in pain again.
- [20:37]
A
My gosh.
- [20:38]
B
So they try to keep him flat and carry him out, and my husband jumps in the ambulance with them, which I was happy about. I feel like. Yeah. In that moment, I'm like, you need to go with them because you'll think clearer and communicate. Well. I will gather some things and meet you at the air. I think if he was still unconscious, there's no way I just would have let him go, But I felt so much better that he was at least.
- [21:03]
A
Where are the other two boys while this is happening?
- [21:05]
B
They were at school.
- [21:06]
A
Okay.
- [21:07]
B
Yeah. Which was great. So glad for the way that worked out. And. Okay. So they took him to the er and I tell them. I think I told the paramedics. He's got this cyst. He's had it since he was 3. It's never been a problem, but I'm guessing it's a problem right now. That's the only thing that would make sense. So they said, okay, well, we'll bring him in and see what we can find. So they did a CT scan right away. It showed his ventricles were just huge. His brain ventricles. I don't know that they could see the cyst on the ct. I'm not sure, but they could definitely tell the ventricles were huge. And it wasn't. It was just your. It was just our typical hospital, not a children's hospital. So they said, we will transfer him to get that figured out. Then we don't really know what to do about his blood sugar. They were monitoring it, but, like. Yeah. And I was just like, let's. Yeah, let's please go to the children's hospital. I didn't. I felt very uncertain about them trying to treat really, anything about him at a hospital that wasn't a children's hospital. So we just focused on getting transferred while we were there, which we eventually did.
- [22:21]
A
And in the end, you're right. Right. It's both. It's both things. It's the. He has diabetes, but the cyst is also an issue. But is the cyst causing the pain and just the pain, or is it causing something with the diabetes? I guess that's part. I don't understand.
- [22:36]
B
Yeah. Okay. So this cyst had grown to such a point that it was there. There are, like, little, basically, holes that drain the cerebral spinal fluid in your brain.
- [22:50]
A
Okay.
- [22:51]
B
It keeps it all flowing so that it doesn't just build up in your brain.
- [22:54]
A
Okay.
- [22:55]
B
And the cyst blocked. It grew so that it blocked the drainage hole.
- [22:59]
A
Oh.
- [22:59]
B
And so his was just filling up with cerebral spinal fluid that had nowhere to go.
- [23:05]
A
Oh, my God.
- [23:06]
B
And that's what was causing him pain? It was hydrocephalus.
- [23:09]
A
Yeah. Yeah.
- [23:09]
B
You know that term? Like, it was. It happens for A variety of reasons, but in this case, it was caused by obstruction.
- [23:16]
A
Do we go right to Gray's Anatomy and do a bur hole? Or do they shrink the. Or do they shrink the. The cyst some way so that it drains out?
- [23:24]
B
They. So they went in very, like, minimally, invasively, is really amazing. And they created a new hole for drainage so that. Yeah. And they shrunk the cyst, so they had to do both. So they. They thought maybe they could shrink the cyst enough so that that opening that it was blocking would be able to drain fluid again.
- [23:48]
A
Sure.
- [23:49]
B
But they also wanted. You can't know that right away. So they also created another tiny hole pathway so that in case. Yeah. He needed that his brain could use. Or, you know, that could be used.
- [24:01]
A
That's scary.
- [24:02]
B
But if he didn't need it, it would just close right back up.
- [24:04]
A
Right. That's scary, isn't it? Geez, you must have.
- [24:08]
B
It was crazy. Yeah.
- [24:09]
A
How they do that. When you say minimally invasive. Invasive. What do they. How do they do that?
- [24:14]
B
I mean, it's just. I couldn't believe. It was just a tiny suture that needed, like, four stitches in the top of his head. They go in with, like, a little scope and do all. All that stuff. And then after it, they left a tube coming out of that little hole to monitor his intracranial pressure for a couple days to make sure that the pressure was coming down.
- [24:38]
A
What do you think of that? Do you think that was awesome, or did you think that was horrifying?
- [24:41]
B
You thought it was horrible?
- [24:43]
A
Yeah, I think so. I mean, I would think so, but I don't know. Little kids tubing your head. Like, maybe they're like, hey, finally something good. Yeah. Okay.
- [24:50]
B
Yeah. I've wondered. I mean, he does like to tell this story, like.
- [24:53]
A
Well, now, in hindsight.
- [24:55]
B
Yeah. You ever had a tube in your brain, like, just once.
- [24:58]
A
Just that one time.
- [24:59]
B
Yeah.
- [25:00]
A
Wow. Wow. So did they not address the diabetes right away, or does. Is he on insulin while this is happening as well?
- [25:06]
B
No. So the. The most urgent thing was the brain, because they said, you know, they just told us that Friday night, if we don't fix this, it's fatal. Like, you can't. You can't survive with intracranial pressure this high. So we just have to focus on fixing what's happening in his brain, and we'll just kind of. Yeah. Deal with the blood sugar stuff tomorrow.
- [25:27]
A
Okay.
- [25:27]
B
It was. I think it remained like 300 range. So I said, okay. And in my mind, I'm like, I don't know if this. I couldn't quite make sense of it. I thought if the cysts grew and it's causing this buildup of pressure. I don't. Maybe it sent his body into some type of like freak out state where his blood sugar is really high. I don't know. Like, I, I was trying to talk myself out of the type 1 because I think it was just a coping. There is no way my kid needs brain surgery and has type 1 diabetes all at the same time.
- [25:58]
A
It almost seems ridiculous, right? Like you think.
- [26:02]
B
Yeah, I, I just thought there's no way.
- [26:05]
A
Like, is there a button in there that the thing's pushing on and giving them a high blood sugar too? Like, that's literally where your head was, right?
- [26:10]
B
Yeah, I think that's what I was thinking. Like, is it pushing on some other gland or some. Something that regulates blood sugar that once we resolve it, it's all going to be fine? That makes sense to me more than the fact that he just. His pancreas shut down and this screw in his brain, like, I don't, I do not understand.
- [26:29]
A
His body was like, let's just do all the stuff at once right now. My gosh. So he's laying there in your house before that. He really is in like serious trouble. It's serious, serious. Like you don't do something that's gonna explode.
- [26:42]
B
Like. Yeah, it's just, it was really dire.
- [26:46]
A
Wow.
- [26:47]
B
Yeah.
- [26:48]
A
Just so that we don't tease people any longer. He's okay today.
- [26:51]
B
He's great. Yep.
- [26:52]
A
All right.
- [26:53]
B
He is, he's. He's got a shaky hand after all of that, that I. When he started vomiting and passed out, his whole like the right side of his body contracted I think probably because of like wherever there was most pressure going on in his brain. And so his hand still like is, it's on and off. He's real cute. He's like, the shaky hand is activated, Mom. When it gets pretty bad, it's like, ah, it's activated. I can't open this thing, you know? But sometimes it's not as bad as others. He's done OT for it and they've said, like, this is just neurological. This isn't something that we're going to help with. OT so brain wise, he's doing well. He's. He needs scans every six months to watch it. But he had a great, great neurosurgeon who I can tell she was like so proud of herself for how much she shrunk the cyst, like showing us she's like, oh, I. It was this. And I brought it down to this. And so she did a really great job with that.
- [27:48]
A
You guys must be upset, but let me tell you how good I am at my job for a second. Yeah, I thought I was gonna shrink this thing like 30%, but I got in there and surprised myself.
- [27:58]
B
Oh yeah. She could not even help herself. But I'm like, what? You go, girl. I appreciate it. Yes. Good job.
- [28:07]
A
So is that a thing that we're worried will return that the size of the cyst at all?
- [28:12]
B
I mean, kind of. That's why he's on every six month scan to watch it, because, yeah, we, we don't want it to. So they offer no explanation. And here's where I still am. Like, what, what the heck? Like, we were told when it, when it was first found that they typically don't cause any problems. I don't remember the percentage. There's a semi high percentage of kids walking around with pineal gland cysts that never cause them any issues, never grow or anything. And so I've asked, well, would it have to do with the diabetes? Like, did the diabetes come first and then maybe high?
- [28:49]
A
Nobody knows anything. Yeah, yeah, yeah. You know they don't know, right?
- [28:53]
B
Yeah, no. And I mean, it's typical kind of like western medicine. Like everything is siloed. Every. Well, it doesn't, you know, the brain is doing this, the pancreas is doing this, the. You know, it's just, I don't know. And I'm like, there's got to be some connection. Like, did the osmolality of the fluid change so that it was easier to get into the cyst? You know, if there was sugar in his brain fluid in my mind, could it like make it more, I don't know, more permeable, whatever, so that I could get into this? But no, nobody's thinking that. They're like, well, I don't know. We just don't know why it happened.
- [29:29]
A
Yeah, he's okay now. This hand just shakes a little bit. Just be pleasantly happy. Go home.
- [29:34]
B
Yeah, I don't love that conclusion. But I mean, I guess we just watch it.
- [29:40]
A
And if I got to find a way to talk around this. Hold on a second. I spoke today with a doctor of certain practice of medicine, and I left that conversation thinking, am I out of my mind or do I know more about this than they do? And I checked with a friend and I laid it out and the friend goes, it sounds like they don't know what they're talking about? I was like, no, I know. I mean, this person is, like, running a thing, you know, and talk about any number of four or five different subjects. And their hot take was as basic and felt like, first line, Google, return understanding of it and try to talk a little more delicately about it. And that just glazed over. And I was like, huh, this is fascinating. So, I mean, in the end, especially with something as, you know, uncommon as what's happening to your son and unknowable, like, I would just accept, we don't know. You're never going to know, really, like, what it is or why it is. I understand you want to know, but anyway. Yeah, I don't think they're. They're not magic people is what I'm saying.
- [30:54]
B
Right. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And it doesn't really matter, I guess, in the long run. Like, he's never gonna have that same set of circumstances happen again. Yeah, it already happened.
- [31:04]
A
So if you could get it to happen one more time and the other hand could shake, he might be able to fly, though, and that might be awesome. Like, what if he got off the ground? You know what I mean? So. But he's doing well otherwise. So what's the pathway into. Into diabetes, then? Like, when do they, like, get him settled and start worrying about that?
- [31:23]
B
Yeah, it was. It was rough timing. So they wheeled him in from brain surgery, and, like, at the same moment, two endocrinologists came in and said, so your son's got type 1 diabetes, you know, like, officially, or. We had talked about it, but he said. She said, yeah, we're here to confirm he's got type 1 diabetes. And I said, I don't think he does. And they're probably like, you're nuts, woman.
- [31:46]
A
You know?
- [31:47]
B
And I'm like, no, no, no. I said, I don't. Tell me. Tell me you're thinking, like, what? Well, his blood sugar was high upon coming out. I understand that, but, like, that's not the only thing that tells you if he has diabetes. Have you checked his antibodies? What's his A1C? So we're waiting for things to come back. Okay, well, why don't we just talk then? I really don't. I was just not in a state to receive that news. And, yeah, I was still skeptical.
- [32:10]
A
We think he has type 1 diabetes. Brit's like, not now. He doesn't. Yeah, yeah. No, I need a second.
- [32:17]
B
Maybe in an hour, but not now. So they kind of like, okay, but then they told me, we'll check on the labs. But then they kept on their spiel, like, they were very confident. So they kept telling me about where we'll go from here, and I was just kind of like, I'm not gonna listen. I know plenty. Anyway, I've taken care of a lot of patients with type two, whatever, like, okay, people. And so then like an hour later, they're like, well, his A1C came back and it was greater than 15. Oh, it's like, okay, okay. I accept it now, like, because there's no way this, you know, this cyst caused problems pretty quickly, I think, and there's no way, if it caused his blood sugar to spike, that it was happening for three months or whatever to cause.
- [32:58]
A
Yeah, a 15, a 1, you know?
- [33:00]
B
Yeah. So it clicked. Then I'm like, okay, all right, I accept it.
- [33:04]
A
Where was your husband along that path? Did he have similar feelings? Do you think he was looking to you? Do you. Was he listening? Like, you know, I mean, were you guys on the same page at that point, or do you not even know?
- [33:14]
B
I don't even know. That's a good question. I think he was just. I think he was looking at me and kind of following my lead. So when I was like, I don't think so, he's like, well, I guess we'll wait and see, you know.
- [33:25]
A
Right?
- [33:26]
B
But he's. He's super good under pressure. Level headed.
- [33:32]
A
Yeah. Listen, level headed or not, it occurred to me while you're telling the story that you go out front to flat, you know, flag down the rig, he's all alone with the kid who's completely passed out. I bet he had a lot of life altering thoughts in that moment, you know?
- [33:45]
B
Yeah, yeah, yeah. I mean, yeah, I think he processed it later, like, yeah, he's. He's used to just like, we gotta get through this. But then, yeah, there were times later where he's like, man, our kid almost died. You know, it's like, yeah, it hits you as time goes on.
- [34:03]
A
Like, do you think your son knows that, that he was close to popping or.
- [34:11]
B
I. I think he does now. I think it took him a while.
- [34:14]
A
Okay.
- [34:14]
B
But, yeah, I think he does now. And I think he's just starting to accept everything that comes along with type one, because for so long he would just talk about the brain stuff. So it's like, it's so interesting hearing other people's stories or, you know, even, like the books they give you on, like, Johnny went to his doctor and saw that his blood sugar was this. And they admitted him and they gave us that. Like, as he Left the hospital. And I'm like, well, yeah, he didn't also have brain surgery. And it's like the stories don't line up with what happened with us. And it certainly. So, like, the. The brain stuff took such a front seat that, I don't know, it's kind of like diabetes was a side note. And so I think it took him a really long time to even process that too. Like, he just, in the last couple months was really irritated about going to his follow up with Endo. And it's like, why. Why are we doing this? Like, we are taking care of this at home. Why do we have to go talk to the doctors? And yeah, we kind of had like a. Because it really matters to take good care of you, diabetes wise. And what will happen if. If something's a little off, you know, and we. Yeah. Kind of broach that. Like, well, I mean, if you get too low and it's not treated, it's like, yeah, I have a seizure or something. No, you could die. Oh, okay. And if. You know. So, like, we're kind of. It's hard to find the balance through it. Not wanting him to be overburdened, but, like, he does need to see the seriousness. Otherwise he's going to be.
- [35:40]
A
Yeah.
- [35:41]
B
So miserable. Every time we have to go, you know, take care of this, he's like, what the heck is the problem with this?
- [35:46]
A
Yeah. Why are we paying such close attention to this thing? Like, so my blood sugar doesn't get higher or low. Like, who cares?
- [35:52]
B
Yeah, yeah, yeah. So it's. He's just now like a year and a half. Okay, all right.
- [35:58]
A
Cgm.
- [35:59]
B
This does matter. Yes.
- [36:01]
A
MDI pens, insulin pump. What's he doing?
- [36:04]
B
He's on the Moby with a Dexcom G7.
- [36:08]
A
Okay. Tandem Moby. That's tandem diabetes.com juicebox, if you're interested. More. But does he use a long piece of tubing or short piece of tubing on that Moby, or does he change back and forth?
- [36:19]
B
Short.
- [36:19]
A
Okay. And what's he wearing on his arm?
- [36:23]
B
Only his arm? Yeah. That's a struggle.
- [36:25]
A
Can't get him to put it somewhere different.
- [36:27]
B
No, he did his legs at first, but then it was more painful. He sat on his legs and would sometimes occlude. We tried his belly, but he is not. There's not much there. So it occluded on his belly like two times in a row. And he's like, we're done with this. Never doing my belly again. And he's really freaked out by anything like, behind him, like his back, you know, like the upper back, butt situation. It's like, no way would I ever put it there.
- [36:53]
A
Freaked out how?
- [36:54]
B
I don't know. He's just.
- [36:55]
A
Doesn't want it.
- [36:57]
B
Very opposed. Yep. For now. So. I don't know. I worry about his poor little arms, but hopefully.
- [37:04]
A
Well, yeah, you just gotta keep trying and, you know, and trying to move around a little bit with the site, you know, in the places that he's. That he is willing to do it. But. Yeah, I mean, it hasn't been long, like you said, and he's just kind of, like, melting into it now. So. Who's been. I mean, you've been taking care of it, it sounds like.
- [37:22]
B
Yeah, yeah, yeah. Me and my husband. He. I feel like he has just in the past couple months been taking a little more, like, responsibility. He hasn't ever changed a pump site. Actually, my husband's the only one that does that when I do it. It's just. It's just so much harder for some reason, I think all the emotions come out with. Mom, wait.
- [37:43]
A
You know, your son gets more emotional or you're emotional while you're doing it.
- [37:47]
B
He. Well, he does, but I wonder if he's. I wouldn't. I don't show it, but sometimes I wonder if he's feeling whatever I'm exuding.
- [37:56]
A
You know, you're shaking like one of those little dogs and you don't nobody. You kind of. It's like an underlying feeling.
- [38:01]
B
I feel very comfortable with all that, with my nursing background. Like. Like, logistically.
- [38:08]
A
Yeah.
- [38:09]
B
But I think. I don't know, there is probably, like, underlying anxiety slash, like, sad mom sadness that comes with it. That. Yeah. He feel. He's very like. He is such, like an empath.
- [38:22]
A
Yeah.
- [38:22]
B
He feels what everybody else is feeling, so it just goes better with that. And they. They do their thing and, you know.
- [38:29]
A
Why do you think he hasn't changed it yet himself?
- [38:32]
B
I don't know. That's a good question. He's never really shown interest in it, and I think we've just been fine with doing it for him.
- [38:39]
A
Okay. I was gonna ask, like, do you want him to do it?
- [38:42]
B
I feel pretty neutral about it right now, but we're getting to a place where, like, he could go to summer camp next summer. Like with church. Yeah. We're realizing, like, oh, one of us will have to go with to do all that. You know, he's not at that point yet, so I don't know. I think we're starting to think about it might be good, but I really don't want to push him. It's been like this, a balance of trying to get him to even with shots. It was like we tried to push it for a little bit, went backwards until it was his idea. So I think that's probably why we're here. It's like, let's wait till it's his idea. And I think, I think it will be once he realizes the ways it holds him back.
- [39:20]
A
But time, you're just willing to take your time with it.
- [39:23]
B
Yeah, yeah.
- [39:24]
A
Nothing wrong with that. So it occurs to me that, you know, with all that going on at the hospital, is it possible you did not get the common diabetes training or were you still able to get that?
- [39:35]
B
We kind of did, yeah. It was a little complicated because he was on a neural floor. I'm trying to remember. I think they were going to put him on the neural floor. Yeah. And then they actually ended up having him. Nope, nope, sorry. He was on the neural floor. Cause that trumped the endo stuff. And so they didn't really know what they were doing diabetes wise. So I was doing a lot of the. I mean, I felt very comfortable with it. So I like showed them how to do a finger stick and was doing most of it from the get go, except for like the calculating. I did not have to do that while I was working, so that was all new. But they did have an educator come and go through it. She kind of breezed through it because I knew a lot of it and I think she just could read the room like, there's more going on here. And I can. Yeah, read the pamphlet on carb counting and whatever and, you know, did you
- [40:28]
A
find that helpful when they just assume because you're in healthcare that you'll. You don't need help, or did you find like, you didn't get things you needed because they skipped over stuff thinking you would just know it?
- [40:37]
B
In hindsight, I think I did say at some points, like about the cgm, like I, I just bluntly said, like, I haven't dealt with these. I know, I'm a nurse. I know some things. I feel confident with insulin administration, but I know nothing about these. So, like, please talk to me like I'm dumb, you know, or just, they're not dumb, nobody's dumb. That doesn't know anything about cgi. Just talk to me like I don't know what I'm talking run of the mill person that doesn't know anything about CGMs. And so I think I would Say that to her about things that I didn't know about. And she would. And yeah, it was. It went well. I felt like I left confident and yeah. Actually ended up feeling like then they wanted us to come back two days later. Maybe it was the next day after he was discharged. And so we did that, but it was like the fluorescent lights made his head hurt. He was. He was still recovering from surgery. So I, Yeah. Ended up feeling like it's a little bit overkill. Like, can you just send me this PowerPoint and will be fine. I'll watch it. They. Yeah, they were really. They did not leave us, like, without what we needed, even though it was kind of a interesting situation. So. Yeah, I'm glad for that.
- [41:50]
A
And do you feel comfortable today with what you're doing or is it still a work in progress? Where are you at?
- [41:55]
B
I feel comfortable with it. It is kind of an interesting thing that I usually don't do the site changes because I thought about that, like, huh, if he would go out of town for work or something like, that's. I should. We should get good at that. Lucas and I, it was a. It was hard for me to change to the pump. We did MDI for almost a year. We changed to the pump about 11 months in. And that was hard. It just felt like a whole new thing to learn for me, like, that the algorithm. And it was really hard for me to trust the algorithm. Like, I was constantly trying to just like, change things myself.
- [42:36]
A
And even too reactive, you would think. Were you being, like, too reactive changing settings?
- [42:41]
B
Yeah.
- [42:42]
A
Okay.
- [42:42]
B
Yeah. And. And like giving more. Like, if it didn't. If it wasn't doing what I thought it was supposed to be doing, I would, like, tell it that it. That he ate more carbs because coming down, you know, So I would either change the settings or, like, even in the moment, just be like, come on. Like, you should be giving. You should be coming down faster or whatever. Like, it was just.
- [43:03]
A
What? Were you right or was it right?
- [43:05]
B
I think a little bit of both. And yeah, it didn't help that we also went to Disney World right after he got it. And so I think, like, with traveling and adrenaline, he was running high a lot. And now I've seen, because we've done a couple other trips in the past year, like, oh, that's kind of just what happens to his blood sugar when we're traveling and doing exciting things, you know, and no matter what, you gotta fight it. Yeah.
- [43:32]
A
Yeah. A little bit of adrenaline, a little bit sitting around, not moving as much that. All that stuff. Okay.
- [43:37]
B
Yeah. But in the moment, that first trip, I was like, ah, something's wrong with this thing.
- [43:42]
A
Yeah.
- [43:43]
B
So, yeah, I think I've just come to a better place. I finally had his last appointment. They're like, you really gotta use the sleep mode. I don't. I had a couple bad nights with it where I. He went to bed a little high, and then it, like, didn't get him down on sleep mode. And so I just ditched it all together and, like, forget it. I'll give him boluses in the night if. Or I'll let it automatically bolus in. Whatever. I don't know. Just trying to control it myself. And then they're like, really? You should really try it. Because his A1C went up. The first one after he got the pump, it went up and it was just kind of discouraging, like, this should be helping. And they're like, well, the overnight matters a lot. And sleep mode really does, for the most part, work really well. And they're right. It's working great now. I just had to give up my control, let it. I think maybe it just had to learn him for a little bit.
- [44:32]
A
Okay.
- [44:33]
B
I don't know. But it's doing great now. Good.
- [44:36]
A
Do you think he was honeymooning in the beginning?
- [44:39]
B
I don't. No.
- [44:40]
A
His needs were pretty. His needs are pretty across the board right now.
- [44:44]
B
Oh, yeah.
- [44:44]
A
Okay.
- [44:45]
B
Yeah.
- [44:47]
A
And he doesn't change the pod, but does he do. Is he counting carbs or bolusing for himself or what level of involvement does he have?
- [44:54]
B
He is doing that. Once he got the pump, he. I think I always felt nervous about him dosing himself with the. I don't know why with the pen. It just felt like for some reason it would be easier to make a mistake or maybe it's just gotten better with time. So now, yeah, he definitely, like, at school, he counts his own carbs for breakfast and lunch and just gives himself the insulin. And he doesn't. Like, he's at a friend's house right now and just texted me a picture of what they're eating for lunch that, like, doesn't have a label. So whenever he has to. Kind of. Whenever it's a guessing situation, he'll just text one of us a picture and we'll guess for him.
- [45:33]
A
Nice.
- [45:34]
B
But he's. Yeah, he's doing a lot of that on his own, which is great. Which. And it also has him starting to think about ways that different things affect him. Because that was tough at first. Like, we're like, you probably shouldn't eat this because it's really, you know, gives you a huge spike. But I think when he wasn't doing a lot and kind of seeing what was happening, it was really. He just felt like we're, you know, controlling him and restricting him. But now that he's a little more
- [46:02]
A
involved, he's like, ah, he understands a little bit.
- [46:04]
B
Little, little things. I'm gonna. I'm just not gonna do ketchup with my nuggets, which is like, that's probably the least of your worries. But it's, you know, sweet to see him. Like, it's probably better for my blood sugar not to add those.
- [46:16]
A
Trying to make a small change that he thinks will impact things.
- [46:19]
B
Yeah. Yeah.
- [46:20]
A
Nothing wrong with that. Also ketchup. Yeah. A nugget.
- [46:23]
B
Yeah.
- [46:23]
A
I don't love it.
- [46:23]
B
Yeah, it's terrible. Yeah.
- [46:25]
A
Who taught it. Who taught him to put ketchup on chicken?
- [46:27]
B
Oh, he puts ketchup on everything. Well, he used to. He's turning over a new leaf. Yeah. No more eggs. He used to be that kid. Yeah. Ketchup for everything.
- [46:36]
A
My brother. My brother would put so much ketchup on eggs, she couldn't see the eggs.
- [46:40]
B
Oh, that is. Yeah, that's what he would do. Oh, yeah.
- [46:44]
A
No, thank you.
- [46:46]
B
No.
- [46:47]
A
Where are you right now?
- [46:48]
B
What?
- [46:48]
A
What? You know, you said you'd like to come on the podcast to share some stuff, but, like, where do you see yourself in this whole process right now? Like, you got a ways to go. You feel comfortable. You think you're, like, settled in and cruising or where are you at?
- [47:02]
B
I feel mostly, I think, mostly settled in. I think just the looming questions about him becoming independent and what that looks like are really kind of bubbling up. It's like, it's been. It's been fine and it's made since, you know, he's young, eight, nine. We're not going to be doing much without him or having him go off anywhere. But, yeah, now it's just kind of thinking through and not only. It's like I say, oh, it'd be nice if he changed his pump site so he could go to camp. But camp is three hours away, and there is no. I cannot even imagine right now sending him three hours away.
- [47:44]
A
Why?
- [47:45]
B
Even if he changed his own stuff, like, mostly, like the. What if something happens? It's mostly the lows, I guess. He's active. He's, you know, managing his own insulin. He is such a. He's very social, loves people, and I've seen it sometimes His CGM will be in, but he's having a grand old time with somebody, and so he's like, ah, shut up. Shuts it off and just carries out his conversation, like, but you got to do something about that. I just feel like I would be a nervous wreck sending him that far away.
- [48:15]
A
He'd probably be fine.
- [48:16]
B
I would.
- [48:17]
A
No, he would. I don't think you'd be fine. I think. No, I think.
- [48:19]
B
Okay.
- [48:20]
A
I think you'd climb up a wall with your. With your fingernails, but I think he'd be okay. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I think he'd be okay.
- [48:28]
B
I don't know.
- [48:29]
A
So interesting statements. So, like, when do you believe he should be? Are you putting this on a time frame? Is it by age? Like, I'm a fan of. They get it when they get it. You try to give it slowly till you see big moments and they take stuff over as they want to. You maybe at some points push a little bit, say, hey, it'd be nice if you did this. Like, let's try to do this a little more often. But are you thinking of it more of like a. Like an age? Like, by this age you should be doing this, by this age you should be doing that? Or are you looking at it about like, he needs to understand this stuff in case he goes to college one day or like, what are your thoughts around it at the moment?
- [49:08]
B
Yeah, I think probably where I'm at right now is realizing, like, I don't really know, and I probably should figure that out. Like, I. I can kind of think in terms of life events. Like, okay, if we go to camp with him this summer, maybe the goal is for next summer to have him go by himself, but I don't know.
- [49:29]
A
Going to camp with him?
- [49:31]
B
Yes. Oh, but okay. It's the kind of camp where there are a lot of grownups that go, like, there's.
- [49:39]
A
Is it a diabetes. Is it a diabetes camp? No, a regular camp.
- [49:44]
B
Yeah.
- [49:45]
A
Okay.
- [49:45]
B
I mean, they do have a medical staff.
- [49:47]
A
Yeah. Well, listen, I'm with you on this now.
- [49:50]
B
Yeah. Okay.
- [49:51]
A
I mean, I would think that if you want him to be on his own at camp, he's going to need to know how to do his pods or his pump. Excuse me. He's going to need to know how to do a cgm. He's got to know how to change that stuff. He's going to have to understand how to count his carbs, give him insulin, you know, kind of. I think at least that for regular hit. Now, diabetes camp, I mean, honestly, you could probably Just shove him out the door and he'd be okay.
- [50:15]
B
I know.
- [50:15]
A
Yeah.
- [50:16]
B
I mean, I think he might still have to change his site for the one that's around us, but also he.
- [50:21]
A
He might learn to do it there. I. I actually know it spoke to a kid, and maybe it was an adult that was telling me about a story about when they were a kid, but said that they, you know, never changed their own sights, went to camp and was like, all right, well, everybody else is doing. I'll do it too. Change the site. And, you know, just like that little. Little positive peer pressure kind of thing hit them. They're like, oh, everybody's doing it but me. I'll take care of it.
- [50:44]
B
Yeah.
- [50:45]
A
I wonder.
- [50:45]
B
That might be really good grip. That has been a hard thing. He mentions that quite a bit. Like, I don't know anybody my age with diabetes. And I think if he was just around somebody else and, you know. Yeah, they changed their site or they tried different pump sites, it would make a huge difference. So we probably need to think about that connecting him with others some way, whether it's camp or.
- [51:09]
A
Yeah. So what does this. What. How do you put this into motion? Like, because your husband's making. Doing the site changes, like, so it would seem to me that first we want to get him more comfortable with you. That would stretch legs a little bit. Right. You'd feel better. You'd know how to do it. He'd feel better. He'd think there's not just one person who he can count on, but there's two people. And then you go, look, I was, you know, I didn't know how to do it. I'm doing it well now. Now maybe next thing is for you to learn how to do it and, you know, just kind of move slowly through it.
- [51:37]
B
Yeah.
- [51:38]
A
It's interesting.
- [51:39]
B
Yeah. I think part of it. I wonder. I think he might wonder if he can do it on his arms. But I would imagine people put their own pumps on the back of their arms. That seems fine.
- [51:49]
A
Yeah, he could do it.
- [51:50]
B
Right?
- [51:50]
A
Just go like this there. You couldn't see me, but I just reached around the back of my arm.
- [51:55]
B
Yeah. I'm doing it to myself.
- [51:57]
A
Some people. I've seen people use a mirror, you know.
- [52:00]
B
Yeah. Yeah.
- [52:01]
A
Anything that boosts is self confidence around it would probably be good.
- [52:06]
B
Yeah.
- [52:07]
A
You know what I mean? Oh, you're such. In the beginning of this, Brett, I didn't. I. I guess I don't realize that sometimes. Yeah, you're really. You're really in the. What what's this a one say?
- [52:17]
B
Last one, I think, was 6. 6.
- [52:20]
A
6. I'm sorry.
- [52:21]
B
6.5.
- [52:22]
A
Oh, look at you.
- [52:23]
B
6.5, I think. Yeah.
- [52:24]
A
That's awesome. Good for you. Is he having a lot of lows or you come into that number pretty honestly.
- [52:30]
B
No, on the pump, he really is not having a lot of lows.
- [52:34]
A
Okay.
- [52:35]
B
And we'll have weeks that are rough, but no, it's pretty fair.
- [52:38]
A
Nice.
- [52:38]
B
Yeah.
- [52:39]
A
Yeah. Okay. So that. That feels like a win, right? You're doing that.
- [52:43]
B
Yeah.
- [52:43]
A
If you didn't have. This is an interesting question for newer diagnosed people. If you didn't have that algorithm, you think his A1C would be six and a half?
- [52:52]
B
Well, it. So here's where like, my control comes in. It was like, six. I think his first one after diagnosis, I think it was five months that between when we checked it. So he was greater than 15, and his first one was 6.1. And that was me and MDI and I. Probably the stress toll that it took on me was not good, but I felt like I've got this. Like, I am, you know, was constantly, like, adjusting carb ratios and correction factors and analyzing the day he was on a Libre then. So I would look at that app and analyze what the patterns were. And sometimes I would check in with the nurse at the Endo clinic, but she'd usually say, like, you've already done what I would suggest just watch it for a little bit. You know, basically, like, chill out. And he wasn't even having a ton of loads then, but I was just, like, really on it. So that's what was hard with me about. For me, about the pump is that then he actually went up a little bit. But I think it's. So for us or for me, it's not as much as, like, oh, it saved his A1C, although it does have him in a good spot. But I think now it's like, oh, it has him in a good spot. And I'm not as like, once I've learned to just let it do its thing, it's been really good. I think, for me, as his caregiver and, you know, in general, it's a. It relieves that pressure and that stress in a way that I think is important.
- [54:17]
A
Yeah. Would you say that you have control issues with other things? Not to even say that this is. But do you like to be in this position, or is it something you just feel compelled to do but wish you weren't doing? How do you feel about that?
- [54:29]
B
I think it just Makes sense. Like it's just in this area. I feel like it makes sense to me and like I. I'm able to kind of, you know, have a handle on it. And so I just did. Like, it just kind of came naturally. I wouldn't. I don't know. I wouldn't say. I. I don't know. I can be like a micromanager, I guess, for sure. Like, you know, now I'm a teacher. I. It's kind of the way I manage my classroom too. Like, where are you falling short in math? Let's figure it out. Let's, you know, get into the nitty gritty and like, practice this one little thing. I see it in my personality.
- [55:08]
A
Okay.
- [55:08]
B
So I think it's kind of that, like, okay, what's going wrong from 8 to 10pm let's figure it out.
- [55:15]
A
So does your husband have a hand in that part of it too? Or is he more the. The devices person? And then the management stuff goes to you.
- [55:22]
B
He's the device guy. And then if, you know, he's. He's real hands on. So like, if there's usually, if there are a lot of lows, he lows really bother him. And so he'll be like, hey, can you look at the stuff and try to figure out why this is happening? Because he doesn't. He doesn't try to do that, but he'll be like, can you please figure this out? So I feel like we're. Yeah. Work together.
- [55:46]
A
Do you have any other autoimmune issues on either side of your family, like celiac, vitiligo, thyroid, ra. Anything like that?
- [55:56]
B
My husband's got vitiligo and I can eat gluten. Gives. I found out that really is a huge factor in my migraines. I've never gotten tested for celiac. I. The thought of reintroducing gluten is horrendous to me, so. But I wouldn't be surprised. I really avoid it strictly. So whether I have it or not, I guess I don't really care. But I wonder if I'd bring that to the table.
- [56:23]
A
How about farther down? Aunts and uncles, grandparents, Anything like that?
- [56:28]
B
No, no, not that we know.
- [56:30]
A
Achy wrists. People go poopy a lot after they eat.
- [56:33]
B
My family wouldn't really talk much about
- [56:36]
A
those things, so you can't tell though, they don't get up from the table and zip out. Oh, I'll be back. Boom. No. Got a mean grandmom. How about a mean grandmom? You got one of those?
- [56:46]
B
No. No, no, Grandma's died early from cancer, so I guess that's.
- [56:51]
A
They got out fast.
- [56:52]
B
Another thing.
- [56:53]
A
That's enough of that.
- [56:54]
B
So.
- [56:54]
A
Okay, but Vitilago with your. With your husband?
- [56:57]
B
Yep.
- [56:58]
A
Okay. How about any, like, bad allergies?
- [57:01]
B
He would have been like. He was my. A bad allergy kid, but. No. Yeah, not really. That's fine. I'm just trying to know. We just.
- [57:09]
A
Your husband's got vitiligo. That's a. That's an autoimmune issue.
- [57:12]
B
Yeah.
- [57:12]
A
Yeah.
- [57:13]
B
Yes. And, yeah, I do like to remind
- [57:14]
A
him that sometimes this is his fault. Is that what you're doing?
- [57:17]
B
Definitely partly your fault.
- [57:18]
A
This wasn't me. Hey, Britt, you call a therapist for any of this?
- [57:25]
B
Oh, yeah, yeah. We love. Love therapy. We're all in it. Me, my husband, my son. It's really great. So, yeah.
- [57:35]
A
Your husband not being a cop anymore have anything to do with this story or.
- [57:38]
B
No, no, he was done before. Before this came about.
- [57:42]
A
He got his time in.
- [57:44]
B
Yeah. I mean, I honestly feel like law enforcement should be, like. What do you call it, like, in
- [57:50]
A
the military, Like a service and you're out.
- [57:53]
B
Yeah. Much shorter than whatever it would have been. 25 years. It's. It's really hard. But his buddy was starting a Christian school in the inner city, actually, right where he worked, and he. My husband's also got this, like, entrepreneur side, and he started a real estate business while he was a cop. And then his friend said, hey, you want to help me start this school and be, like, the operations guy for the school school? And he said, yeah. Thought about it for a little bit, but he just decided to go for it. Better schedule. And then we sent our kids to the school, and I ended up working at the school. So that's a big part of the story. I don't. It's so much easier to manage him. We're both at the school every day
- [58:32]
A
and around the food, the activity, and everything.
- [58:35]
B
Yeah. Yeah. So, okay. It's been good.
- [58:39]
A
It sounds like you guys are off to a nice start, honestly.
- [58:42]
B
Yeah. Thanks.
- [58:43]
A
Do you feel that way?
- [58:45]
B
I do, yeah. I feel it now. I feel like the start. Start was, like, so traumatic and crazy that. And I think, yeah, that's part of why I just. Part of me is just, like, so curious if anybody else in the world has ever had a. Anything to do with a pineal gland cyst. Be affected by diabetes. So as part of my wondering, like, maybe this way to see if there's anybody else out there with a similar story.
- [59:11]
A
Oh, maybe you'll find somebody else who's got this going too. Have you tried in the Facebook group? Have you asked in there?
- [59:17]
B
I don't know if I have. I think I might have searched it and not seen anything, but I mean, I don't know what it would do, but it just kind of feels like,
- [59:25]
A
I don't know, you're looking for answers still.
- [59:28]
B
Yeah, but then when I say that, I'm like, oh, I don't want to freak out anybody that has a kid with a pineal gland cyst and thinks it's going to blow up when their kids blood sugar is high.
- [59:36]
A
Like when you tell your therapist that you're still worried about this, what did they say to you? So worried about how this happened, Looking for an answer about what happened, what the connection is and everything.
- [59:47]
B
Yeah, I think sadly we have a lot of other things to talk about
- [59:53]
A
so like we don't get to that.
- [59:55]
B
It's kind of bottom of the barrel. I don't know if I would say I'm worried about it. I think I'm just like curious about it. So I have, I have a functional medicine doctor appointment scheduled for him in a couple months. And so that's a. It's not like I'm worried about something happening again. I'm just like feeling this, like I want somebody to take a look at his whole body. He's got antibodies to his thyroid. We know that. I don't know, I feel like, I feel like the severity of the brain thing and all this does has in a big way left me more open handed, like I can't control everything. I'm under no illusion I'm ever gonna like reverse this type 1 or whatever, but I feel like he's got autoimmune tendencies. We found out about the cyst because a virus attacked his cerebellum when he was three, which to me smells like autoimmune. You know, I don't want him to just keep going down this road like autoimmune things and I don't know. So it's not like I don't know if that makes sense. No, I don't worry as much. It's just like a. I'm just worried, wondering like what is, what are the connections here and what you're interested. I don't know if anything can I do to like support his body so things don't just keep glitching out. I don't know.
- [61:08]
A
And you're gonna go talk to a witch doctor and see what they think?
- [61:11]
B
Yeah, why not?
- [61:12]
A
I'M just kidding. Same kind of doctor I use.
- [61:15]
B
Okay.
- [61:15]
A
Yeah, Yeah, I was just. I was just teasing.
- [61:18]
B
Yeah.
- [61:19]
A
Okay. I mean, I think I get the whole picture. Is there any aspect of this story that is specific to the podcast? Do you listen? Does it help you? Or is it more of a community thing for you? How do you. How do you use that as a resource?
- [61:37]
B
Yeah, it's. It's been helpful. I listen pretty regularly. Just, I. I mostly love people's stories, so I think that's also part of why I just thought, I don't know,
- [61:48]
A
come tell a story.
- [61:50]
B
Yeah. It's like, even if it seems like it's just the most, you know, run of the mill diabetes diagnosis story, I really just. There's something about hearing people's stories. And so, yeah, my husband and I, early on, I just kind of would send him a couple. Unfortunately, I think one of the first ones I sent him was a school nurse making a huge mistake.
- [62:12]
A
Why did you do that? You know, what did you know? You said that to your husband.
- [62:16]
B
Crazy. Yeah. So it was probably perpetuating. He's never going to be out of our care.
- [62:22]
A
Brit, why are you a mean person? Why. Why did you do that? Story is so insane and uncommon crazy. And you're like. You're like, hey, I want you to take this out. Yeah. You were like, if he takes that job at that school, then I could maybe work at that school. Let me send him this over here. Get him thinking in that direction.
- [62:40]
B
Yeah.
- [62:40]
A
Are you manipulating that poor boy?
- [62:44]
B
I wasn't thinking straight. She's like, oh, check out this. And it was under it. I was just like, check out this cool podcast about diabetes, but sent in that bomb.
- [62:52]
A
Yeah.
- [62:53]
B
So anyway, I don't know if he's listened much since then.
- [62:57]
A
Yeah. You also. You're not doing me any favors. You scared him away.
- [63:00]
B
I know. I'm sorry. Yeah. Yeah. But I continue to listen. I just. Yeah, I love hearing people's stories. I think it's just, I don't know, fascinating. And especially with the Type one aspect, it's like, not alone. And hearing older people talk about, you know, being married or having kids helps me because I had all those thoughts when he was first diagnosed, like, oh,
- [63:20]
A
my God, we never get married.
- [63:21]
B
We never have children. Like, who wants to marry a Type one? Okay. Now I realized, like, this is. It happens. It'll be okay. You can play sports, you can do all this stuff. And, yeah, I feel like I realized that through various things, but I just love hearing kind of. Yeah. The extended version of how it plays out in people's lives. And I'm glad.
- [63:39]
A
Yeah. You'll find the right person. Won't care.
- [63:42]
B
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
- [63:44]
A
It's pretty.
- [63:44]
B
Yeah. We've all got our stuff, you know, like.
- [63:47]
A
Like you. The way you manipulate your husband with podcasts and things like that.
- [63:51]
B
Yeah, exactly. Yeah.
- [63:53]
A
My brother lives near you, I think.
- [63:55]
B
Okay.
- [63:56]
A
And he sent me a picture today of negative 36 with the windchill.
- [64:01]
B
Yes. That's where we're at.
- [64:02]
A
Is that what's going on over there?
- [64:04]
B
Yeah.
- [64:05]
A
How much snow are they thinking you're going to get?
- [64:07]
B
I don't know. Is it supposed to snow? I don't know. I think it's just the cold that's.
- [64:11]
A
You're worried about the cold?
- [64:12]
B
Freaking out about.
- [64:13]
A
Yeah, we're getting the snow.
- [64:14]
B
I mean, yeah, I think Elsewhere is getting the snow, but we're just. It's just cold, that's all. We got a few inches of snow the other day, but that's not crazy for here.
- [64:26]
A
Walk outside. It feels like negative 36.
- [64:29]
B
Yeah.
- [64:29]
A
When it warms up, what stops you from taking all of your belongings, putting them in your cars, and driving south?
- [64:37]
B
I like the season. This. These days make you really appreciate summer. Really? Like, I. I think I would get a little bit like 70 and sunny.
- [64:47]
A
You don't think you could appreciate summer if it just went down to 23?
- [64:51]
B
Well, maybe. Maybe. Gosh, you have a point.
- [64:55]
A
You're born and raised. Are you. Have you lived there your whole life?
- [64:58]
B
Yeah. Yeah, we both have. Gotcha. It's just that we know. Yeah. Interesting. And then, I mean, the plus side is when it's. When it is 23, it's like, wow, do I even need a coat today? Yeah, sure.
- [65:10]
A
Stop it.
- [65:11]
B
Kind of nice.
- [65:12]
A
Stop it.
- [65:12]
B
For real.
- [65:13]
A
Explain. The lake flies to me real quick. What is that?
- [65:16]
B
Lake flies?
- [65:17]
A
Are you not in the. In near the Oshkosh and around that area? Where are you at?
- [65:22]
B
I mean, we're south. Way south. Almost Illinois.
- [65:25]
A
No big flies coming off the water.
- [65:28]
B
No. I've never heard of you.
- [65:30]
A
Look at you escaping it.
- [65:31]
B
Look for us. See? We're in the perfect little spot.
- [65:33]
A
Finally happening for you.
- [65:34]
B
No lake flies.
- [65:35]
A
Yeah, that's fine. How long does it take you to get into Chicago?
- [65:39]
B
Like an hour.
- [65:40]
A
Oh, okay.
- [65:41]
B
Yeah.
- [65:44]
A
You went there for Christmas?
- [65:45]
B
Yeah.
- [65:46]
A
No kidding.
- [65:47]
B
Right after Christmas.
- [65:48]
A
Do you watch football?
- [65:50]
B
Yes.
- [65:51]
A
Yeah, the Bears. Oh, my gosh. You know, it is a sore subject, and here's why. Why is he pushing the ball down the field like that in overtime? When he's at the 50, things are moving. He needs about three more good plays to kick a field goal and move on to the championship game. And he wants to push the ball down the field like that. Terrible. Am I wrong?
- [66:11]
B
Yeah, terrible. Are you talking about Caleb Williams?
- [66:14]
A
Of course I am. Why would he throw that ball? Oh, you're a Packers fan.
- [66:18]
B
I stopped watching that game. Yeah.
- [66:20]
A
Oh.
- [66:20]
B
But was happy to hear that they lost.
- [66:22]
A
I mean, just from a football perspective.
- [66:25]
B
Yeah.
- [66:25]
A
I think from a world perspective. I don't understand people. You got to go 100 steps. You've gone the first 50. Nobody's really stopping you. Take a couple more minutes, take 20 more steps and let it be over. Or, oh, let me just try real hard to throw the ball down there. Like, what are you doing?
- [66:42]
B
I hear you.
- [66:43]
A
It was working. And I don't even care. I don't give a shit. The Bears, win or lose, means nothing to me.
- [66:49]
B
Yeah, I do. So I.
- [66:50]
A
You just want them to lose. That's a different situation.
- [66:52]
B
We won one more game than the packers this year, so that is good.
- [66:56]
A
Well, one more game or one more week. I think they won a lot more games, didn't they?
- [67:01]
B
Oh, I mean, yeah, they went one
- [67:02]
A
more, played an extra week. I like the way you're thinking about it.
- [67:04]
B
Yeah, yeah, yeah. It's all the way to spin it, but.
- [67:07]
A
So you guys, when that game ends and that what's his name, that Ben Johnson guy goes crazy in the locker room and he's yelling. What's he yelling? The packers and that kind of stuff. You didn't like that?
- [67:16]
B
Not cool, Ben. No, No, I don't like. I don't think the packers will behave that way. That's part of why I like them. Like, I think it's just a more classy situation, to be honest with you.
- [67:27]
A
I didn't understand what was going on there either, but, yeah, I can tell you one thing. He's clearly the reason the Lions were any good the year before.
- [67:35]
B
Oh, yeah. Yeah.
- [67:36]
A
And the Lions fell apart when he left, so.
- [67:39]
B
Yeah, right. I mean, there's something to that, but
- [67:42]
A
trust me, I know the whole thing. I got the whole thing worked out. I just don't have time to fix everything. Okay, Brett, I don't have that. Only I don't have that kind of time. I wish I did. I just keep making this podcast instead. But if the packers are interested, or the Bears or the Lions. I see what's going on. You just gave me a call. Explain the whole thing. Yeah, I'm sure They know too. Brit, has there been anything about your story today that we have not covered or anything you think we have missed, forgotten, or should go back over?
- [68:09]
B
I don't think so.
- [68:10]
A
Okay, we've done it.
- [68:12]
B
Yeah. Yeah.
- [68:13]
A
You're telling me it's been accomplished? You feel good about this or you don't like the way it went and you're mad at me, which happened.
- [68:20]
B
I'm not mad. I. I feel like. I don't know, it feels a little like. Did I. Did I.
- [68:28]
A
You're worried. You didn't say something, didn't like make
- [68:31]
B
it interesting, but you know, you're worried you didn't make.
- [68:34]
A
It's your story.
- [68:35]
B
I know that's something I need to talk about. In therapy, my kid almost died.
- [68:41]
A
I'm sorry.
- [68:41]
B
Left an ambulance. I don't know if this was interesting enough. Oh, boy.
- [68:44]
A
Okay, let's go back over for half of a second. You and your husband, who are both, you know, in service situations. You're a nurse, he was a police officer, have three children. And then all of a sudden, we slow down a little bit. The one in the middle has a thing grown in his brain. That thing goes off crazy. At the same time, he gets type 1 diabetes. He's laying on the floor of the second floor of your house while you're out front looking for of ambulance to come save his life. He's got these two things going on at once. You guys are figuring all this out and you're like. I don't know if there was really much to what I said today.
- [69:21]
B
Yeah.
- [69:22]
A
Why do you think that, do you think?
- [69:23]
B
I'm not sure. I think I. Yeah. Probably need to process that more.
- [69:29]
A
No, you do not. You give me one answer, Brit. You tell me right now. What? What is it?
- [69:33]
B
You.
- [69:33]
A
How'd you. Your parents dismissive of you? Were you a really good student? So they didn't worry about you? They didn't pay attention. What's going on?
- [69:40]
B
Wow, you're good.
- [69:41]
A
Of course, it's simple.
- [69:42]
B
I was always the good. The good one. Followed the rules and did everything right.
- [69:46]
A
Right. So nobody had to check on you.
- [69:49]
B
Yeah.
- [69:49]
A
Yeah. You were consistent.
- [69:50]
B
I think it's conditioning too. Like between being a nurse, seeing, you know, plenty of people die, and whatever. Worst case scenario, my husband's cop and it's semi big city. Like, I don't know, it's. I think there's this conditioning of like it could always be worse, you know, like there's. There's bigger problems.
- [70:06]
A
You want me to fix it for you, right? Now or are you not open to the fix now?
- [70:10]
B
Go for it.
- [70:11]
A
Okay. You're plenty interesting. Stop worrying about it.
- [70:14]
B
Thank you.
- [70:14]
A
Okay. You're welcome.
- [70:15]
B
I receive it.
- [70:16]
A
Just take that in and. But believe it next time and move forward. Just do what I do. Listen, I'm gonna give you all the secret right now. You just need like 5% more. More belief in yourself than is what's. What's real.
- [70:32]
B
Okay.
- [70:32]
A
You just need the needle to go on the other side a little bit.
- [70:35]
B
It feels attainable.
- [70:37]
A
Yeah, yeah. Fake it till you make it kind of thing, Right?
- [70:40]
B
Yeah.
- [70:40]
A
Yeah.
- [70:41]
B
Yes.
- [70:41]
A
Why not me? Try that one. Why not me? Try that one. Say it out loud. Say it.
- [70:45]
B
Why not me? Yeah.
- [70:46]
A
Well, that was not convincing. Right? At all. It's terrible. It's really terrible.
- [70:51]
B
Get there.
- [70:51]
A
You know what? You don't deserve my self confidence. Never mind.
- [70:55]
B
Not today.
- [70:57]
A
You really were lovely. Please. You did a great job. This was excellent. Hold on one second for me, okay?
- [71:03]
B
Okay.
- [71:12]
A
A huge thanks to my longest sponsor, Omnipod. Check out the Omnipod 5. Now with my link omnipod.com juicebox you may be eligible for a free starter kit. A free Omnipod 5 starter kit at my link. Go check it out. Omnipod.com Juicebox terms and conditions apply. Full terms and conditions can be found@ omnipod.com juicebox this episode of the Juice Box podcast was sponsored by usmed usmed.com juicebox or call 888-721-1514. Get started today with usmed links in the show. Notes links@juiceboxpodcast.com okay, well, here we are at the end of the episode. You're still with me. Thank you. I really do appreciate that. What else could you do for me? Why don't you tell a friend about the show or leave a five star review? Maybe you could make sure you're following or subscribed in your podcast app. Go to YouTube and follow me. Or Instagram TikTok. Oh, gosh. Here's one. Make sure you're following the podcast in the private Facebook group as well as the public Facebook page. You don't want to miss, please. Do you not know about the private group? You have to join the private group. As of this recording, it has 74,000 members. They're active, talking about diabetes, whatever you need to know. There's a conversation happening in there right now and I'm there all the time. Tag me. I'll say hi.
- [72:45]
B
Hi.
- [72:50]
A
The Juice Box podcast has been in production since January of 2015 and in that time, we have amassed just a fantastic catalog of information for you. The Defining Diabetes Series Also Bold Beginnings Diabetes Pro Tips Small Sips Fat and Protein Algorithm Pumping Mental Wellness Ask Scott and Jenny Diabetes Variables Defining Thyroid After Dark the math behind Omnipod5 pregnancy how we Eat Grand Rounds Cold Win GLP Meds the Quick Start Guide if you want to get going with the podcast but you don't know where to go Diabetes Myths there's even a type 2 diabetes pro tip series. All of this is@juiceboxpodcast.com Go to the menu, click on Series and they can all be found right there. If you go to juiceboxpodcast.com lists you'll get all these great downloadable lists of all the different series. So you can save them on your phone, keep them for later. Every episode is listed along with its episode number. So you can go into Apple Podcasts or your, you know, wherever you listen to your audio and say you want to hear episode 1469 steal a 1C overnight from the Small Sip series. You just go to the search bar, type juice box, one word and then the episode number 1469. It should be the first return you get. If you have a podcast and you need a fantastic editor, you want Rob from Wrong Way Recording Listen, truth be told, I'm like 20% smarter. When Rob edits me. He takes out all the like, gaps of time. And when I go and stuff like that. And it just, I don't know, man. Like, I listen back and I'm like, why do I sound smarter? And then I remember because I did one smart thing. I hired rob@worldwayrecording.com.