My name's Jaimi and this is my story.
It was 2 weeks before my 11th birthday in 2009 when I found out I had type 1 diabetes. (Great birthday present, right?) The symptoms had been there for a while, but weren't acknowledged until my diabetic father had decided to check my blood sugar after a long night of talking. With my sugar being unreadable to the meter, we were off to the hospital.
Now at 16, I have learned to take care of myself to the best of my abilities. I have had some slip-ups on the way though. As a newly diabetic, I would make sure to take extra care when giving my injections. At 11, almost 12, I grabbed the wrong insulin one night though, and didn't realize it until my blood sugar dropped to 28. At 13, I decided not to be a diabetic anymore. I had stopped taking my insulin for 2 weeks before I showed all known signs of DKA. (Diabetic Ketoacidosis.) After being rushed to the hospital and surrounded by a million doctors, I was settled in ICU until being transferred to a regular room. Turns out, my blood sugar was 1,032. I was also recorded for nursing training while in ICU at Main Campus Children's. They had said that my blood sugar was the highest they have seen coming into the ICU. If you say that in an excited tone, it sounds awesome! But it was not, and I have not done it again. I've suffered with depression, so I've almost gone into DKA, but I've realized what I was doing, and with the help of my family, I've gotten through everything diabetes has thrown at me. Though diabetes is a part of who I am, I would like to see a cure.
Morrow, OH
