“Tyler’s results came back. I don’t want to alarm you, but you need to rush to the ER ASAP. He is very sick and could be in a coma. Pack a bag. Tyler has Type 1 Diabetes... his blood glucose is over 840. I’ll call ahead… go right now.”
Our doctor was speaking a foreign language. I only heard terrifying words like ‘coma’, ‘diabetes’, ‘keto-something-a-dosis’, ‘ER’ and NOW.
Tyler was asleep upstairs. Or was he? I rushed to make sure he was breathing, scooped him up, threw whatever I found into a bag and forced contacts into my already red eyes so we could go. If ever there was a perfect time to magically sprout wings on our SUV like some science-fiction superhero movie, THIS was IT.
Sure, Tyler had been acting weird – moody, dry skin, thirsty, peeing often, tired and skinnier. Maybe it was a phase. Maybe he was coming down with a bladder infection. But that’s why I took him to the doctor – so he could pee in a cup and they could call in a prescription.
Not so.
And in the days since, we have learned a lot.
While heart-breaking, you CAN give your baby shots with a syringe 6-8 times a day, or more often if the little meter says so. Even if they lock themselves in their room and hide under the bed, it MUST be done. Making your child’s blood ooze out of their tiny fingers 10x daily and reacting with insulin or a snack is just our NEW normal. His life DEPENDS on it now.
Now a mere 6 years-old, Tyler is the bravest kid I know. I still wish I could just wave my Magic Mommy Wand and make it go away, but Tyler's NEW wish is for a CURE!
Austin, TX
