Graduation Day #1

Seth has graduated from the pediatric endocrinology clinic. His endos (his endo has a fellow, who has been his primary doctor since diagnosis) had nothing but nice things to say about how well he has managed, wished him well for the future, etc.  It was a really nice appointment. Now the search is on for an adult endo.  We have a list, but how do you even begin to choose?

A1c was awesome, and he has gained 8 pounds since last time (yea!).  It could have been from all the Cajun food on his band trip. 

We celebrated the day by eating at his favorite BBQ place before the appointment, then had a few minutes to walk around one of the city parks for. It was a good day.

Quarterly checkup

Seth had his quarterly checkup this week.  We knew his A1C would be up just a little bit, because it was crazy low last time. His endo even said that, "It's probably lower than mine." (Endo is non-d.)   He may see that range again one day, but I think it's pretty unrealistic to expect a teenager to stay in that range consistently. Or any PWD, for that matter.  It did indeed go up a little bit, but still was excellent. He doesn't mind at all for people to know what his A1C is, but I know that's a touchy subject in the DOC.  He wouldn't want to make anyone feel bad about their own efforts/results.  I'm so proud of him.  He works hard, and consistently, to keep his numbers in range as much as possible.  Does he have highs and lows?  Yup. Big swings throughout the day sometimes?  Yup again.  Does he make poor food choices?  Absolutely.  He is a teenager!  But he takes it all very seriously in general and makes decisions accordingly.  Some decisions are proactive (careful carb counting, pre-injecting insulin before meals, taking exercise into account) and some are reactive (treating highs and lows, again taking activity, active insulin, and other factors into account).

It's been almost a year and a half since diagnosis.  From the beginning, we have tried to remember to fit diabetes into life, not life into diabetes.  Some days are harder than others, but I feel like it is getting more routine.  I don't think it's easier, exactly.  Just more routine.  Part of life that isn't going away.  It makes me proud and sad at the same time.

He also passed his driving test and got his license on the same day as his checkup. We finally got rid of that awful picture that was taken about a week before his diagnosis.  Then he went on his first date with him driving the next day.  It was a nerve-wracking couple of days for this mom!  But like everything else he tackles, he did it well.  Diabetes isn't going to stop him or even slow him down very much.  He only slows down to test and treat as needed.  Otherwise, he is going to do what other kids his age are doing.  KDA every single day!

Quarterly check-up

Friday was Seth's quarterly check-up with the endocrinologist.  This visit was with the nurse practitioner,  not his awesome doctors. We sure do love both of them.  I was a little bit apprehensive because the last appointment with the NP wasn't awesome.  This time, however, it was great! She was engaging and helpful, as well as very complimentary of how Seth is tackling this awful disease. His numbers have been all over the place lately, and she affirmed that a) summer is even harder and b) the changes we have made were the ones she would have suggested. She noted that even though his numbers have been crazy,  none have been incredibly high so that was a good thing. His A1C was down 0.2 from last time (Yea!!). Even though it's not a report card, it sure felt like an A! Numbers aside, the compliments on how well we are doing were really a confidence booster! Our daily fight is worth it, and it's really really nice to have that recognized by a professional.

Seth has decided he wants to try pumping. Not gonna lie, I'm a little nervous about it. I feel like we have shots down, at least as much as you can with anything diabetes-related. It will almost be like starting over.  But you know what parents do, right? We do whatever our kids need. So we scheduled pump class and I asked other D parents in the area what the pump homework is. We plan to turn it in when we go to the class so we can speed this thing up. He has researched and decided on the Tslim pump. Of course, all that will coincide with the start of school, and me at a new job. Isn't that how it always works? Wish us luck!

After the awesome appointment,  we celebrated with carb-o-licious Mike Anderson's BBQ. Seth has decided to take advantage of our trips downtown to try out a new restaurant every time. If you have suggestions,  we'd love to hear them!

I really love watching this kid eat. It's a thing of wonder....it makes you wonder where he puts it all!