The week prior to Emma's diagnoses we saw many symptoms that would lead us to believe that she may have this disease. But that was after we know about these symptoms. If we had recently have read something relating to these symptoms, or talked to someone who was advocating awareness of this disease we could have caught it not by fluke (like we did). Thank god we did catch it by fluke but take that part of the equation out and we could have been dealing with fatal ignorance.
Recently i have noticed people on this blog who do not have diabetes, or have children that do not have this disease either. THIS IS GREAT! If this tool (the tool isn't me...it is a BLOG ;)) can reach someone going through some symptoms, be it themselves or their children, and making them aware enough to see that red flag to make the trip to the hospital, i am happy. I will believe i do make a difference.
So those of you new to my blog please read the past posts regarding lows, and the symptoms some of the Type 1 diabetics go through daily. Copy and paste what you need on a word document, print it out, and seriously keep an eye on you and your family.
So here is a list of not necessarily highs or lows, but symptoms of diabetes:
Unusual thirst
Frequent urination
Weight change (loss)
Extreme fatigue or lack of energy
Blurred vision
Frequent or recurring infections
Cuts and bruises that are slow to heal
Crankiness
Irritability
These symptoms seem harmless at first, but can in the end be fatal.
I really want to make people aware more than ever these days. It is not a dirty disease, where you have to test your blood sugar in the bathroom, or hide the fact that your counting every carb every day. Those of you, and parents who have children with diabetes can make a change. This is serious. It is real. We have to pull together and make everyone aware of this unpredictable, ignorant, life changing disease.
***EDIT****
Here is what also needs to be added to this post thanks to Maria and Bernard:
Maria i knew in Elementary school. How odd is that we meet up decades later as i was walking out of Emma's second ever Endo appointment. Odd may not be the word. But i wish we had never met again regarding these circumstances.
Bernard...well is Bernard. A perennial favourite of mine on here. He always has awesome things to say and relates what needs to be in technical form too. Good job my friend!
Maria said...
I'm so glad you posted the symptoms. My son had these symptoms for awhile. How long, I'm not really sure. In the back of mind I always thought "omg, what if it's diabetes". Then I thought "nah, not my son". If I may add a tidbit. If someone reads this and sees the symptoms for God's sake PLEASE don't be scared of seeing the doctor. It's such an easy little test. I thought if I denied it long enough they would go away. Am I a bad mother? I don't know.
Monday, October 15, 2007 9:01:00 AM
Bernard said...
Can I also add two others to your list.1. Leg cramps especially at night.2. Fruity smelling breath. This is ketones.It's really good to get the message out about the symptoms in general. Type 1 is a dangerous disease and you want to start treating it as soon as possible.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
5 comments:
I'm so glad you posted the symptoms. My son had these symptoms for awhile. How long, I'm not really sure. In the back of mind I always thought "omg, what if it's diabetes". Then I thought "nah, not my son". If I may add a tidbit. If someone reads this and sees the symptoms for God's sake PLEASE don't be scared of seeing the doctor. It's such an easy little test.
I thought if I denied it long enough they would go away. Am I a bad mother? I don't know.
Can I also add two others to your list.
1. Leg cramps especially at night.
2. Fruity smelling breath. This is ketones.
It's really good to get the message out about the symptoms in general. Type 1 is a dangerous disease and you want to start treating it as soon as possible.
Note to Maria:
You're not a bad mom. Otherwise I'd have to say I was a bad mom too. A lot of us were in your shoes at one time. There was always an explanation for the symptoms as far as I was concerned. Now you're taking good care of your son. Good mom :)
Can I also add to your list. Stomache aches; unexplained stomach aches. My daughter complained of having a stomache ache almost every night for a couple of months before dx. At first we thought she was sick and had a little virus then we decided that she was just playing us and didn't want to go to bed. We found out later that it is also a sign of D. Now when she is high or low she often complains of a stomach ache.
Maria...I know how you feel. I often think that if I had pressed the doctors harder about the constant stomach aches they would have done more tests and found it sooner.
I'd like to add another symptom although it's not life threatening.
Yeast infections even in boys.
For boys it looks like a diaper rash. Brendon was still in diapers so I thought that's what it was, but it didn't go away like it usually did after a day of applying ointment. I realized what it was after Googling the rash and treated it successfully, but I still didn't know it was a symptom of diabetes because the info I found never stated it was.
It wasn't until I found it listed on a list of symptoms on the JDRF website that I realized it was one of many symptoms he had.
Post a Comment