12: When Your Child Gets Derailed by Diabetes

Sweet Talk for Parents of Kids with Type One Diabetes

Having a newly diagnosed T1D child sends parents on a new and unexpected journey. Today’s question is from a mom who is struggling with all the pieces of the T1D journey with her preteen daughter. As is expected, her daughter wants to be private about her diabetes because she wants to fit in with her peers, and she just wants life to be about other things besides T1D. This shows up in anger and frustration with what is now required of her in diabetes management. Join us for the conversation.

Show Highlights:

• Guest: Amy’s daughter, Katie (12), was diagnosed with T1D just two months ago in September, and she’s being homeschooled now for 6th grade.
• How Amy’s family has felt flooded and emotionally overwhelmed with this diagnosis and all the pieces to the T1D puzzle
• How Katie is super private and embarrassed about T1D and refuses to let anyone else be around when she has an injection
• Amy’s Question: “I want to ask about the grief piece that seems to be lingering and unending. It sometimes shows up in Katie as anger, especially in the mornings as we have transitioned to homeschool until she's ready to get back into school, so I need strategies for managing those emotions in the moment. I also need to know how to handle the fact that she doesn’t want anyone to know that she has T1D.”
• JoAnne’s Answer: “I think it’s important to normalize her life as much as possible, and a big piece of that is having her return to school instead of being homeschooled. She needs to know that her life can be normal and stay on track even though the T1D diagnosis has derailed you for a time. The most important aspect is to figure out how you both will live normal lives while managing T1D. By having her at home, you are communicating to her that “this” is too much and too big. Look to partner with the school nurse and teachers to make sure they know what she needs. You have to find the line between what Katie wants and what the reality is. You may have to push her to get her on board with doing what she needs to regarding dosing at school, and get her to understand that her T1D cannot be private from the adults who care for her at school. We, as parents, have to be practical about the suffering our T1D kids are enduring because they have to learn to tolerate it. They don’t have a choice about the pain of injections, but their lives can remain intact. It might be helpful to find a T1D mentor for her from the local high school, and it’s not something you give her a choice about– because she doesn’t know what she needs.”

Resources:

Mentioned in this episode: Anxious Kids, Anxious Parents by Reid Wilson

Visit my website for available resources: www.diabetessweettalk.com

*Visit my website to get my Self-Care Kit to bring more ease and balance into your diabetes management routine!

For help with the emotional and parenting challenges of facing T1D management, join one of our live recording sessions by clicking the banner at the top of the homepage.

For a more hopeful future for you and your T1D child, consider the After Diagnosis coaching course at www.diabetessweettalk.com/courses.

Experienced T1D parents can find help in the Put Diabetes in Its Place course at www.diabetessweettalk.com/courses.

Mentioned in this episode:

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Get back to being the calm and sturdy parent you were before your child's diagnosis with the After Diagnosis Course to help ease your mind and return you to calm parenting. Go to https://diabetessweettalk.com/courses.