Among the things I was (somewhat irrationally) worried about years ago was prom. It seemed impossible that the little person so completely dependent on me for all of her insulin-related needs could independently navigate a night of hot hors d'oeuvres, a buffet dinner and hours of dancing. And how would the prom dress fashion challenge work out with an insulin pump to incorporate into the equation? Fast forward to May, and she had an amazing night. The dress was gorgeous and nobody would have guessed there was so much hardware underneath it. She counted the carbs for appetizers, a Shirley ..read more

There are a few foods consumed around here for which the official carb count just doesn't work. Maybe the packaging is wrong? Maybe my daughter's metabolism is just way different for a few specific foods? We've decided it's more important to get the bolus right than to figure out why it happens. Foods in our regular rotation for which we've learned to adjust from standard carb counts include blueberries, for which she needs barely a hint of insulin, and a specific brand of frozen tortellini, which is probably poorly labeled.  Then there are other foods which we have to periodically relearn ..read more

Endocrinologist appointments are important touchstones in life with diabetes. It's a quarterly or tri-annual check-in at which months of diabetes are assessed as a whole. We went into the city for my daughter's appointment yesterday. There were no extraordinary clinical components to the visit except that she's now officially taller than me. Otherwise it was a run-of-the-mill appointment with conversations about adjusting basal rates and when to get lab work done again. What distinguished this appointment for me was subtle but significant. A few minutes into the conversation I noticed two ..read more