Week 1

So, if this is what a normal week with diabetes looks like, just shoot me now.

Our 3 children were plagued with the stomach bug for the past week. (As I knock on wood that it's actually passed...) Just when we thought they were settled and feeling better, another one would pick up where the last one left off.

This constant stress, plus the newness of Sam's diagnosis and new requirements (blood sugar tests, insulin injections) made this past week officially the toughest of my parenting career.

This week plunged us head-first into what our nurse called the "common sense" mode of diabetes care. Because Sam wasn't keeping food in him, his blood sugar remained pretty low. So most days he wasn't requiring insulin, only food to bring his levels back to normal. This was a blessing and a curse. It was a blessing in that he HATES the insulin injections and he fights and bucks and screams at us each time we give them. It was a curse in that, once the bug is gone and he's feeling better, the insulin is going to be a (3-4 times) daily part of his life.

The finger pricks (for blood sugar testing) were a battle as well. Each time, we begged Sam to stop fighting us, and each time, he yelled "NO!"  I couldn't help but think of one of the last scenes in Tangled, where Rapunzel's evil mother yells for her to stop fighting and she responds, "No! For the rest of my life, I'll never stop fighting you!"  Despite what everyone tells us; that this will get easier, that he will get used to it, that it won't be this hard forever, I see him fighting us for the rest of his life. He's always been our most stubborn child. We found a technique that works better than the 3 hour battles we were facing in the first couple of days. They are easier on us, and we think easier on him, but he still screams and fights.

We are seeing in Sam a desire to exhibit control in some aspect of his life. On day 2, he "figured out" that if he doesn't eat, he doesn't have to get poked. So he refused to eat.  And he fights us when it's time to brush his teeth. He fights us when it's time to take a bath. He fights us when it's time to put his shoes on. He is fighting and fighting and fighting.

And we are struggling with anger, and frustration, and confusion.
And we are forced to our knees in prayer.
And we are taking comfort in the truths of scripture, which are true even when they don't feel true: ‎

"We rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us."--Romans 5:3-5