The other night, the Nick Jonas Dexcom commercial was on. He says something like, “We are sending rovers to Mars, but we are still doing finger-sticks to test our blood sugar?!?”
Without really thinking, I just answered the TV out loud and said, “Shut-up dude, I test my blood sugar on Mars all the time.”
My comment made Leslie laugh her drink out of her nose. 
Yes, this is very good advice, and I’m trying just that. Especially if we’re home and there’s really nothing too dynamic happening (trampoline is a whole other story- that thing drops him like a brick and fast).
It can be frustrating when one day with the same meal and similar circumstances things can seemingly work out just fine, but another day not at all. That’s where I need to remind myself that we really are just doing the best we can, and my son is so much more than just diabetes.
Another negative dexcom had on me personally is that I started limiting foods once I saw what some foods really did. And I hate that. I’m trying to get back “into it” and cooking/baking etc as I would have before. It’s still a struggle for me to get there (“we’ve had such a good day I don’t want to mess it up with rice!” or “we’ve had such a bad day I don’t want to throw ice cream into the mix!”). The biggest thing those days have in common is one happy kid. So who am I to say what foods are off limits- if he decides that on his own as an adult, I can completely understand. But now?? He’s a kid, and if he wants ice cream, so be it. We just have to figure it out (which is so dang hard when there are so many monkey wrenchs thrown into the mix!!)
^This, you can figure it out, you just need more practice to understand the variables.
My son, once he turned 13, limited the food himself, and asked us to cook lowish carb for him, we didn’t do anything other than suggest a limit and allow him to set it and adjust it at will. For a couple of years he was really strict on himself, staying near 100 -120 carbs a day by his choice with great control (A1c in high 5’s low 6’s) Now that he is 18 and has a lot more experience, he probably eats 150-200 carbs a day, and also splurges when he wants to. But he picks those spots pretty strategically. He has lightened up on himself and has an A1c in the mid to high 6’s. Everyone is happy, including him, because his diabetes only takes a little bit of attention.
Now that he is heading off to college he is figuring out the appointment and insurance games, and has taken over ordering his supplies. It is crazy how far he has come in just a few years. Makes me sad about the things he has to learn at such a young age, but the realities of life don’t have the sympathy that a parent has for their kiddo.
Absolutely the same story with me! Working on it, though.
This might be a “duh” observation for others, but I’ve definitely noticed within myself that my fear about lows is inversely proportional to my belief in my ability to safely catch and handle the low in a given situation.
When my husband is home, lows don’t bother me unless I’ve been doing crazy atypical eating and I have no context for what to expect and the swings are huge. But normally lows don’t bother me anymore when my husband is home bc I know I have a safety net.
When I’m out with my kids in a dynamic situation where my kids are relying on me, and we don’t know anyone, and I’m going low…I get pretty dang tense. (i.e. like at a public pool before my kids knew how to swim and the lifeguards aren’t all that attentive where we’d go).
I also think that the whiplash blood sugar swings I had through the hormonal transition after having my youngest son, going off of birth control permanently, etc…that was a SUPER tough time just from a life perspective but also definitely from a diabetes perspective. I think I’m remembering my FEAR of lows back then more than how bad the lows actually were…so when I get a surprise low now, I go back to the emotional feeling of fear, but it’s not an actual substantiated risk in the big picture.
That’s what I’m trying to retrain my brain on these days. I know my control is SO much better now, my boys are SO much older and self-sufficient (and helpful if I need them to hand me something and they can also use phones now), and I have SO many more local friends than I used to, and I know all of my neighbors now…so even though the fear still can creep in, I know it’s remnants of what used to actually be a scary situation. It’s not scary anymore and I am getting my confidence back.
That’s a good feeling. But boy, oh boy, it is a PROCESS for me. But getting to the other side feels like something that I should be proud of. 
Personally, I’ve always been vocal about being Diabetic. My thought is the more people that know, the more people that would be in a position to help if I ever had a low I couldn’t treat myself (fortunately it’s been over 30 years since that last happened).
People generally know I’m diabetic and if anything are fascinated with my wearable technology (and I’m always happy to explain what it all does, maybe to the point where they get bored and won’t ask again, ha!)
I’m generally a fairly self conscious person, but for whatever reason that doesn’t extend to diabetes treatment. Maybe because I’ve been doing it for so long, maybe because most people I interact with know what I’m doing.
Suggested revision: “Makes me PROUD about the things he has to learn at such a young age – he will be light years ahead of others in his age group in terms of health and responsibility. The realities of life will be minor hurdles for him.”
This is a good day-to-day description of priming, the expectation of dangerous or scary events. based on past experience. I know that I have everything I need to take care of a low and that if I take my carbs and breathe mindfully I’ll be fine. But lately I dread lows…even though I haven’t had one for a while (knock wood). Weird, huh?
100% agree. That’s why dexcom was such god send for me. For me it was mostly “intense” 
meetings at work where I wouldn’t know I was low until I was really low. So I was always paranoid that I was heading for a low in meetings prior dex which impacted my performance or made me run high trying to avoid a low. Nobody wants to be the guy hauled out on a gerney at work.