A Series on Gains

Initially I could see NOTHING that could be considered a gain with the diagnosis of Type 1 Diabetes.  So much was lost the minute we heard those words.  So many hard things were ahead for our precious little girls.  How could ANYTHING be gained by a disease that strives daily to take our girls' lives?

When I first posted about 'loss' I asked other parents to share what they felt was lost.  From that question, some also shared what they felt was 'gained'.  At the time, that sounded so foreign.  So unrreal.  How could anyone think ANYTHING positive could come from T1D?  I felt the devastation it was causing deeply. I saw the fear in my girls eyes every time I had to poke their fingers or stick them with a needle to give them insulin.  Positive?  What could be positive about any of this?

Yet, here I am.  Sharing some positives we have discovered from this road.   We are now almost 6 months into this new journey and I CAN see some positives; some things that have been GAINED as a result of this diagnosis.

A big one?

Bravery.

Our girls are SO brave.

That's something they have gained.

With the new school year starting, posts of kiddos going for their yearly check-ups are all over my Facebook feed.  I've seen numerous times how little ones have had to have multiple shots for vaccinations and maybe a finger poke to check for lead, iron, or possibly even glucose levels.  Responses to such posts have included numerous people applauding the bravery of these little ones.   I'll admit, prior to our girls' diagnoses, I did think they were brave when they had to get their vaccination shots and did so with minimal tears.  Now?  Now I KNOW how brave our girls really are.  When I saw the posts on kiddos getting shots, I couldn't help but think, "our girls go through that every day before they even eat breakfast."  It's surreal.  It's sad.  Yet, it does demonstrate just how brave they have become.

Both girls used to be TERRIFIED of shots. They hated them.  Selah would cry hours before her appointment if she THOUGHT she was going to get a shot.  Now?  Before every meal, large snack, and bedtime she just bares her little leg, tummy, or tush in preparation for her life saving insulin shot.  It's just part of life. She doesn't cry.  She rarely even cringes.  Same with Trinity.  She can even give herself her own shot.  Not to mention the multitude of times each day they have to prick their fingers to check their blood glucose levels.

When my mom was in ICU I saw her fingers.  She had been on steroids to clear her lungs and the medication had caused her blood glucose levels to rise.  They were doing finger pokes multiple times a day to monitor her.  As her health declined, those 'finger pokes' didn't heal, as our girls do.  I could see the black, bruised, pooling blood that was showing through the surface of her skin.  I cried.  For her, but also because I realized, THAT'S what I put my little girls through every day, many times a day, and will for the rest of their lives.

Talk about being brave.  I know some days their little fingers hurt and they don't want another poke, but... they also know they don't have a choice.  In order to give the proper amount of insulin, we need to KNOW their blood glucose levels. So... they suck it up and check their levels.

Bravery!

Definitely a gain.