Day 95

Do you have a T1D Athlete??

well we do..

Today I thought I would share a few things having to do with that..

When Craig was first diagnosed 8 months ago (I cannot believe its only been 8 months!), we really wanted him to be able to "go on with his life" and keep doing the things he loves.. Baseball being one of them.

In the beginning this was very hard.... We only knew that if he was active, his numbers should be a little higher than normal and that he would need carbs to help sustain a good number as he was using so much energy..

This was a lot more intricate than you might think..

First off, he could start at a good number, then have gatorade to help keep his numbers up, but then that would get him too high...Then he would drink more water and have a small carb snack that he did not get a shot for.. But after he was done with practice, he would drop quick..
When he has early morning practices, he runs high for some reason..So we have to bring insulin too just in case he needs insulin. 

It really took us a while to figure out just how his body works and what HE needs to be athletic with T1D.

Every child is different! Here are a few tips from our point of view, what we have done, learned and what works for us:

• Check glucose before practice. If it is around 200, that is great..It gives them a little leeway with dropping or raising.. If is is low, under 140, then have them eat a small maybe 15 carb snack that has protien as well.  This snack will help get them at a good range while also helping them to keep a good number while at practice. If they are high, above 300, they should check for Ketones and drink a lot of water. If the child has ketones, they should not participate.
• Have you essentials for an athlete: gatorade (or half water, half gatorade that they can sip on), lots of water, carb snacks, protein (jerky or nuts are good), tablets or quick sugars, Glucagon (very important because you should have this in any emergency), Meter and insulin as well.
• Check glucose every hour of activity. 
• Keep good communication with your childs coach.  Train them in the glucagon, signs of highs and lows and make sure they are comfortable as well.
• Educate the players too!! Just have a quick meeting where everyone is there and you can tell them about type 1.  Make sure they know the seriousness of this disease..Let them know signs of highs and lows, and why your child needs to check their glucose.  The more people around your child who are educated, the safer your child will be!
• Keep a log when the child is active, soon you will begin to see patterns and can guesstimate more about what your child needs specifically when they are active.
• After the athletic activity, check glucose. If it is under 200, give your child a carb/protien snack.  Why?? Because this whole time, your child has been using a lot of energy.. Soon after they are done, their blood sugar will drop.  If they have a snack, it is less likely to drop to a dangerous range.  This is especially important in the evening.  A lot of times Craig has late games.. If they do come home and go to bed within an hour after their excersize, I would for sure do an evening check.. Like I said, their blood sugar will drop...Its not  a good idea to go straight to bed after activity.. Craig always stays up a bit just to be sure.. He has had some lows at night in the beginning and now we just make sure he is good..Get that protein!!
• Make sure your child KNOWS that its ok to stop playing or practicing if they are feeling weird.. They could be high or low..shaky or sweaty..They should not feel "bad" or like the game is more important.. Craig has had to get gatorade on the mound before....An done time he was playing short stop and my husband and I looked at him and could tell something was "off"".   We told the coach and Craig checked..yep, he was low.. He looked as if he were moving in slow motion...But he didnt know it (this was in the beginning after dx, he is much better about feeling and listening to those feelings now)...

Its very hard at first to know when and what to do.. For us, it was trial and error..practice and preparation...Now things are much easier when Craig is active.. Although with Type 1, things are always changing and his numbers are always different, but we can see his patterns now and know what HIS body needs when he is active..

Its a lot harder for madi..She gets super low when she is swimming..and she drops quick! So we know to make her snack the whole time when she is active since she has a hard time telling us when she "feels" low...

Good luck!!

this is Craig just a month and a half after DX..Championship ring!!

One thing that is so important to teach kids (in my opinion), is that Type 1 doesnt have to rule your life..You can still do the things you love, you can still achieve your dreams and you can still do what others can..It just takes a lot more preparation and work..But it IS possible:)