CWD News
The Courage to be Imperfect with Diabetes
When people talk about diabetes, I find there are two main areas of focus: 1. Complications associated with diabetes, and 2. The behaviors the PWD is doing that may contribute to these complications. Fear is a powerful motivator, and I feel that much of the commentary is driven by people’s fears of what can go […]
“An Open Letter to Adults with Type 1”
There is something strange about standing at the edge of adulthood as a parent of a child with type 1 diabetes. For years, you have been the backup plan. The carb counter. The late-night Dexcom watcher. The one who remembers the extra infusion set, the low snacks in the glove compartment, and the glucagon at […]
Mini-Dosing Glucagon
Using glucagon for low blood sugars outside of emergency situations became relatively common starting in the early 2000s.1 The idea began at a diabetes camp, where lows are usually a common challenge. Kids are very active at camp compared to at home (most of the time), so the medical staff at diabetes camp usually set […]
Not Just for Emergencies: Learning to Trust Glucagon
There are a few things in the diabetes world that feel bigger than they actually are. Glucagon is one of them. For a long time, I thought of it as the “worst-case scenario” tool. The thing you hope you never have to use. The thing you carry, but keep quietly tucked away at the bottom […]
A Place to Wait…Together
There are moments in this community that feel small on the surface, but you can tell right away they mean something bigger. At Friends for Life Hershey, one of those moments came in the form of a wristband. Green and orange, woven together. For years, those colors have told a story. Green for those who […]
Using CGM in Early Stage T1D
There have been many recent developments in screening and delaying the onset of Stage 3 Type 1 Diabetes (T1D). While there has been a lot of news and hype about Teplizumab, there has been less focus on what to do during the waiting period when someone is in stage 1 or stage 2. Here is […]
Precision Medicine in Diabetes Technologies
Diabetes technologies such as Continuous Glucose Monitors (CGMs) and Automated Insulin Delivery Systems (AIDs) have revolutionized the way diabetes is managed. As a Certified Diabetes Care and Education Specialist (CDCES), I often find myself discussing the intricacies of the systems with families living with diabetes. It seems that for many of us people with diabetes […]
The 10 Minutes That Stay With Us
There is something strange about diabetes appointments as a parent. You prepare for days, sometimes weeks, for a conversation that lasts ten minutes. Ten minutes to explain patterns that took months to unfold. Ten minutes to summarize sleepless nights, stubborn highs, scary lows, and everything in between. Ten minutes to answer the question everyone asks […]
Defining Severe Hypoglycemia
Fear of hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) is a very common experience for people with diabetes (PWD) and their loved ones. It’s hard not to be afraid of lows when they can become debilitating so quickly. While high blood sugars are more likely to cause long-term complications, low blood sugar is an acute challenge that cannot […]
The Support Got Quieter. Your Rights Did Not. (What adults with type 1 need to know about ADA protections.)
If you are an adult living with type 1 diabetes, you have likely felt this shift. The support does not disappear. It just gets quieter. When you are young, type 1 diabetes comes with structure. Plans. Meetings. Accommodations that are clearly written and enforced. As an adult, that structure fades. And the expectation becomes simple. […]