Type 1 Tuesday : The Coffee Cup

I thought I’d do something new on my blog.

It has almost been 1 1/2 years now since my daughter’s diagnosis of Type 1 Diabetes. Sure things have calmed down and we’ve settled into this “new normal” as a family, but I have found that a lot of people don’t understand Type 1 or don’t even know what Type 1 is. As I sat in the waiting room of Caylin’s endocrinologist a couple of weeks ago, my heart broke. The waiting room was FULL of kids – some of them were even babies. Sigh. Type 1 Diabetes is touching so many lives and I wanted to do a little something on my blog each week to educate and encourage people about/with Type 1 or those who have loved ones with Type 1. 

If you know anything about me, you probably already know that I’m a pretty positive person. I like to see the good in every situation and every person. I don’t like to dwell on hardships or struggles or things that get me down. Let’s face it – we ALL have those. Instead I like to remember the blessings, the sweet moments, the important things, the goodness in EVERYthing. So that is why on my blog I may touch on Type 1 here and there, but I decided that I didn’t want to devote my entire blog to it or even start another blog to devote to it. It’s just not what I feel like I should do. Type 1 is a part of our life, but it’s just one part.

So instead, I thought devoting a bit of time each week to it would be a neat compromise. :) Maybe I’ll post a photo. Maybe it’ll be a fact about Type 1 you might not know. Maybe it’ll be about a cool product that I love that helps Caylin and our family deal with Type 1. No matter what – it’ll be something useful, I think. Something worth reading that may help educate you and/or your family.

I am SO appreciative of the blogs that I read that DO devote SO much of their blog to help others who are dealing with Type 1 in some way, whether they have it or someone they love has it. Those blogs have been so encouraging and supportive to me not to mention I have “met” some wonderful people because of them. I admire those parents. They teach ME so much and it’s so helpful in so many ways. Knowing you are NOT alone does wonders for the soul.

If you have ANY questions at all that you are curious about or want to know about Type 1, please leave me a comment on this post. No question is too silly or weird. I’m happy to take the time to answer them in upcoming “Type 1 Tuesday” posts. Heck, I may not even know the answer, but I’ll find it! ;)

I pray that God will use these “Type 1 Tuesday” posts to help people. Even if it helps just one person, it’s worth it to me. Thank you for reading.

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For today’s first “Type 1 Tuesday” I thought I’d post something random. :)

Right after we got home from the hospital with our daughter (she stayed a few days in the hospital right after her diagnosis) I found myself staring at all of the alcohol pads, syringes, insulin vials, etc. in the middle of our kitchen. I was overcome with sadness and scared … to death. I also found myself in a puddle of tears as I was reminded over and over again in my mind that now more than ever we were responsible for our daughter’s life. I wanted to do whatever I could to find comfort, if even in a small and silly way. Well, this coffee cup was one of those ways.

I thought if maybe I put the alcohol pads and syringes that I had to use multiple times a day in a pretty coffee cup that somehow, some way, it would help. You know what? The crazy thing is that it did. LOL! Instead of seeing the “medical equipment” every time I’d go to the little area in my kitchen, I saw this pretty mug and it made a difference. I know it sounds silly but it was just one of those “coping mechanisms” that was a little blessing to me. This inexpensive coffee mug from Target helped me. Imagine that. And each and every time I’d go to grab a syringe to draw up my daughter’s insulin at every meal,  this cup would remind me of something. It would remind me that even though there were some things inside of my life now that were hard, scary and uncertain, that the cup was still full, it was beautiful and it was strong. This cup was my “life.”

Yep, this coffee cup helped me. It still sits in our kitchen cabinet full of syringes and alcohol pads and I still grab it several times a day.

And yes, it still continues to remind me to, “Remember how full my life is. Remember how beautiful my life is and to remember how strong I am.” Kinda neat a cheap mug can do that. ;)

•  Special shout-out to my super awesome and talented niece, Kelsie, for drawing that syringe for me that is in my Type 1 Tuesday logo. She rocks. :)