Yep, I used to. ;) Parents of diabetic children also have to check on their child during the middle of the night. I check Caylin before I go to bed around 10 p.m. and then every morning at 2:07 a.m. my alarm on my phone sounds and I stumble into my daughter’s room half asleep and check her blood sugar. 99% of the time she sleeps right through it. Sometimes though if her blood sugar is low, and I’ve caught some lows before, I have to wake her up to give her some fast-acting glucose and a bit of chocolate almond milk (the protein in the almond milk helps to stabilize her blood sugar) and then I have to brush her teeth again.
If I do catch a low blood sugar, then after giving her some food/drink to stabilize her blood sugar I will recheck her again shortly after that and sometimes do multiple checks to be sure all is ok.
It can most definitely be frustrating. It can definitely be a pain, but it’s what needs to be done and so I do it. Since I stay at home with the kids, I chose to be the one who gets up every time to check on her so that my husband can sleep through the night. My husband is also a heavy sleeper. ;)
It’s not easy, trust me, but almost 2 years into it, my body is pretty much used to it and thankfully I’m a morning person and so I’m not really grumpy in the morning. ;)
The nighttime can be a scary thing for a parent of a diabetic child and doing those middle of the night blood sugar checks brings peace of mind and allows us to make sure that our sweet children will wake up happy and healthy in the morning.
That, to me, is worth losing a bit of sleep over.
tara pollard pakosta
December 18, 2012 at 8:41 amthat is really really rough, no matter how you look at it!
losing sleep is TOUGH! I did that when I nursed ava for 3 years
that child would wake me up 3-15 times a night, I was so sleep deprived!
I know what that feels like and now add worry to the situation, not good!
you are an amazing mom and that is great that you check her in the middle of the night.
that is always when tom (my old boss, who I lived with them as the nanny for their kids for almost
5 years) would get his lows and it was AWFUL! he was always falling and getting hurt….
much love and hugs to you because I really do know how hard diabetes can be and I have seen it firsthand and it must be 100% more hard with a child!!!
you have done so much for the community of diabetes and that is AMAZING!!!
tara
Kristina
December 20, 2012 at 8:54 amThank you, sweet Tara! Hugs! Merry Christmas!
LeiShell
December 18, 2012 at 11:40 amI never realized that diabetics had to do night checks…but makes sense. What a mom you are! I applaud you!
Kristina
December 20, 2012 at 8:54 amThank you so much! Hugs!
Latrice
December 19, 2012 at 12:20 amYou are such an amazing mom. You brush her teeth again? I’d be a zombie. I stopped by to say congrats on the PL team. You are going to totally rock it. We need to chat more. Thanks for everything and being a good model parent.
Kristina
December 20, 2012 at 8:54 amThank you sweet, Latrice! :)
I mostly am a zombie, but I just couldn’t bare for her teeth to suffer.
I want her to always have a beautiful smile so I do what I have to do. :)
Thank you for the congrats, too! I am SO excited! We do need to chat more!
Thank you so much for the sweet words my friend! Hugs!!!
Karen (New Zealand)
December 19, 2012 at 1:11 amHi Kristina – Curious as to why you give Caylin some fast-acting insulin if she is low in the night. I’m also diabetic, having had it since I was three, & know that this would really mess my sugar levels if I was already low.
Kristina
December 19, 2012 at 6:44 amHi Karen!
Whoops – I totally meant fast-acting GLUCOSE – not insulin. See what being sleep deprived can do? LOL! Thanks for pointing that out! I’m going to go and edit that. Thanks! Hugs!
Leeann
February 17, 2013 at 6:55 amHi Kristina! Thanks so much for sharing your life with all of us strangers. I work mainly with patients who have type 2 diabetes and when I do meet those with type 1 I see what experts they are re: their bodies. I am unsure whether a continuous glucose monitor is an option, but here is a link for one that will transmit the glucose reading to an alarm at your bedside. I know that most insurance companies don’t cover these, but still want to just suggest this type of product: http://www.medtronicdiabetes.com/products/mysentry
I will continue to learn from you. Thanks so much. You are in my prayers.