How to teach Your Kids about T1D:
When my brother was first diagnosed, my mom took a book to his elementary school class and read it to them. I believe the book she read was called, “Taking Diabetes to School” by Kim Gosselin and Moss Freedman. This book educates in a way that kids may begin to understand what their friend has and needs. It illustrates how a boy names Jayson takes insulin shots, checks his blood sugar, and sometimes needs special snacks. If your child is diagnosed young, as in elementary school, I highly recommend reading the class a book like this one.
Other recommended books:
Now the books I will list are not just for educating kids without Type 1 Diabetes, but for kids with Type 1 Diabetes. Some of these include:
- T1D Superhero: Origins by Emily N. Goff
This book introduces a kid named Luka. A normal kid, who is also a superhero. How? Not flying or running super-fast, but because he deals with type 1 diabetes every single day.
- When I Go Low by Ginger Vieira and Mike Lawson
This book explains and provides lessons on how to manage low blood sugars through a kid named Jax who meets other type 1 diabetics just like him!
- I’m Still Me, Can’t You See? Diabetes Won’t Stop Me by Valerie Hergenreter
This book tells the story from the perspective of a child diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. The story is illustrated to empower your child.
- My Body Beeps! Growing Up with Diabetes by Katherine Lockwood and Olga Sall
This book is about a girl named Katie, who is learning about the balance of life, friends, and managing her sugars. All these through medical devices that you and I use!
How to drive Empathy into Your Kid when addressing Autoimmune Diseases:
Empathy is a very valuable thing to understand, especially from a very young age. It shapes your kid to have deeply rooted relationships and high emotional intelligence. Autoimmune diseases are difficult to understand for anybody. But, giving your kid a leg up by having them interested in learning about their peers who struggle with these allows for empathy to grow. As a Type 1 Diabetic, the greatest impact I have felt comes from my family, my friends, and my teachers. Giving just a little bit of an interest in understanding changes everything.
How Others who Advocate Can Impact:
I was diagnosed when I was 12, my third day of 7th grade, so those books were not as helpful in developing awareness to my classmates, I had to do it on my own (besides my mom emailing my schools teachers and staff), along with the help of my teachers and friends. Fortunately, I had some very understanding teachers my first few years after diagnoses. My friends were also eager to understand what I needed. They would also speak up for me if I needed it.
Jokes?
Diabetes is usually joked about a lot, which I joke about it sometimes too. BUT, joking about it, with the knowledge of what it is, is much different, than making them without knowledge. Type 1 Diabetes is not because of too much sugar. It has nothing to do with how we eat, live, or anything. Our body, our immune system attacks itself. It attacks the insulin-producing cells, leaving us that job. Also, does it not make you think of how no one really jokes about other autoimmune disorders or diseases at the same capacity as diabetes?
What Needs to be Addressed when Teaching:
Some things that will need to be addressed is the basics of T1D, monitoring needs, recognizing highs and lows, insulin and food, and support. The basics of T1D is that the body has stopped producing insulin and is not caused by anything they may or may not have done. Monitoring needs is showing how to check blood sugar levels and the use of shots or pumps. Recognizing highs and lows is teaching them the signs of lows; shakiness, sweating, dizziness; and the signs of highs; thirst, drowsiness. As well as how to treat highs and lows.
Using insulin and water as the primary for treating highs and using fast-acting carbs to treat lows. To explain the use of insulin and food within a diabetic would be explaining how food turns into glucose and insulin allows the body to use it. A diabetic must count carbs and use their carb to insulin ratio to do the correct amount of insulin. Lastly, teaching people on how to know the signs and needs of their friends, family, and students who have type 1 diabetes. Also, allowing independence to your child with type 1 diabetes, shows them that they are able to manage it on their own if they need to. It gives them the freedom of choosing where they prick their finger, or where they may give themselves a shot.
Takeaways:
If you choose to take anything away from this, I hope you remember that when you, your child, or your friend is diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes, it does not mean that life is over. You still have so much freedom, learning to manage it with the support of others is wonderful. Having empathy towards others who deal with something as consistently difficult as t1d, is so kind and pure. Diabetes jokes can be funny but know who you are by and have knowledge of what type1 diabetes actually is. Lastly, I highly recommend giving those books a read if your young child is diagnosed, especially to their class.
Thanks!
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Peace
Gracie
