Diagnosed
The Doctor asked, "What do yo think it is?"
I was October 16th, 2008. My Mom had taken me to our family doctor's office to see what could be causing my extreme, never ending thirst. At first, mom thought it was because the weather was so warm. As the days cooled down, and days got shorter, she noticed that I had been drinking even more than usual.
My mom sighed, and her answer to the question was that she was afraid it was diabetes. Then came the hard part. Dr. Connel, the doctor who has been taking care of my family for years, and who in fact delivered me, had to tell us that my mom was right. I did have diabetes. She called the IWK (children's hospital in Halifax) and told us they would be waiting for us in Emergency.
We went outside and caught the next bus going to the IWK. It was cold outside, and my hands were like ice. When we walked into the emergency room, a nurse told us to take a number and to wait. The ER was warm, and smelled like hand sanitizer and that weird hospital cleanser they clean the floor with. Looking around, I noticed people in worse situations than me. Some people had a broken leg or arm. Others had serious cases of the flu, coughing so hard they couldn't breathe. The difference between those people and me was that, they seemed in a lot of pain, so I stopped pitying myself so much.
Our number was called, and a nurse in yellow scrubs took my blood pressure, heart rate, and pricked my finder with a painful needle. It hurt a little when she massaged my finger until enough blood came out to fill 3 small vials, and then put a bandage on it. Soon an emergency room doctor came in, and told me that having diabetes wan not the end of the world. He told me about some of the famous people and live saving surgeons that have diabetes. He said that diabetes won't get in the way of anything if I don't let it.
I wasn't just diagnosed with diabetes that day. I was also diagnosed with hypothyroid disease that is common with diabetes. It is when your thyroid (an organ in your throat that helps metabolize your food) is under active. It can lead to being overweight, and pills are used to treat it.
The day I was diagnosed with type 1 juvenile diabetes was the day I decided to find a cure.
I needed to start with taking control of my diagnoses. There was a lot to learn, and managing a strict mealtime schedule, along with reading every nutrition label, testing and recording my blood glucose levels and making adjustments to my insulin does was very time consuming. This was my mom's job. There were lots of nights when my parents did not get a lot of sleep - there still are. The thing about diabetes is that it does not shut off when I go to bed. My mom and dad make sure that I am "safe" while I sleep at night, and I will not usually know when my blood is being tested, unless they wake me for what my dad likes to call my "midnight feast" (juice and granola bar) if my sugar levels are low.
Eight months after being diagnosed "Megan's Team" participated in the JDRF Telus walk. Nine months after I was diagnosed I went to Camp Lion Maxwell with 70 other diabetic kids, it was there that I started doing my own insulin injections (4 or more a day). I have gotten a group of kids from my school to do a car wash, and have bake sales to help raise money for research. I have been a youth ambassador for the Telus walk and for JDRF's "Ride to cure Diabetes". This year I am on the Maritime Team with my dad for Cyclebetes - which is a national bike relay from Vancouver to Nova Scotia. My team will be cycling from Quebec City to Nova Scotia.
I am achieving my goals. We manage very good controls on my blood glucose and I am now on an insulin pump. I am doing everything I can to spread the word about diabetes, and to ask for help in funding research that will one day mean I will no longer be Megan Beamish - who has Type 1 diabetes, but instead will be Megan Beamish - who has a miraculous story to tell.
If you can please donate to my fundraising efforts at: http://bit.ly/mPYwXD
If you would like to learn more about the specific research project that all my donations will be directed to please go to: http://bit.ly/fXwijt
The Doctor asked, "What do yo think it is?"
I was October 16th, 2008. My Mom had taken me to our family doctor's office to see what could be causing my extreme, never ending thirst. At first, mom thought it was because the weather was so warm. As the days cooled down, and days got shorter, she noticed that I had been drinking even more than usual.
My mom sighed, and her answer to the question was that she was afraid it was diabetes. Then came the hard part. Dr. Connel, the doctor who has been taking care of my family for years, and who in fact delivered me, had to tell us that my mom was right. I did have diabetes. She called the IWK (children's hospital in Halifax) and told us they would be waiting for us in Emergency.
We went outside and caught the next bus going to the IWK. It was cold outside, and my hands were like ice. When we walked into the emergency room, a nurse told us to take a number and to wait. The ER was warm, and smelled like hand sanitizer and that weird hospital cleanser they clean the floor with. Looking around, I noticed people in worse situations than me. Some people had a broken leg or arm. Others had serious cases of the flu, coughing so hard they couldn't breathe. The difference between those people and me was that, they seemed in a lot of pain, so I stopped pitying myself so much.
Our number was called, and a nurse in yellow scrubs took my blood pressure, heart rate, and pricked my finder with a painful needle. It hurt a little when she massaged my finger until enough blood came out to fill 3 small vials, and then put a bandage on it. Soon an emergency room doctor came in, and told me that having diabetes wan not the end of the world. He told me about some of the famous people and live saving surgeons that have diabetes. He said that diabetes won't get in the way of anything if I don't let it.
I wasn't just diagnosed with diabetes that day. I was also diagnosed with hypothyroid disease that is common with diabetes. It is when your thyroid (an organ in your throat that helps metabolize your food) is under active. It can lead to being overweight, and pills are used to treat it.
The day I was diagnosed with type 1 juvenile diabetes was the day I decided to find a cure.
I needed to start with taking control of my diagnoses. There was a lot to learn, and managing a strict mealtime schedule, along with reading every nutrition label, testing and recording my blood glucose levels and making adjustments to my insulin does was very time consuming. This was my mom's job. There were lots of nights when my parents did not get a lot of sleep - there still are. The thing about diabetes is that it does not shut off when I go to bed. My mom and dad make sure that I am "safe" while I sleep at night, and I will not usually know when my blood is being tested, unless they wake me for what my dad likes to call my "midnight feast" (juice and granola bar) if my sugar levels are low.
Eight months after being diagnosed "Megan's Team" participated in the JDRF Telus walk. Nine months after I was diagnosed I went to Camp Lion Maxwell with 70 other diabetic kids, it was there that I started doing my own insulin injections (4 or more a day). I have gotten a group of kids from my school to do a car wash, and have bake sales to help raise money for research. I have been a youth ambassador for the Telus walk and for JDRF's "Ride to cure Diabetes". This year I am on the Maritime Team with my dad for Cyclebetes - which is a national bike relay from Vancouver to Nova Scotia. My team will be cycling from Quebec City to Nova Scotia.
I am achieving my goals. We manage very good controls on my blood glucose and I am now on an insulin pump. I am doing everything I can to spread the word about diabetes, and to ask for help in funding research that will one day mean I will no longer be Megan Beamish - who has Type 1 diabetes, but instead will be Megan Beamish - who has a miraculous story to tell.
If you can please donate to my fundraising efforts at: http://bit.ly/mPYwXD
If you would like to learn more about the specific research project that all my donations will be directed to please go to: http://bit.ly/fXwijt
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