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Parent of newly diagnosed 2 year old.
- Thread starter DarrenC
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Hi, It was caught early luckily so he is quite well at the moment. He is still in hospital while they try to bring his glucose and ketones down. Unfortunately I can’t see him that much due to Covid-19 rules at the hospital.
I have 2 older children 5 and 9 so it’s going to be a big adjustment for the whole family.
I have 2 older children 5 and 9 so it’s going to be a big adjustment for the whole family.
Inka
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Let me tag a couple of parents for you - @Thebearcametoo @Bronco Billy .
There’s a great book called Type 1 Diabetes in Children Adolescents and Young People by Ragnar Hanas that you might find helpful.
There’s a great book called Type 1 Diabetes in Children Adolescents and Young People by Ragnar Hanas that you might find helpful.
trophywench
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- Type 1
Aaaaah ! poor little darlin - and poor old you. They can't decide anything whatever without either you or his dad, preferably both - so they'll have to make arrangements for you to be there. 'Any minute now' and the other children can be with grandparents or whoever else you and they trust - it will get sorted and you'll all be at home together very soon with all the relevant info and equipment, I'm sure.
Inka
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
I find Dextro (glucose) tablets work well, and taste like sweets. There are different flavours. If not, and when you’re home, a couple of teaspoons of sugar stirred into a small amount of milk is good. Personally I dont find fruit juice as fast.
There are also Gluco Shots (flavoured glucose drinks) that work well and aren’t ‘sharp’ like fruit juice.
There are also Gluco Shots (flavoured glucose drinks) that work well and aren’t ‘sharp’ like fruit juice.
SB2015
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Welcome to the forum @DarrenC .
So sorry to hear of your son’s diagnosis. It is a big adjustment initially but it will become just part of a new ‘normal’ for you all. The book by Ragnar Hanas @Inka mentioned is very good. It explains things very clearly and is regularly updated so worth looking for the latest edition.
Juices can taste a bit acidic, and I find it better to dilute them. They do get leveks up more quickly but you need something that he finds okay to drink/eat. My choice is usually Jelly Babies. They are easy to carry around and take up a lot less space. I find gluco tabs a bit dry and difficult to ‘get going’. Whatever you end up choosing have them everywhere in the house. Once he is home and you start to get out and about (which you will) you could have a backpack that always has these essentials in.
It is a lot to take in board. Work with the specialist team and they will take you through things step by step. They are there to support you so don’t feel that you are pestering them, just ask. That is what they are there for.
Also feel free to fire away with questions in here. No questions are considered silly and there is loads of experience to draw on. Keep in touch.
So sorry to hear of your son’s diagnosis. It is a big adjustment initially but it will become just part of a new ‘normal’ for you all. The book by Ragnar Hanas @Inka mentioned is very good. It explains things very clearly and is regularly updated so worth looking for the latest edition.
Juices can taste a bit acidic, and I find it better to dilute them. They do get leveks up more quickly but you need something that he finds okay to drink/eat. My choice is usually Jelly Babies. They are easy to carry around and take up a lot less space. I find gluco tabs a bit dry and difficult to ‘get going’. Whatever you end up choosing have them everywhere in the house. Once he is home and you start to get out and about (which you will) you could have a backpack that always has these essentials in.
It is a lot to take in board. Work with the specialist team and they will take you through things step by step. They are there to support you so don’t feel that you are pestering them, just ask. That is what they are there for.
Also feel free to fire away with questions in here. No questions are considered silly and there is loads of experience to draw on. Keep in touch.
Thebearcametoo
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Parent of person with diabetes
We usually use gluco tabs for night time hypos followed by some milk as the slow release carbs and that helps neutralise some of the sugar on teeth. Your team will go over the suggestions for hypos many times over the next few weeks so don’t worry too much about knowing everything now. They’ll go over which sugars are fastest to get into the blood (glucose and dextrose) and give you gel and juice on prescription - my kid doesn’t much like either so we tend to do dextrose or glucose tabs or lucozade sport as first options or fruit juice or sweets (not chocolate as the fat slows down sugar absorption). You will end up with an array of choices and probably do a bit of a mix of options depending what you have to hand at the time.
It will feel overwhelming to begin with and it feels like everything will change hugely but you will soon get in your stride. We’re here to support you through the wobbles as well as help with info.
It will feel overwhelming to begin with and it feels like everything will change hugely but you will soon get in your stride. We’re here to support you through the wobbles as well as help with info.
Hi Everyone,
My son was allowed home for dinner and we had some lovely family time. Took his bloods and gave him his insulin for the first time at home. I’m sure everyone has different opinions and everyone’s situation is different what questions should we ask regarding pumps and CGM is it something we should push for?
My son was allowed home for dinner and we had some lovely family time. Took his bloods and gave him his insulin for the first time at home. I’m sure everyone has different opinions and everyone’s situation is different what questions should we ask regarding pumps and CGM is it something we should push for?
Thebearcametoo
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Parent of person with diabetes
You will be offered a pump and possibly a Libre when it’s appropriate. Right now you have a lot to get your head around and a pump whilst amazing technology is another level of learning on top. They are usually offered though so your team will work with you on it. Libre is likely to be offered too. My advice is give yourself a week or two to your head around where you’re at. You’ll have a lot of contact with your team over the next few weeks so there will be plenty of chances to talk to them about options. FWIW we didn’t get a pump for 18 months because that’s what suited us and have gone back into injections recently for a break. Here they do pump info sessions 3-4 times a year and even once you’ve picked what pump you want the paperwork takes several weeks. Libre is usually quicker to get sorted.
Hi Everyone,
My son was released from hospital yesterday and is now settling back to life at home. We had a meeting with the team and have been offered a CGM of Dexcom and Medtronic 640 pump. We could also have the Medtronic sensors but this still means daily finger pricks. Does anyone have experience of this combination in a 2 year old?
My son was released from hospital yesterday and is now settling back to life at home. We had a meeting with the team and have been offered a CGM of Dexcom and Medtronic 640 pump. We could also have the Medtronic sensors but this still means daily finger pricks. Does anyone have experience of this combination in a 2 year old?
Thebearcametoo
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Parent of person with diabetes
That’s great. My daughter is older and we use a tslim when she has the pump on but the dexcom is great. If you use the follow app you can get his alerts to your phone (if you use Apple phones and want to put your phone on do not disturb at night you can use Sugarmate where you can add them to your favourites and the call will bypass the do not disturb). My big warning about CGMs is to try not to micro manage his levels. Because you can see what’s happening all the time the temptation can be to react when he’s only part way through the cycle of an insulin dose. The beauty of using a pump with a smaller child is you can get smaller doses of basal and that will help keep him stable.
Take things slowly for the first few weeks. You are dealing with a lot of information and having to build new habits. It will take a bit of time for his team to fine tune his ratios and basal and the first few weeks are all about data collection.
Hope you manage to sleep and settle into the new routine quickly.
- Relationship to Diabetes
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Welcome to the forum @DarrenC
Glad your little man has been able to come home.
I used the MM640G with sensors, and found the predictive glucose suspend (Smartguard) really helpful. It’s quite an old model now... but I think some of the newer ‘hybrid closed loop’ pumps (MM780G and Tandem tSlim) aren’t suitable for children, especially those as young as yours.
I know a couple of families who used insulin pumps with small children, and found them very very helpful. And one mum who used to be a member here (whose daughter is now grown and studying medicine) wrote this to help new parents:
forum.diabetes.org.uk
Glad your little man has been able to come home.
I used the MM640G with sensors, and found the predictive glucose suspend (Smartguard) really helpful. It’s quite an old model now... but I think some of the newer ‘hybrid closed loop’ pumps (MM780G and Tandem tSlim) aren’t suitable for children, especially those as young as yours.
I know a couple of families who used insulin pumps with small children, and found them very very helpful. And one mum who used to be a member here (whose daughter is now grown and studying medicine) wrote this to help new parents:
The essential guide for parents of newly diagnosed children pt.1
Written by Adrienne - many thanks from all the Moderators! Hiya I have been asked to write a ‘sticky’ for the parents, especially the newly diagnosed families. So welcome to all. A bit about me and mine first. We've been at this 11 years now, my daughter is 11 years old and had her first...
forum.diabetes.org.uk
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