What I didn't realize was that being sick means something completely different when you have diabetes. This is the first time Landon has been really sick since he was diagnosed about five months ago.
Being sick can make a diabetic's blood sugar go up really high. In fact it can go so high that they can develop ketoacidosis which can lead to a diabetic coma. Pretty scary stuff.
I knew nothing about this until Landon had breakfast yesterday. His blood sugar had been normal (between 70-180) throughout the night as you can see on the 12 hour reading on his continuous glucose monitor (CGM). After eating breakfast and receiving his insulin his blood sugar spiked. Throughout the day I'd give him insulin and it was as if his blood sugar would just laugh and continue climb even higher. He got to well above 400 and that was BEFORE lunch.
I am so thankful for our support team. I called the diabetic educator and she and Landon's endocrinologist gave us a plan to manage his blood sugar while he is sick. He skyrocketed again today but thankfully we already knew how to combat the insane blood sugar increase. We also avoided a trip to the E.R. Always a reason to be grateful.
Basil has been Landon's constant companion over the last few days. She can normally be found following me from room to room but this week she has been curled up beside him and has let him cuddle with her. It's almost as if she knows that he doesn't feel well.
I was just reading up about Diabetes Assist Dogs and how they can detect high and low blood sugar levels in diabetic patients. What an amazing aspect of God's creation. That a dog can detect a drop or spike in blood sugar, often times before any of the technological methods we have to detect blood sugar, is incredible. We haven't really thought about getting an assist dog, although Landon has mentioned it. I'm pretty sure it has little to do with the diabetic detection and more to do with the fact that he wants his own dog.
Unfortunately, another constant this week has been Pokemon on Netflix. I honestly don't know that I can take much more of that.
Here is a better shot of Landon's Dexcom CGM. It has been a lifesaver for us and has allowed us to get many full nights of sleep as well as near constant blood sugar readings. It is such a blessing to not feel blind when it comes to your child's blood sugar levels. Also, Dexcom has amazing customer service. Landon's receiver randomly stopped working one day and when I called not only were they helpful but they overnighted a new receiver free of cost.
Sadly, we are currently waging a battle with skin irritations. The Dexcom sensor has its own adhesive attached (the white oval you can see surrounding the grey transmitter). Landon seems to have a reaction to the built in adhesive. In addition, the adhesive doesn't usually last on its own for more than a couple of days despite the fact that the sensor itself is supposed to stay in for a minimum of seven days. We have been testing additional products to help keep it from falling off. Landon has never had sensitive skin before but recently we have seen some reactions to many of the adhesives in certain products. You can see he has a bit of a rash surrounding the sensor. This is actually not as severe as some of his earlier reactions.
This was his last sensor site and the rash that resulted. I hate to think of how bad his rash would have been had we not removed it when we did. The poor kid's skin was incredibly angry, hot to the touch and itchy. Thankfully, we were able to clear it up fairly quickly with some Cortisone cream.
This has been an exhausting week. I feel like I could sleep for a week. On the bright side, Landon's cold symptoms seem to be getting better. His cough isn't nearly as severe. I am praying that his blood sugar levels even out soon. Thank you to all of you who have prayed for us this week. Your prayers have truly been felt!
No comments:
Post a Comment