When You Fall Off A Horse, You Call A Friend

After my last post of the 2:00 a.m. debacle, a few things happened.

First, we had our walk to cure t1d.

Then, we had our hospital patient picnic.

And then, we had a friend that generously shared a visit with Medtronic.

All three of those events were highly helpful.  At the walk, I was able to talk to a Medtronic representative at his booth.  While he was trying to understand what was happening to our sensors, a friend from our local support group stopped by the same booth.  Overhearing our conversation, she offered the girls and I a chance to stop by her home for a planned visit from her rep at Medtronic.

Talk about stars aligning and being at the right place at the right time.  I jumped at the opportunity and made plans immediately.

The next day, during our picnic, I ran into a few different families that were also trying out the 530g and had similiar error issues with their child's sensors.  While this isn't exactly what you want to hear, it is also helpful in the sense that suddenly, you feel less alone.  These are common issues that most likely have resolutions.  The best thing is to focus on finding out what those resolutions are.

Two days later, I was able to go to the friend's house and meet her rep from Medtronic.  In the way that can only happen from a group of knowledgeable individuals, our information was shared and resolved.  After two hours, oldest daughter - listening in at the meeting so that she knew - and myself, felt 100% more comfortable than we did on the night before the big birthday.

Amazing.  

My take away is that while I feel like I shouldn't bother our reps or our hospital staff, especially after 8 years, I still need to remember that we are learning on this journey.  Taking advantage of a professional's knowledge base is not only valuable but absolutely necessary.  And really, I need to do more of that.

One final moment that had me feeling a bit in awe was hearing my oldest say that she wanted to insert the CGM sensor while we were at our friend's house with the Medtronic rep.  With more bravery than I may ever have had in my life, she carefully cleaned off her belly, held up the sensor and gave it a click.  It was scary and terrifying for both of us but she was so determined to be the one to insert the sensor.

Bravery.

I think that was a critical moment in turning the negatives of the situation that we had been in, right back into a positive.  When the sensor calibrated and the blood sugars started to appear, it wasn't because of something that mom did.  It was by the strength and determination of oldest daughter's own mind.  She 'fixed' the sensor.  And now, she has the confidence to continue to be proactive in her diabetes care.

I wish we could bottle up these success moments.  I would make us swill them like a shot.  Especially for those 2:00 a.m. ugly moments that happen once in a while.  But we can't, so the next best thing is to write this down and try to remember that feeling.  I may even print this one off and tuck it away for her to read when the going gets tough.