My 5 year old son was diagnosed with Type 1 almost 2 weeks ago. Now that we ( the family) are in a routine, I would like to have my son go on regular playdates and occasionally have a dinner out with my spouse.
Any suggestions on educating parents/babysitters without overwhelming them? There are lots of checklists, etc on the net but I don't want to have every play date with his buddies turn in to a college exam for the hosting parent.
Should I write a brief note with his testing times and dosages and "what to do in an emergency"?
I have a binder with information on how to care for our Type 1, age 5 1/2 diagnosed Dec'08. We have sections on what his typical day is like with glucose testing instructions and insulin dosages. We have another section on foods that he likes and the carbs. We also have another section with reference material on symptoms to look for when he is high or low. It's time consuming to put together, but very helpful to show anyone who might be caring for your child in your absence. I also have a cheat sheet with everything crammed on one page that we keep with his glucose tester when we travel. My in-laws love it b/c they don't want to keep asking me questions (i think) and just refer to the sheet when I'm not around.
My daughter was diagnosed at age 4, and I tried short notes, and just brief, basic information. But it didn't work out too well. It led to a lot of frustrating, and scary times, where the adults didn't realize what a big deal diabetes was. A lot of times, people thought it was too dangerous to let her have a juice, and would try to make her wait, and then I would get there, and her blood sugar would be in the 30s or 40s.
Unfortunately, I think the reality of diabetes is that going out to eat takes forethought (like looking up carbs before you go). My experience has been that the only safe way to leave her with a babysitter is to educate them, and expect a lot of phone calls. I do the same thing with playdates. She is only allowed to houses where I know the parents well, and I expect a lot of phone calls.
I can completely sympathize with your desire to return to a normal life, but unfortunaltely it takes a lot of time to adjust to Diabetes, and you can not underestimate the number of people who are misinformed about it. One thing with the sitter that REALLY helped was when we found a sitter who was also a Type 1 diabetic, she was not only a great babysitter, but also a great role model for my daughter.
My daughter was diagnosed at age 4, and I tried short notes, and just brief, basic information. But it didn't work out too well. It led to a lot of frustrating, and scary times, where the adults didn't realize what a big deal diabetes was. A lot of times, people thought it was too dangerous to let her have a juice, and would try to make her wait, and then I would get there, and her blood sugar would be in the 30s or 40s.
Unfortunately, I think the reality of diabetes is that going out to eat takes forethought (like looking up carbs before you go). My experience has been that the only safe way to leave her with a babysitter is to educate them, and expect a lot of phone calls. I do the same thing with playdates. She is only allowed to houses where I know the parents well, and I expect a lot of phone calls.
I can completely sympathize with your desire to return to a normal life, but unfortunaltely it takes a lot of time to adjust to Diabetes, and you can not underestimate the number of people who are misinformed about it. One thing with the sitter that REALLY helped was when we found a sitter who was also a Type 1 diabetic, she was not only a great babysitter, but also a great role model for my daughter.
I just read the above, glanced at your profile and noticed that you are in NJ. Has your sitter stayed in the area or is she going off to college this fall? Does she drive? Does she still SIT? So many questions, sorry.
My daughter is going to be 8 in Nov and is going into 2 grade next month. An known diabetic sitter would be nice to have around.
My daughter is 5 and was diagnosed at 3. We don't teach the sitters any more than they need to know. I always write down what to do if her blood sugar is above this # or below this #. and I leave snacks available and write the carbs down so the sitter is not guessing. I am very lucky, Courtney knows how to use her pump so all my sitters have to do is tell her the amount of carbs and to give herself insulin and she does it. There is no need to overwhelm a sitter. Tell them what signs to watch for, or make a list and what to do. I always make sure that another family memer like grandma and grandpa are available over the phone incase I am not. Writing a brief note with times to test and what if's is the best thing. Go out and have a nice dinner and relax. You are still very new to this but after a month or so you will be a pro and know what to do. This is the best place for you to reach out for advice like this. Good luck!
Unfortunately, our sitter is about to be a junior in college in PA. She now has an apartment there, so she doesn't really sit anymore. Just out of curiousity, what part of NJ? We are close to Great Adventure.