Image Map
Image Map

More Than a D Mom

Monday, May 6, 2013

I had this idea... this thought...  the other day.

I don't remember what exactly we were doing.  But it something diabetes related.

And I wondered...  Am I just a pancreas?  Am I just a carb counter, insulin deliverer, blood sugar tester?  Am I just the Mom... the food maker, the chauffeur, the homework helper, the hair brusher, the boo boo kisser?  Is there more to me than this?

There used to be more to me than this.

I think.

Not that THIS isn't wonderful.

It is.  And I'm grateful to have this role.  I love my daughter more than life itself.  I'm proud to her Mom.  I am eternally thankful that she is healthy and alive and I have the opportunity and supplies to keep her that way!

I think all parents of children living with diabetes are very aware of how lucky we are.  We do not take our children or our children's health for granted.

However, we know how much it takes.  And how all consuming it can become.

And there are times when we wonder...  Who am I?  Who is this person looking back at me from the mirror?

In my last post, I talked about the Taylor Swift song "All Too Well" and the lyrics...
"Time won't fly.  It's like I'm paralyzed by it.  I'd like to be my old self again but I'm still trying to find it."

And I can't help but think about how much that relates to life with diabetes.

My old self....

Who???

I can hardly remember.

I used to exercise every day.  I was really fit and I really liked it.  I used to hang out with friends from work.  I'd go to Happy Hour and eat lunch in the lunch room and be social.  I used to go to dinner with friends.  I used to read a lot.  I used to do my hair.  And wear lipstick. Like every day.  I used to eat healthy meals and take care of myself.  I used to sleep at night.

Now?

Not so much.

I haven't exercised in an embarrassing long time.  I can't remember the last time I went to dinner with friends.  I never go out after work.  I eat in my room, alone - by choice because it's the only time I have a few minutes to myself.  Now I read about diabetes and insulin and pumps and cgms.  I COMB my hair every day.  And I might be able to find a lipstick in my purse.... but wear it?  It might be too old.  Does lipstick go bad?  The drive thru lady at McDonald's knows me by name.  And what's this sleep you speak of?

What happened to me?

Diabetes happened to me.

Now I spend so much time and thought and energy on carbs and ratios and basal rates and activity and 504 plans and supplies and targets and A1c and site changes and on and on and on....  Not to mention the emotional aspect of raising a child with a chronic disease.

The rest of that stuff just becomes invisible.  I simply do not have time for anything other than diabetes. My brain is full.

And that's how it's been... for a long, long time.

But now, after four years, I'm starting to see glimpses of what life used to be.  And how... just maybe... it could be again.

I don't know where to even start.

I am at least to a place where I can realize that pushing my own needs and my own health to the back is not healthy for anyone.  I can see that my daughter deserves a Mom who is not stressed out and exhausted all the time.

But getting there....

It's just not easy.

Because who I WAS....  I'm not sure she exists anymore.  Sometimes I think that if I don't at least TRY to find her now she is going to slip away and no one will even notice.

Don't get me wrong... It's not that being a D Mom is such an awful thing.  It's just that can't be the ONLY thing.

And so the challenge is finding some balance between who I WAS and who I am NOW.

I won't ever be the same person I was before.  And the truth is, I don't want to be.

I'm stronger now.  I'm able to see and enjoy the small things in a way I was never able to do before.  I have a new respect for life and health.  I know I won't fall apart when times get tough.  I don't get caught up in the petty drama that often comes with life.  And I have some amazing friends I've made on this journey that make it so sweet.    I don't want to give that up.

I just also need to be a Mom who takes care of her health.  A Mom who does her hair and wears lipstick on occasion and enjoys exercise and friends and books!

It doesn't sound like it should be as hard as it is.  Right?

So why does it feel like the impossible task?

I think because there are days (and nights) where diabetes IS the only thing.  There are times when it HAS to be the only thing.  Our kids are sick.  Their numbers are out of whack.  They are low.  Or high.  They need a site change.  Carbs have to be counted.  Exercise and hormones and growth and excitement are messing things up.  They have ketones.  They need us.  And we are there.

We wouldn't have it any other way.

But those days and nights just bleed into one another until there is no beginning and no end and we are so exhausted both mentally and physically that there is nothing else.  There is nothing left.

You can't escape those days.  And when you're in the middle of it, it feels like there will never be an escape.  So why bother?

I don't have an easy answer.

I just know it's time to try.

The longer we live this life, the more I'm able to see that those days WILL end.  There WILL be times when our lives revolve around diabetes.  But there will also be times it won't.

And I can't let those days pass me by.  I've got to use those days for all they are worth and pray that it somehow balances out.

Today we worked on writing letters for Sweets to send to our Senators and Representatives asking them to meet with her when we are in Washington for Children's Congress.  Then we went to a photo shoot for our JDRF Gala.  Then we came home and it was time for bed but we had to do a pod change first.

Today was a diabetes day.

Today I was a D Mom.

And that's ok.  Being a D Mom is a gift, in it's own way.

And there's always tomorrow to add a little of the "old me" in to the mix.

** Today was the start of more than a week long series of posts called "More than a D Mom".  When I had this idea, I knew my other Mama's felt the same way.  I wanted to hear what they had to say... and I'm sure you do, too!  So be sure to check out Meri's blog tomorrow for her take! **

Photobucket

9 comments:

  1. This kind of makes me sad .... I know you did not mean it that way but it does. Yes, diabetes rips the rug right out from under us and takes so much from us. But .... I was SO LUCKY that we had Dr Dude as Lauren's first endo. You see, I had JUST won my dream job a few months before she was diagnosed ... and I assumed I had to give it up. Hmmm... I need to blog back to you! Too long of a comment! give me some time! Love ya girl.

    ReplyDelete
  2. All I know is that you are a great mom and great friend, who happens to also be a kick ass, carb counting, pancreas. SCL MTW!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I totally relate to what you are saying. My husband will often ask, "How was your day?" Most times I start off by saying " M's blood sugar numbers ran high (or maybe low), we had to do an emergency site change...." Then he says, "I asked how you were not how diabetes was today." I try and think about that now when he asks me how my day was. I try to respond about me first and try to leave the diabetes part for later.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I can totally relate to what you are saying. My husband will always ask, "How was your day?" My initial reply goes something like this..."M's blood sugar numbers ran low all day and I can't figure out why, we also had an emergency site change, I think her sensor needs to be replaced..." Then he reminds me that he asked how MY day was not how DIABETES was today. I try to remember that when I talk about MY day and leave the diabetes conversation for later.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I was telling a friend today how I didn't know if I would ever feel the same as I did before d, she was very supportive and said, "I doubt it, you've grown so much because of it." I tend to see all the cruddy parts, but she's right - diabetes has thrown me into adulthood (I was just 29 when Isaac was diagnosed!) - I've faced fears head on while holding a seizing child, I've had to lobby for his health care needs at school, I've...oh, all right I am so uber tired that even making a list feels daunting right now, and maybe that's the part that is still the hardest. Being tired. Lately I have been feeling a light at the end of the tunnel, a glimpse of feeling like it is okay to take hold of moments just for me, it seems to be the right time, it's just seeing if I can get enough rest to do these things. I keep saying to myself someday, someday, don't worry you will have a chance. I know we all will, eventually we'll have more good nights of rest than bad and we'll do more of what we love. Thanks for sharing this :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. What a great post Hallie, there are so many of us who can relate. In our house, we are about to pass the 7.5 year mark with diabetes and just in the last 6 months or so, I've started to find time for myself and rediscover who I am in addition to a d-mom. I look forward to reading the rest of the posts!!

    ReplyDelete
  7. What a great post Hallie, there are so many of us who can relate. In our house, we are about to pass the 7.5 year mark with diabetes and just in the last 6 months or so, I've started to find time for myself and rediscover who I am in addition to a d-mom. I look forward to reading the rest of the posts!!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Thanks for writing this Hallie, there are so many of us that can relate! In our house, we are going on 7.5 years with diabetes, and just in the last 6 months I have started to find time for myself and rediscover who "I" am other than a d-mom. I look forward to reading the rest of the posts!

    ReplyDelete
  9. I sooo can relate to being where you describe where have been/where you are emerging from. It is a process for sure. And...seven years into this we (at the Maher House) have D days...where D kicks our butts...and then we have those periods where we deal with it robotically. xo

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for commenting! Comments = Love

LinkWithin

Related Posts with Thumbnails