School's out for SUMMER!

Wow! Its finally here…the last day of school before summer vacation.  I am excited and sad.  Gone are the days when I would attend the last day with my boys, watch an awards ceremony, share in events, and cry tears of joy as I watched them grow.  I only have one child in school now and school as become his domain.  I can meet with teachers at the appropriate times.  I can send them a note about his diabetes care but the rest is up to him.

Last week was exam week.  For at least some of those exams he actually tested before he started to write his tests.  In at least one case he was high before he started. I asked him what he did?  He told me that it was a two hour exam but they had been given three hours to complete it.  The first hour he used to get his bg levels back in check. The final two hours he did his exam and corrected anything he had got wrong in the first hour.  I was proud and sad.

I was excited that he had checked! I was proud that he was able to take control of the situation and make it work. I was sad that once again diabetes had to mess with such a normal activity…a science exam.

The momma bear in me was all prepared to stand up for him and ask for accomodations if his mark was not where it should be.  The mom of a young man with diabetes said,” he has handled this his way.  Let it be.” and I have.

I often write about how I fear that he will never take the lead in his diabetes care. He has a very cavalier attitude about so much in life, will he ever realize that this is serious? Adults tell me that he will. They tell me he will struggle, he will trip but that I have given him a good foundation to fall back on. I hold onto those words with both hands!

I am seeing changes. As I have written about a lot lately, his interest in diet and exercise has had a very positive impact on his testing, his readings and his interest in his care.  He knows that his bg levels need to be at their best so that he can perform at his best.  That is a more powerful motivator than any of Mom’s lectures. He still isn’t perfect…but he is learning. The true test will be when he is away from me and dealing with his care on his own this summer.  I admit that I am nervous. When he went away over Easter his care was non-existent.  He tested once a day on a good day.  I can’t worry about that. I can’t think about it.  These short stints will prepare him for the next few years when he decides to move away from me and begin his own life…but its hard not to worry because I am a mom after all!