First time out

It might be naiive to think many people are interested in the life of a diabetic mom. Who wants to hear another story of difficulties that don't amount to a war or a tragedy, or even, most days, an emergency? I'd like to think there are a lot of us out there, though, who struggle with this disease and also with how to explain it to other people. And there are plenty of us who are parents, too. I'm writing the blog for all of you, in the hope that maybe some of my experiences will help, at least to make you feel less alone. And sure, it'll make me feel less alone, too. I'm not one for support groups, where you learn a lot about the disease and some tricks to cope with it, but real life sort of gets left at the door. My own experiences may often be too personal to mean anything to you, but maybe some things will resonate. Some of you will be my friends and family, with whom I talk a lot about diabetes, but who may not know all the ins and outs. I'm not sure you want to know! But that'll make things interesting.

My story, in brief: I have had type 1 diabetes since age 13. Maybe that got me interested in medicine, because I loved biology - but also writing - and so I studied both, and still do. I'm a medical writer an editor (full-time). I'm also the mom of a great toddler, whom I had to jump through hoops to get. Not only have I had diabetes, but I also had severe migraines for 14 years, before getting pregnant. I'd rather not focus on that issue (mostly because I don't get them anymore, and that's a living hell I'd rather forget), but I'm sure it will come up from time to time. It made getting pregnant even more challenging, because the migraines threw my blood sugar out of wack, but the meds to treat the migraines were a huge threat to having a normal child.

Somehow, I made it through that - and into a pregnancy with diabetes, where I had fantastic medical care, but found virtually no written information about my situation. It's as if the world still considers diabetic parenthood to be so risky and fraught that it's better not to talk about it. Yet I know there are lots of us who take great care of ourselves, and just need better information on how to do it.

I'm hoping I can combine my own daily story with information about diabetes and motherhood/parenthood. I love to explore the reasons for things - like what the chances are that my daughter will get diabetes herself. I'll try to gather really reliable information (that's what I do for a living), but also put it into context. I apologize in advance if I rant sometimes (probably often!). And I'll try to post regularly, despite the job and the two-year-old, and - oh yeah - the diabetes.