Amanda, started pumping at 14, on, off, and back on the pump

Hi! My name is Kathy. I have a daughter and two sons. Amanda and Lee are twins and are 19 years old and Tucker is 15 years old. When Tucker was 4 his pre-school teacher told me one day that he was going to the bathroom a lot. So I decided to take a kidney specimen by the doctor's office that day thinking it was just an infection and we'd get an antibiotic. But they called me to come back in and told me that Tucker was a diabetic. It was really difficult with a four year old doing shots, sticking fingers and getting him to eat even when he wasn't really very hungry. But we managed. Then about four years later Amanda came home from a pizza party with some friends and was talking about how thirsty she was and how often she had gone to the bathroom that night. So I decided to check her blood sugar and guess what? She was diagnosed with diabetes also! What a shock! It was easier with a 12 year old though because she could do so much more for herself.

When she was 14 she decided to try the pump. She really liked it and did very well with it. But around that time she was having so much trouble with her blood sugars. She could go to bed one night and be fine and wake up the next morning and be in DKA. We were in and out of the hospital every three or four months. She decided after a couple of years to get off the pump. So for about three years she went back to injections. She still had lots of trouble until she reached the age of about 18. Last summer before she was going off to college she decided to try the pump again. I am happy to say she has had a wonderful year. Her blood sugars have leveled out and she loves her pump! I am hoping that Tucker will be able to start with a pump soon. He is still taking three injections daily. But we have not yet hit a bad time like we did with Amanda. I am so thankful to have found this web site. It is so nice to hear other people's stories and know that there are people out there who know what its like to live day to day with diabetes. Thanks!!

tucker15@gateway.net