What were things liked when you were diagnosed? How did you take care of yourself?
     Things for me personally were chaotic, overwhelming and surreal. I remember sitting on my parents' porch, in a daze over the diagnosis but also hugely relieved that we at least now knew what was going on with me.
     Things in the diabetes world were just starting to get hot! I was diagnosed in 1986, and was sent home from the doctor's office with an Accucheck meter. The size of a small book, it required a nice, fat hanging drop of blood that had to be wiped after 60 seconds before being inserted into the meter. But as cumbersome as that may now seem, it was the early days of home blood glucose monitoring, and it was a vast improvement over urine testing. I consider myself lucky to have lived life with diabetes after the advent of such a crucial self-management tool.
     I took care of myself to prove that I could. As an 18 year old about to leave for college 200 miles away from home, I needed to prove to myself, my parents, and my doctor that I could manage my diabetes. Since I was diagnosed in June of my senior year in highschool, I had only about eight weeks to make that point!

Since you were diagnosed older, at age 18, were you scared that your friends would start treating you differently? How did you handle that?
     I wasn't worried about my close friends. I was surprised to learn (later, when things settled down) how it affected them. My best friend cried for me but never told me (her mom told my mom). During the weeks before my diagnosis, as my blood sugar started to run higher and higher, one of my symptoms was depression, and I acted that out by being absolutely brutal to a lot of my friends at school. Once my blood sugars came back into range, I was actually glad to tell them that much of my personality change had to do with my body being completely out of whack!
     I called my college roommate in August to discuss who would bring the fridge and phone and other stuff, and I mentioned to her that I had diabetes and would be taking insulin, etc. She seemed fine with it and, to her credit, she ignored her mother who suggested she ask for a different roommate! Her mom was afraid that she'd end up having to take care of me.
     I also provided my college RA's (resident assistants) with a crash course in Kassie's diabetes at the start of each year (until I became an RA, and provided the crash course for all the otehr RAs!) I focused not so much on what diabetes is, but how I managed it and what I'd need in the event of an emergency. My feeling was that the more people knew, the more people could help me if needed.

Did you tell people right away about your diabetes? What about boys you were interested in?
     Yes, I was immediately very open about it. I told the boy I was hanging out with at the time and he was very nonchalant about it. He asked a few questions and moved on. Once I went away to school, and started dating, I always mentioned it fairly early in any relationship. I only really had one odd response - my first college boyfriend was actually kind of a jerk about it, and made some crack about diabetes being a weakness or a character flaw! In the ultimate twist of fate, he was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes shortly after graduation.

When you got married, were you and your husband, who also has Type 1, ever concerned about passing diabetes onto your children? What about now?
     I gave it some thought, but didn't really worry about it too much. Neither John nor I have diabetes anywhere in our families, so I think I weighed the risks differently than if we could see a strong genetic link. The statistics say that our kids have a 17% chance (roughly) of developing type 1. I always call that an 83% chance of it never appearing.
     I do worry about them, now that they are actually here! I have had one or two really strong panic moments when I was certain that their blood sugar was high. Luckily, it was not. If it does happen, we will certainly know how to manage it, and that is actually reassuring to me.

I know a lot of girls are wondering this question: what is it like giving birth with diabetes? Did it make your blood sugar drop or go high?
     I didn't labor with my kids - both were born early, via c-section, but I can tell you that labor and delivery with diabetes is like anything with diabetes - very individualized! One amazing thing that happens immediately after delivery is that you go from being very insulin resistant (I was taking three times my normal total daily dose) to not being resistant or actually being more sensitive (for a little while) to insulin. Throughout pregnancy, though, how you manage blood sugars changes almost daily sometimes!

You won the 2004 Ascensia Bayer Dream Fund award and were given a chance to write an entire book about being a parent with diabetes and have it published. While many of us aren't thinking about having kids right now, it is something we consider for the future. What are some things about being a parent with diabetes that you think teens should know?
     The number one piece of advice I give anyone - but especially teens - is to plan for pregnancy. Don't just let it happen! Pregnancy with diabetes is healthier (and more enjoyable) when your diabetes is well controlled for months before you conceive. It also requires extra time and extra attention to your diabetes, and you need to plan for that.
     My second son was conceived when my A1c was much higher than the recommended normal or near-normal level. Although he was born healthy, I spent a lot of time worrying about what effect my blood sugar had in those early weeks of his development. It was incredibly stresful, and not at all the joyous experience pregnancy should be. For that reason alone, I really recommend planning for pregnancy.


How do you balance your diabetes with raising kids?
     I have to make a conscious effort to not put my diabetes on the back burner. Now that my boys are older, the big challenge is keeping a routine with so many different demands on our time. I do think my diabtes - and my need to spend a little extra time on myself each day - has played into my policy of limiting after school activities to cub scouts and one sport at a time.
     One of my great kid-related motivators is that I know I'm setting an example of self care, which goes beyond the examples of healthy eating and exercise. I can't just tell my boys that it's important they take care of themselves, I have to show them!

How do you approach diabetes in the workplace, with employees and your employer?
     I have always been very open and matter-of-fact about my diabetes in the workplace. My coworkers have always known what to do in the event that I have a low blood sugar and need assistance. I have had my share of clueless coworkers ("you can't eat that!") but I've also found that most people are interested in learning more about it and being supportive.
     Having diabetes really only affected my job when I was pregnant, and needed to leave work at least once a week for extra doctor's visits. Luckily, my boss was very flexible and let me make up those hours with flex-time and tasks I could accomplish at home.
     Having diabetes brought me to diabetes camp as a college student, and I later worked four years as the year-round camp director. In that job, having diabetes was a big plus!

What are three things you think every teen should know about being an adult with diabetes?
     a. Just because you are 'grown up' doesn't mean you have to do it all on your own! I was in such a hurry to prove that I could take care of myself, I often resisted letting people help me.
     b. As you move into the adult world, and become responsible for your own health care, take the time to learn about health, life, and disability insurance! Corner the HR person at your place of employment and find out what those policies can and can't do for you, so that you can make informed decisions about how you spend your bnenefit dollars.
     c. Get to know other people with diabetes! Specifically, those who are at your stage in life - your diabetes peers. Knowing other people with type 1 has been a tremendous asset for me - every time I've faced a challenge relating to being an adult with diabetes, I've been able to talk to other people who have been there, done that (or who are facing similar challenges). Keep in touch with diabetes camp friends (if you attended), participate in diabetes events and fundraisers, or go online to 'meet' folks with type 1.