Hug Time!

Thursday, November 11th, is National Hug-a-Diabetic Day!!! Take a few moments on this Thursday to think of the daily life diabetics live and pray for a cure! Some would even say to place a rubber band on your wrist and set a timer for every 2 hours. Every 2 hours snap the rubber band to feel the twinge of pain diabetics feel when they prick their fingers every two hours. And, at each meal and bedtime snap it three times to mimic the feeling of an insulin shot. Think about how every two hours you would need to eat even if you weren't hungry. Think about how in between the two hours you might not be able to eat or drink even if you are hungry. And, a real eye-opener (pun intended), set your alarm clock for 2:00 am and snap the rubber band to remind yourself of the middle of the night finger pricks. Send lots of hugs to anyone you know on this day that suffers from diabetes. Don't forget, too, to send support and hugs to the mommies, daddies, and other caregivers! They are up at 2:00 am as well!

Customer Appreciation Week!

Wow! I cannot believe it is almost October! My last post was before school started, and as you can see school starting means full plates for us momas of diabetic children (and all the other momas out there, too!) Sorry for the delay in updating you all. But, at least my new post will be exciting!!! I have a few things to fill you in on...

Moye's Pharmacy is having their first ever Customer Appreciation Week October 4th through the 8th. Stop in at any of our locations for free treats and special discounts including buy one, get one deals on our dollar items. Additionally, if you are interested in getting you or your diabetic child a flu shot this season, you can discuss that with your Moye's pharmacist. Our flu shots will be $25 this year. (Ask your pharmacist about insurance coverage of the flu shots.)

Second, we are due to start our insulin pump in just a few short weeks over here at our house. My son is turning six soon, and the doctors and I think he is ready. That is great news for any of you debating this big decision. We can be your guinea pigs!! I will be sure to keep you updated.

And, lastly keep your eyes out for an upcoming post about the coolest Christmas gift ever!! I will be doing my next post on the Didget. Your diabetic children will all be wanting one! Stay tuned!

Back to School Supplies

It is sadly that time of year again (well, maybe for some of you happily :)) for school to begin again. Parents will be bustling about buying school clothes, new shoes, notebook paper, pencils, etc. Open House is right around the corner and parents will receive their list of required supplies and begin marking off their list. However, there are supplies that our diabetic children need for school that will not be on that list! I am amazed how many children do not take glucagon emergency kits to keep at school. This is very important! Way more important than the glue sticks! I wanted this blog post to be a reminder (for me as well) as to what we need to pack up for the school. And, remember to update your school plan as well. If you are short on supplies, visit your local Moye's Pharmacy to stock up or get us to call your physician to renew your prescriptions.

Back to School Supply List:

1. Insulin and supplies: alcohol wipes, syringes
2. Ketone Strips
3. Emergency kit: 15 gm snack, juiceboxes, glucose tablets, glucagon pen
4. Glucometer with strips, lancet device, and lancets
5. Updated school plan including emergency contact phone numbers
6. Insulin pump supplies if applicable

It is also a good idea to include an instruction manual for your glucometer, pump, etc.

Enjoy the last few weeks of your summer! Wishing you and your child a fun, healthy, school year!

Toes in the Sand

Well, it is summertime!! Yay! Flip flops and crocs here we come!

Well, maybe.

For diabetics, foot health and proper footwear is SO important and can often be overlooked! We mostly think of foot infections and issues with older patients, but we should start early talking to our young diabetics about proper footcare and set an example early in life for them to follow as they get older.

The big picture behind foot issues and diabetes has to do with nerve damage done by constant, high blood sugars. So, patients may lose some sensation in their feet keeping them from knowing they might have a sore or cut. If they are unaware of a foot injury and it goes untreated and unnoticed, infection (keeping in mind high sugars make it hard to heal infections) could occur.

Hopefully, we are able to keep our kids' A1C levels low enough throughout the adolescence that they won't have any nerve damage. However, we should still discuss with them the importance of keeping their sugars in check and keeping their toes and feet clean, nails properly trimmed, and minimizing their risk of any infection by not going barefoot in unclean places. Additionally, children are always growing as are their feet, too! Donate or toss old shoes that have become too small and buy proper fitting shoes that don't cause blisters.

If you are an adult diabetic who reads the blog and struggle with poor circulation and foot health, feel free to call Sue at our Jodeco location at 770-507-1234. She can assist you with compression hosiery or diabetic socks.

Happy Summer!

Exciting News!

I realize all of my readers might not be dealing with juvenile diabetes, but as you all know it is most dear to my heart as my five-year old son suffers from juvenile type 1 diabetes. I wanted to start this blog as an outreach to other families affected by diabetes because if it weren't for a few special families there for me in the beginning I am not sure how I would have otherwise coped. Now, I am ready to give back. (Although, admittedly I still need lots of support myself! :) Don't we all?) So, tomorrow night I will be attending the JDRF Georgia Chapter's "Stories of Hope" fundraising Gala in Atlanta, and it will be my first volunteer position! I am very excited! In addition, the volunteer who is in charge of the support group and monthly meet-ups in our area needs someone to cover in her place this summer, and I was asked to take the job! Now, what does all this mean for you? Lots of things! First, I will be planning fun activities at least once a month for us to network and meet. Second, I will be on the frontlines with access to any new information the JDRF releases or fun activities that I can then pass on to you. And, third, it should better equip me overall. I hope I can learn tons of information, touch someone, and become an even better blogger for you all! I am getting warm fuzzies just thinking about being in the room tomorrow night when thousands of dollars will be raised for find a cure! I believe there is one! Won't you believe with me?

The Yellow Yuck

As many of you can tell just by walking out to your car, the pollen season is definitely here!! The car washes are fighting a losing battle, so just save your money and time! Finally, yesterday our area received some much needed rain! However, I just checked, and the forecast for our county looks pretty much dry for at least the next ten days, so we are definitely not through with it yet.

There are antihistamines over-the-counter approved for use in children, and if you would like a recommendation for your child visit your local Moye's Pharmacy where our pharmacists will be happy to help you! Additionally, there are antihistamines for children that are available in liquid form that contain less than five grams of total carbohydrates per dose!! Isn't that awesome!? In fact, most liquid OTC medications are safe to use in diabetics, but always check with your Moye's pharmacist first. (There are some exceptions..especially prescription formulations.) I personally have used liquid cetirizine for my son without it having any direct effect on his sugars.

A note to remember though...the allergies in general can cause some elevated blood sugars especially if it continues into an upper respiratory infection. Anytime the immune response is activated, it can affect the sugars. Hopefully though this pollen will make its grand exit really soon, and our children can get ready for a fun-filled summer!

That will call for another post though!! With summer comes swimming and lots of running around outside which also affects blood sugars! Stay tuned!

SPRING into action!

While today we got a bit closer to spring here in Georgia and set our clocks forward an hour, this is also a great reminder to do some housekeeping checks with your diabetes supplies. You have probably heard that when the time changes, it is a good reminder to check your smoke alarm batteries. Well, now you can use the time change to help you remember a few other important things that are often forgotten because we don't do them daily.

1. Check your expiration dates on your emergency supplies!! This includes your glucagon emergency kits, nausea medications (promethazine suppositories or ondansetron tablets), ketone strips, and any other medications you don't get refilled each month. If your supplies are expired, contact your Moye's Pharmacy to refill what you need.

2. This goes hand and hand with number one, but check your supply on-hand of these emergency medications as well. Do you have a glucagon kit at school or work AND at home? Better yet, do you have a glucagon kit at all? You'd be surprised how many people somehow never got one filled when they were first diagnosed and/or were not educated to keep one at home AND school/work. If you need education about how to use your glucagon kit, call your Moye's pharmacist and set up a time to go in and learn about how to use it. Don't wait until you need it for your child and realize you don't know how to use it! Equally important, if you are an adult diabetic, now is the time to make sure those family members, friends, and co-workers you are most often with also know how to use it and where you store it.

3. Do you have an extra glucometer on hand? If you don't that is fine, but then you need to make sure you have extra batteries for your current glucometer. If you are unsure which replacement battery type your machine takes your Moye's staff will be glad to help you.

Here's to a happy, healthy spring!!!

Important Safety Notices

Recently I became aware of some important safety recalls on Lifescan diabetes testing products that I wanted to let you know about. The information can be found at www.lifescan.com. If you use Surestep test strips or One Touch Ultra test strips be sure to visit this web address to find out more information. The recall regarding the Surestep test strips was especially alarming to me because apparently the affected strips will give a falsely low reading when the blood sugar is greater than 400 mg/dL. With flu season here, a 400 mg/dL reading isn't completely far-fetched, so make sure you check your lot numbers on your strips to see if they are being recalled. If you are unsure where to find your lot number or have trouble accessing the website, call your Moye's pharmacist and they will be happy to assist you!

"Is this protein or carves?"

Lately my son has been hearing my husband and I discuss the importance of eating healthy ourselves even though he nor I have diabetes. We are a part of the generation of plenty I guess you can say where times are much different than they were when our parents were our age regarding family meal times. With so many fast food options on every street corner and the economy's hard times meaning two parents typically are working full-time outside of the home, so many of us are just grabbing what we can to eat. Thankfully, it seems gym memberships are now trendy as well, so hopefully our generation can fight off what we are eating by exercising. However, it doesn't always work that way. The gym still takes time...and money...and the decision of what to do about childcare while we are trying to fit that in. I know as a mother there is SO much "mommy guilt" surrounding us. If you don't believe me start up a conversation at your next Bunco game about whether it is best to be a working mom or a stay-at-home mom. Or private versus public school. Those tough decisions pull at our heartstrings! Often we feel like it is a lose-lose situation. If we put ourselves first, we feel bad. If we let ourselves go and only focus on running our kids back and forth to their soccer games, then we also feel bad.

But, I have been contemplating how important it is for us to set an example for our children. An example of how to lead a healthy lifestyle all the while teaching them how to survive in the fast food crazed world. Unfortunately, it may have taken my son's diagnosis of new onset diabetes to wake me up to this calling as a mother. And, I am for sure not in shape nor do I eat as healthy as I should. However, our kids are sponges! They watch what we eat, and they are also noticing you on the treadmill while they are busy playing with their trains and cars even though you might not think they are paying any attention.

Would you take on the challenge with me? The challenge to show our children that we can help set a good precedent for them to follow regarding taking care of themselves. Sure, it is easy to remind them to brush their teeth, but it is a tad harder possibly to carry along unsweetened applesauce in the insulin bag when you know you are going to have to endure a fast food lunch during your errands. Skip the fries! Be realistic..let them have the chicken nuggets! Life is all about choices, and it is up to us to teach our children how to make healthy food choices.

And, as far as choices go...choose yourself, moms! I know it might be hard to put yourself first, but remember! While you might be the one and only expert at caring for your child's diabetes, if you throw yourself so far into that job and let your own health go then you won't be around to take care of your child after it is all said and done! What good will that do? Start with yourself first; your child will notice and follow.

Just like my son...he is now obsessed with what is a protein and what is a "carve?" Yes, adorable, huh? A "carve" is a carb...so cutely renamed by my five-year old.

They need to know the difference in the food groups as one day they will be counting their own carbohydrates. A common pitfall in diabetics is that they get into their teen years and only estimate their insulin requirements...and often A1C levels creep up. Start now by teaching your child what is a carbohydrate and even mention why we need to know how many we are eating. You'd be surprised how much interest your child will have in the topic and most of all they will be thrilled to have the one-on-one time just chatting with you!

Running Low???

Are you finding that you are always running short on your child's diabetes testing supplies? This might happen if you are having to check your child's blood sugar more often or give more injections than the pharmacy label states. This could easily happen if your child has been sick or has been having irregular blood sugars. If your prescription isn't up to date with the most recent instructions from your doctor, call your Moye's Pharmacy and have them contact your physician to get updated prescriptions. Often, we as parents call our child's diabetes doctors and they might give us verbal instructions over the phone to test more frequently without the pharmacy receiving a new prescription stating that. This should prevent you from having to pay out of pocket for extra supplies at the end of the month if you are running low before it is time to fill your refill. We, your Moye's pharmacists, are more than happy to work with you and contact your child's doctor to make sure you have enough to get you through the month. We also are able to let your doctor know if they need to contact your insurance company to ensure the supplies you need each month are covered. For example, some children test up to 10 times per day meaning they need 300 strips a month. Most insurances require what is called a "prior approval" for that many strips. While we cannot guarantee your plan will cover the 300 strips needed, we can do everything on our end to ensure all steps are taken to try to get them covered through your plan.

Feel free to go to www.moyespharmacy.com to get the phone number of the Moye's location nearest you. You can also click on "meet the pharmacists" at that location as well so you will know who to ask for!

Easing the Pain

In my last post, I discussed how our children sometimes endure finger sticks to check their sugars up to nearly 3,500 times a year. That is alot, huh? Don't you hate seeing those black dots on their fingers? I know I sure do! Recently, though I switched over to a new lancet device, and while it took some time for me to get used to, I love it! We just switched to the Accu-Chek MultiClix device.

I wanted to share our experience with you for several reasons:
1. This device's "claim to fame" is that it is least painful; and my son says that is true!
2. I often have to do finger sticks in the most awkward of places, and the drum loaded lancets make it much easier to do them.
3. And, equally important my insurance company covered them!

The MultiClix device still has to be loaded with lancets, but instead only every six finger sticks! The lancets are stored in a plastic "drum" with six lancets being in each drum. You simply turn the top to load up the next lancet you need. It still has the depth settings and uses the same pull back method to prick the finger.

And, don't worry if you don't use other Accu-Chek supplies such as meters, etc. All that has to match up are the lancets and the device. For example, I use One Touch/LifeScan strips and meter, but with the MultiClix lancet device.

If you are interesting in checking it out for yourself, first you can always check with your child's diabetes doctor because they often have samples in the office so you can put your hands on it and test it out first. If you decide you'd like to try to get one for yourself, simply phone your local Moye's Pharmacy and ask a staff member to request a prescription from your diabetes doctor on your behalf. Once the prescription is received, we can try to bill your insurance for you and see if the lancets and/or device is on your plan. Another option is to call the customer service number on your insurance card as well to ask them about which devices and lancets are covered on your plan.

I'd love to hear from you! Share with us which device you use and your experiences with it! You never know who might read your comment and benefit from it!

Opening New Doors...

In case you haven't heard, Animas (Johnson & Johnson based company) and the JDRF are teaming up to bring new, exciting, innovative technology to the treatment of diabetes!

You can follow this link to read more about this new development:

www.jdrf.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.viewPage&page_id=2458B97B-1279-CFD5-A70D0580F67A16A9

You may have heard medical professionals refer to the "artifical pancreas" before, and this is exactly what this project entails. It would be the closest attempt at automating the way we can control a diabetic's blood sugars. Even though it might take up to 4 years of testing before the first model is released, this is still very promising. Although the "first generation" model will not be fully automated as of yet it sets the precedence for the further developments of what will hopefully be full automation in the future. At first, until further advancements are made the device will still have to be instructed manually to deliver meal-time boluses. But with this new technology, real-time adjustments would be made with the amount of insulin to be released from a device much like an insulin pump based on the continuous monitoring of the blood sugar. Most importantly, it would stop releasing insulin when the sugar became too low and adjust when it became too high all on its own. This could really help us out with those pesky 2 am finger pricks and worrying about nighttime hypoglycemia (lows). Do you realize this could possibly free our children!? It could potentially release them from over 2,000 shots and over 3,000 finger pricks per year!

I know this is just the beginning, but it still makes me very excited! I hope years from now I will still be blogging, and my post can be titled "It's all behind us!" While I pray for a cure, I also pray for new innovations that can make it easier on my child. And, this is great news!

Sugar Show!

What a neat name for a community event about juvenile diabetes, huh?

The 2010 Sugar Show will be held at Philips Arena on Sunday, February 28th at 12pm. Follow this link for more information: www.jdrfgeorgia.org/sugar-show.asp

This is a very exciting event not only for parents who are eager to learn new, updated valuable information about caring for their children (including new techologies!!), but it is so much fun for the children who attend. Why you ask? Because they will be entertained on the basketball court home to the Atlanta Hawks! Plus, at 6pm you will get to sit with your child and enjoy an Atlanta Hawks game!

The tickets are only $10 per person, so go online and purchase yours now!

I don't know about you, but I am so incredibly thankful for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and all they organize for us!

Taking Control

An simple step to help maintain good control of your blood sugar is often overlooked. But, it should be easy to remember because it even has the name "control" in it! Control solution! If you don't have some for your glucometer, go get some!

Control solution is how you are able to test your glucometer strips and/or your glucometer for accuracy. Yes, testing your sugar is important, but the results are only useful if they are accurate! The manufacturers of glucometers work very hard to ensure their meters and strips are reliable, however trust me problems can arise! My son has only been diagnosed for six months, and we have already had two vials of test strips that have needed to be replaced.

The control solution test is very easy to perform, and it is best to complete a control test when:

1. You open a new box of test strips and/or
2. You feel there might be a problem with your machine's readings

First, ask your Moye's pharmacist which control solution you need for your meter. (Each manufacturer makes its own.) Second, if you have prescription insurance, have your Moye's pharmacist call your child's diabetes doctor to get a prescription for the control solution just in case it might happen to be covered on your plan. (Contact your insurance plan directly if you are unsure.)

Once you have your control solution in hand you are ready. Treat the control solution just as you would blood from your child's finger. You will place it on the strip according to your meter's instruction booklet. (Read the booklet that came with your meter first as some meters have ways to tell the machine you are doing a control test so the result will not be included in your child's saved data.) Next, the result on the glucometer screen will be compared to the range printed on the test strip vial. (Note: some manufacturers have level 1 and level 2 solutions so two ranges might appear on the vial. Be sure to match the range up to which control solution you are using.)

If the result on the screen falls in range, you are good! If not, then you simply call the phone number for the manufacturer of your glucometer usually printed on the back of your glucometer or if not in your instruction booklet. They are super helpful and will help you figure out how to troubleshoot what is going on with your strips and meter. In our case, the manufacturer realized it was due to faulty strips and shipped us out replacements. Simple as that.

Pay close attention to instructions and additional information printed on your control solution's vial as well. Some have to be shaken well before use. And, others expire 3 months after opening for first use, etc.

I realize there is so much to remember when dealing with this disease! To me that is probably the hardest part. Playing mommy and nurse can be such a balancing act! The easiest way to remember this important step is to only open up a box of strips as you are about to use them. And think to yourself: "New box=control solution test." I also keep my control solution sitting out on the counter with our other supplies so I see it often which serves as a reminder.

Having said all of that, we can end with a very positive note! Imagine having a diabetic child BEFORE the technology of glucometers?! Now, THAT would be tough. I know moms who went through that. So, I guess even though there is quite alot to remember, we can still be very thankful!

Welcome to our new blog!

Let me take a few moments and introduce myself. I am Dr. Felicia Mitchell, a pharmacist with Moye's. But, first and foremost like so many women today in the workforce, I am a mom! The job that never ends, but pays you back with warm hugs and sloppy kisses!

Being a pharmacist has helped me as a mother several times when I have dealt with medical illnesses in my children, but it especially came in handy this past July. My son J, then just four years old, was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes mellitus. While we do have a family history of diabetes, the diagnosis still came as a huge shock to our family. It gave me somewhat of a peace of mind knowing already about how to give shots, how the insulin works, and how to use a blood sugar testing machine (glucometer.) But, there wasn't a class in pharmacy school that prepared me for the emotional roller coaster I was boarding. It has been (and in many ways still is) a very bumpy ride. It was hard to remove myself from the situation and actually use my knowledge. It was very soon after than I realized that us moms are way stronger than we think! (I also learned that our children are even stronger than us!!)

Some of you may follow this blog for general entertainment, but others of you might be the mom of a child who is diabetic (also known as a juvenile diabetic.) Either way, Moye's decided to start this blog as a support system for all the moms out there with diabetic children who need somewhere to turn to have someone to listen or understand about what they are going through and read valuable information. Another revelation I have realized since July is the abundant lack of education about diabetes in young children in our community. That is the second reason Moye's is beginning this blog. Teachers, youth pastors, grandparents and more can log on and read important information and ask questions as well.

So, welcome. And, stay tuned! New blog topics are coming soon including glucometer tips, insulin expiration dates, and tips for eating out!

Feel free to post under comments what topic you would like to see discussed in the upcoming months!