School starts in just three weeks!
After a busy summer full of travel and learning more about our diabetes it is time to get ready for school. Of course that includes buying the next size in the school uniform we outgrew, shoes that fit, pencils, paper and all that good stuff.
For a child with Type 1 Diabetes, back to school means so much more.
Managing School With Diabetes
Attending school with diabetes is not a simple task. It is full of a myriad of medical supplies and snacks that must be strategically placed throughout the school, educating the school health staff and teachers on what it means to have Type 1 Diabetes:
- How and when to use those supplies
- How they can help ensure your child’s safety at school
- Advocating for your child to administration if there is no support available
- New carb:insulin ratios
- Basal rates if you are pumping
- Insulin doses if you are injecting to match the new school schedule
- After-school activities.
All of these things must be considered in the context of the activity and with their coaches.
If your child rides the bus, what to you do?
How do you manage school parties and those dreaded carb loads?
Depending on their age, how do you get them to become more independent in managing their diabetes at school?
If they are not independent yet, how do you manage play dates and activities?
All this and more… plus any anxiety or stress your child might have, and probably more for the parents of children with diabetes.
Being a Caretaker of a School Child with Diabetes Is Not Easy!
Read the above list three times out loud without taking a breath and you get a small idea of the heavy weight carried when sending a Type 1 back to school, or off to school for the first time. And those are just the highlights!
If you’re in the position of being a parent or caretaker of a school child with diabetes, you’re not alone.
It is stressful, but with a lot of planning, work and advocating it can go well. Sometimes really well.
Over the next several days as I prepare to send my Type 1 back to school I will share the tools, links and other things I do to try to manage all of those things and more.
Even though I have done it a few times, I am still not mentally ready to tackle it just yet. But it has to be done.
So as you recover from reading that list three times without taking a breath, take a deep breath now and let’s recall the beautiful days of summer just one more time before we begin.
Still got a bit of traveling to do before summer ends? Get your free Traveling With Diabetes guide.
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5 Essentials for Managing Type 1 Diabetes at School
Relieve some of the anxiety you feel whenever your child with Type 1 Diabetes heads to school for the day.
You'll find tips on educating the teacher and nurse, making emergency snack boxes, traveling on the school bus and more.
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