This year’s theme is, “You are, know, or will be one,” and for us we want to recognise and celebrate all the type 1 diabetes (T1D) caregivers in our community.
We are highlighting Amy Krestensen who has generously provided an insight into her life as a T1D Caregiver. This week is her eight-year anniversary as a T1D caregiver.
Can you tell us a little bit about your family’s story. How long have you (as the caregiver) and your girls been living with T1D?
I have three daughters, Ella who is 18 years old and diagnosed with T1D at 10 years old. Kayla who is 16 years old and has Hashimoto's disease with hypothyroidism diagnosed at 9 years old and Matilda who is 8 years old and diagnosed with T1D at 2 years old.
I am a single Mum with no family support here in WA, it is tough, but the girls keep me going. I am fortunate enough to work from home running a family day care which I feel very lucky that I am able to let the girls have a day off school if needed, answer the phone or pick them up early if I need to. I am able to use my phone to check what their sugar level is much as I need to, email the teacher or school nurse and organise appointments during the day.
We know caring for someone with T1D is 24/7 and is on top of everything else you do. How do you do it all?
I don't feel like I get a break from the carer role, as even if my girls aren't with me I feel like I still check their sugar levels often using the CGM follow app. Ella now has her P's and her own car and is about to graduate year 12, but I still help her with her diabetes management as much as I can.
It is scary navigating driving and drinking alcohol with T1D, but Ella tries her best and very responsible. I check their sugar levels as soon as I wake up, and often during the night as well. I am so thankful for the diabetes technology, but it is stressful when it doesn't work.
Both girls are aware that mental health is top priority in our house, we focus on building a strong, supportive relationship, encouraging open communication, and seeking professional help when needed. It is also important to model healthy coping mechanisms and show the girls it’s important to take some chill time when needed. The amount of bent canula's, sore fingers from finger pricking, infected pump sites I've lost count. My daughters are my strength, and they are so brave it makes me proud every single day. My daughter Kayla is a big support to her sisters. When she graduates school, she would like to become a doctor or a nurse and I feel she is so knowledgeable on T1D, I know she could do anything in the diabetes world if she wanted to.
What support do you have to help care for your girls? How do you get a break from being a carer?
I do feel like I have support online from friends in the T1D communities on Facebook, particularly the type 1 diabetes family centre as well and have made some great friends throughout the years through the Centre. I do feel having met other families with children with T1D is a really good idea for newly diagnosed families.
Although we live so far away from our extended family, we have great friends in WA who have helped me on my harder days by letting me vent and try to understand what I'm talking about and are there for the good days too, celebrating the small wins along the way. The girls are fortunate to have fantastic friends that might not always understand their diabetes but help them navigate through school and outside of school.
I like to focus on the things we do have, rather than what we don’t and I like to instil that my girls can achieve anything they want in life, diabetes just has to come along for the ride. I feel fortunate to be able to provide for my girls running my own day care and still being able to be Mum. I love being their Mum and will support them always.
"Imagine watching your child face an incurable condition - one that requires needles just to survive.
You would do anything to take it away, but you can't
All you can do is hold her hand, remind her she's not alone, and whisper that you see her bravery - even though you'll never fully know what it is like to live it every single day.
This is the life of a T1D Mum. Every day we pray for steady blood sugars so our babies can feel well. Every night we quietly step into their rooms, carrying as much of the burden as we can... but at the end of the day it is their condition to bear.
And yet - our children amaze us. Their strength, their resilience, their courage in the face of something so heavy - It humbles us.
This condition is shaping them into some of the strongest humans we know, and our love for them only grows deeper with every needle, every sleepless night and every prayer whispered in the dark."
- By Amy Krestensen