Now that it has been a little over a month since my son was diagnosed with type 1. He is injecting himself, and has found a good balance with blood sugars. Now his next question to me is, “how can I sleep over at friends?” So I was wondering if anyone has any advice? Do you bring your own food? Obviously he will have to bring his insulin. I usually wake him up at 6 am to take his insulin, so getting him to wake up by calling his cell phone…come on. Any advice would be helpful so thank you.
Annora,
How old is he? Mine was diagnosed about 6 weeks ago… He’s 14 . It gets better every week for us and life is now a “new” norm,but totally manageable. My son did a sleep over a few weeks back and it went really well. The family was totally understanding, he took his insulin with him, some snacks and made arrangements to eat a certain breakfast as I sent a loaded syringe for him. Kept my cell for texts in the night and early am and passed his levels to me a few times. I must admit…I did not get a great night’s sleep ,but he had a GREAT time . It meant so much for him to do it again as if nothing has changed…so important to keep life as it was .
My son is 14 too. He was diagnosed January 8, 2010. Yes is has been an adjustment. Yes and I agree it is so important to keep their lives the same. Thats why I love this site. It has been a lifesaver for me.
My Daughter and myself both have type 1 and now have pumps…but prior to the pump she (being very social) spent time at friends house. My recommendations are be farmiliar with the childs test kit. know how to see how often they check and when. My kid who is very responsible had (and has) issues at time with this. We spoke with parents to understand what syptoms were and explained what the needed to do. For the most part we have never had issues but watchful parents are important. I suggest sending snacks that are pre packagaed (like chips) because even if the kid eats 5 bags they know that this is a known quantity of carbs. The wake up call can be a bummer for kid and parent but the piece of mind is good… How old is your son?
Brian
My daughter is 13 and was diagnosed last year. She has done a handful of sleepovers and has had a blast. Like someone else said, I don’t get much sleep. We don’t pack any special food for her. But, she texts me with what she’s eating (and her blood glucose level), and we figure out (the best we can) the carb count and how much insulin she needs. I also have her text me with her bedtime reading. We realize that she may be snacking, but we remind her about “moderation.” We almost always let her sleep in with friends, and she texts me in the morning with her blood and breakfast choices.
She almost always runs high after a sleepover, but we feel that it’s important for her to be a “normal” teenager. Our doctor has stressed, “she’s a teenager first and a diabetic second.”
Good luck!
I was diagnosed a couple months before my fourth birthday (1988). I think I had my first sleep over at a friends house in first grade. My friend’s father was a doctor so he had no problem helping with injections. I went to Clara Barton Camp when I was in the third grade and was able to learn to take total care of myself. By high school, when I was 14, I chose to go to boarding school and was four hours away from my parents. My parents taught me how to take care of myself and be responsible for my care at a young age so I was able to take care of myself without them having to worry all the time. I am not sure how old your son is, but start small with a situation you feel comfortable with. Maybe have him go to a friends house that is close by. Talk to the parents of what to look out for and send your son off with everything he needs. He probably will not be able to get into too much trouble in one night. Believe me I’ve done my fair share of stupid teenager things with this disease and have survived. He is going to make mistakes but if you teach him how to handle them and learn from them he will be fine.
Same here …nice to get quick info and see that others are struggling with the same issues.
Keep in touch
i sleep over all the time with my friendss…cell phone workss…just make sure it’s turned on high and it is onn…i made that mistake bfore… it’s alot of trust… you really gotta trust himm…if you know he’ll do it himm slff then let him go and make the best of it…
it’s keeping life the same as it as before and after diabetes…
hope i helped, Sadiee:)
Great information!!! Thanks everyone!!