SPARK.N.STRIDE with Mach
SPARK.N.STRIDE with MACH
Conversations exploring wellness, mental health, resiliency, and personal development with Mach a retired US Air Force veteran.
SPARK.N.STRIDE with Mach
From Diagnosis to Determination: Christian's Diabetes Experience (Part 1)
Imagine being a young kid suddenly navigating the unfamiliar terrain of Type 1 diabetes. That’s the journey Christian shares with us, offering a window into his life from the initial symptoms of drastic weight loss and unquenchable thirst to the pivotal moment of diagnosis. Join us as Christian candidly discusses the emotional and physical adjustments required in his new reality, emphasizing the role of community support and the technological advancements that aid diabetes management, like the Dexcom glucose monitor.
Christian's story shines a light on the challenges of managing diabetes in daily life, particularly in environments like school, where the symptoms of frequent bathroom visits and dehydration can't be ignored. His narrative takes us through the crucial moments that led to his diagnosis, including the observation of a concerned teacher. Discover how Christian balances the highs and lows of blood sugar management with the aid of insulin injections and continuous glucose monitoring, while highlighting the critical role friends and family play in offering support.
Throughout the episode, Christian’s resilience and positive outlook are contagious. He shares transformative experiences that have not only improved his health but have also empowered him to chase his dreams with renewed vigor. From mastering the intricacies of insulin dosing to adjusting to the physical demands of his condition, Christian's journey is a testament to overcoming adversity. His story is both an inspiration and a reminder that no medical condition should stand in the way of achieving one's goals.
Hey Christian, what's happening, man?
Speaker 2:Nothing much.
Speaker 1:Hey, welcome to Spark and Stride. Thank you, yeah, it's awesome. I'm so happy that you had the time to come by and hang out with me for a little bit.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I'm happy that you invited me.
Speaker 1:Oh, that's awesome, man. You know you're my family. You can come here whenever you want, yeah. Yeah, let's talk about what's important to you, though, like what's been going on with you. So seven months ago pretty like four, that's when we knew I had diabetes.
Speaker 2:Oh, okay, so you want to talk about your diabetes. Okay, I want to talk about how, how I had, how I got in, how we found out okay, cool.
Speaker 1:So what was yours?
Speaker 2:so four months ago i'm'm pretty sure May 4th, something like that I was really sick Like I went to the bathroom a lot, I drunk like a lot of water, like six of these bottles a day. For real yeah like a lot and then I barely ate and I lost 20 pounds in like two months wow just from all that.
Speaker 2:And then we went to a doctor and they took blood and we and they found out, um, I had diabetes. So the next day, at one I know the exact time one, one o'clock, my mom took me out of school. We went to the doc, doctor, and we found that I had it and we rushed to the emergency room and then after that they like put IV, and then they were talking about how we found out I had diabetes and they thought, like, average is four months, that's what they think.
Speaker 1:So basically seven months I'm in that diagnosis, but we didn't three months, we didn't find no oh, okay, okay, yeah, so they think that you maybe had it for seven months, but they didn't know four months and then four months or no, three months I think, and then four months.
Speaker 2:We knew that got it okay.
Speaker 1:So that's when you had your diagnosis. Yes, you kind of knew, wow, okay, so, uh, let me ask you something. So when you got sick, that's what started. Everything was that you got sick so there was no symptoms.
Speaker 2:When we, when we first had it, I started losing a lot of weight in winter when I was playing basketball. So we just thought that since I'm playing basketball, I'm very active, I'm drinking a lot of water, I'm losing a weight. Then, when basketball was done and we came to the doctors because we saw we lost too much weight and we kept losing weight after basketball. So we went to the doctors and we found out they took blood. Then the next day we went to or ER, er, I think, and then the emergency room.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and we found out I had diabetes, and then, like, we stayed there for three days. Oh, wow. And then I had IV and then we had to rush to the emergency room because my blood sugar was very high, like 500s and average blood sugar, probably yours. Yours is either 90, 93 to 120 okay so right now I'll actually show you okay, hold on. So I open my thing up and it's gonna say clarity and type dexcon g6. So that's when I have. I can actually show you where it is. Mm-hmm.
Speaker 2:Right on my arm, right here.
Speaker 1:Okay, so that's like the sensor.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so it says like what the brand it is, and I have a thing over it like a.
Speaker 1:Needle tiny nose like, like this big, it's thinner than a hair. Okay, so I thinner than a hair.
Speaker 2:Yeah, very, very, very. And it goes so like you have a little injection thing kind of like, so you press it down like this and it goes in like I don't even know how fast, very fast you don't even feel it okay and it's very tiny, so, and then you set up the app uh-huh and you have two apps. Clarity is which um it tells you like how your range is. So, like, 120 is my range, and then this is my um, where it tells me my blood sugar actually.
Speaker 1:So so what's your sugar right? Well, what's your sugar rate?
Speaker 2:328, which is not good. It's higher because I ate and I think I undercover and I'll get into that soon.
Speaker 1:What's undercover?
Speaker 2:Insulin, because my body does not produce insulin, so my pancreas doesn't work. Got it. And I wasn't born with it. It's called an autoimmune disease.
Speaker 1:So explain to me again how does it work when you uh?
Speaker 2:so you said 328 is too high yeah because your range you say your range was 120 120, 193, like 120, 90 under, and I'll also talk about low soon. So um 120 is perfect, you want, want it, or lower than that, like 93,. 90 is good for you, an average person or just a regular person?
Speaker 1:Got it.
Speaker 2:Okay, blood sugar.
Speaker 1:So you said what kind is it? Is it type 1 or type 2 diabetes?
Speaker 2:So I'll explain that.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 2:Type 1 is where you're born with it. But in my case my body I have autoimmune disease which fights my body off Like a disease. But I don't have one In type 1, you're either born with it or get it regularly somehow. Type 2 is where you eat horrible, Like you don't eat good at all, and then you have to. You have to, like eat healthier to get it out. But type 1, I mean type 2, you can be regular again, but type 1, you're stuck with it for your whole life until they find a cure.
Speaker 1:Got it.
Speaker 2:So which one do you have? Type 1.
Speaker 1:You have type 1.
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 1:Okay, so you're prepared to live with this.
Speaker 2:Yeah, only until they find a cure.
Speaker 1:Right.
Speaker 2:So what my mom said was like it's my pancreas kind of like sleeping so it doesn't really produce insulin, so we make a fundraiser. Remember that walk last week.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I remember.
Speaker 2:That was the fundraiser for or it's just a walk diabetes, but um, they made a fundraiser where we raised like four thousand dollars hold on.
Speaker 1:We meaning like your team, yes, your team. Oh well, do you know how much they raised altogether?
Speaker 2:Yeah, like $4,000. Okay. And then we donate. I donate every $1,000. Mm, okay, so we made a fundraiser, and then after that we went to the walk, and then what else? And then now we're, and now, well, so fundraise for a cure, that's what the fundraiser was for. Got it, it was for a cure. And then now we're and now they that well, so fundraiser's for a cure, mm-hmm.
Speaker 2:That's what the fundraiser was for Got it, it was for a cure. And then they had the walk, and then they announced how much people did Mm-hmm, and then they even sent us socks For. For real. Yeah, they sent us socks. I was wearing socks.
Speaker 1:Who sent you socks?
Speaker 2:The program sent us socks, I think I don't even know the name, I don't remember, but they sent us socks for it. Then we had to walk all that but they were still finding the cure, kind of like cancer, cancer cure. We're still finding it. So they had the cure to kind of wake up my pancreas. Okay, for works, wow. Any questions?
Speaker 1:Do I have questions? Yeah, do you have questions? Yeah, I have a whole bunch of questions. I have all kinds of questions.
Speaker 2:Ask.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so what do you like to eat?
Speaker 2:Eggs, eggs and bacon that's what you eat. So eggs and bacon, so that's what you eat. So were you eating eggs and bacon before you found out I was eating eggs and bacon.
Speaker 1:I love eggs and bacon. Okay, can you still eat eggs and bacon?
Speaker 2:yes, yes, okay, okay any meat or protein or low carb stuff okay or if they have fiber, so say something's four carbs. Fiber is going to make it lower. So four carbs. Fiber, say it's two grams of fiber, it's going to make it to two carbs. So I they make like low carb popsicles, so I like having that. So it's eight carbs, I'm pretty sure, which is not big but it's not also small. But I can have it like special times only if I'm not like now okay, because right now you're up yeah okay, so how do you bring it down?
Speaker 2:I take insulin we're. I'm gonna get that soon okay so um, they make that keto stuff. So basically I'm on keto diet or I take insulin for like foods or snacks or treats okay so things we avoid is basically carbs, higher carbs and then sugar. So like high sugar, not like one gram of sugar. It's not crazy yeah but like 20 grams for a bite of Skittles or something, which is a lot.
Speaker 1:Got it Okay, so you kind of have to monitor what you're eating obviously right, yeah, so like. How does that make you feel?
Speaker 2:Annoyed, like it's. You got to watch everything you eat. And you see, say you love a cereal and they say it's more healthy for you, but you have it now. Like, say you got diabetes. Uh, a month ago, before you had the diabetes, you love that cereal, but now you realize it makes your blood sugar go very high, but now you can't have anymore. So like say you love something, a lot candy. You can have candies for low I'll talk about that soon too. You can have candies for low, but you cannot have candies for like regular time. Like, say, halloween, they made a whole day, um holiday, about it. I can have candy then because it's a holiday, but, um, like regular basis, I cannot have it and it's not good for really anyone either but what about?
Speaker 1:what about if you were? What about if you were 328 on halloween? What do you do then?
Speaker 2:I would probably have like the lowest carb thing and take a little more correct. So I can show you that right now.
Speaker 1:But I'm not, so. So what? So what would you do? You know, like what? What would be? A candy that's low?
Speaker 2:I actually oh so skittles or apple juice or anything sugary. If I'm low and I can show you like low times or I can tell you I don't think it shows up. So the lowest I ever went was low, just low. It just said low, like like under 20 whoa under 20 that's not good right?
Speaker 1:no?
Speaker 2:that's horrible got it you get sweaty really oh, you get so shaky, like like this, and it's horrible for you and then making yourself go back up. It's not good either. So you kind of like want to have candy, so I take five skittles. If I'm low, like say, I'm going down rapidly and I'm 98, we take five skittles, wait 15 minutes, then take another 10, so 15 you want to have, and 15 and all and I'm still going low. There's something called sugar tablets which we take four and 16 carbs. That makes it go up. So that's low and then high one, um, so it's like it.
Speaker 2:Your blood sugar is really up, you're dehydrated. It's not good for you at all. It's kind of. I think it's even like a little worse than low, because you can die in both ways if you go too low and you can die if you go too high. But you can only die if, like you have, don't take insulin at all. I eat candy all day. Like you can get a dka, which I was, I was in, but not the serious. So like ketones is when you're really dehydrated, and ketones, like I don't, it's like acid, acid in your body which is not good for you. So, like you can lose limbs, arms, legs, all that like fingers.
Speaker 1:So how did you learn all of this? How did you learn everything you're telling me?
Speaker 2:Doctor, my doctor, okay, and my mom reaches us up and she tells me Okay, wow, because it's a lot of information. Yeah.
Speaker 1:Wow.
Speaker 2:When I first had it actually I'm going to talk about when we didn't know I did not have it, so I had to go to the bathroom like 20 times a day At night when I had to go to sleep. I had to go bathroom at least five times before I get to go to sleep. And then, since my blood sugar is so high, I was shaking like this. I could never go to sleep, and that's still now. Only if my blood sugar is so high, I was shaking like this.
Speaker 4:I could never go to sleep, and that's still now only if I'm.
Speaker 2:my blood sugar is high, though whoa. So or low, too low, is not fun, but when you go to sleep you're not gonna feel it, you're not gonna be shaky in your dreams or anything like that. So when we went, when I was going to school and I didn't know I had it, I had to go a lot and I had to put on Chastik every 20 minutes because my lips were so dry, and then not even 20 minutes like every minute. And then lotion I put lotion all over my hands.
Speaker 1:Because you're so dehydrated.
Speaker 2:Yes, my hands used to be like a desert literally Wow. And then that was for three months. My hands are to be like a desert literally Wow, and then that was for three months. My hands are so itchy. The lotion soaked into my hands in three minutes.
Speaker 1:Okay, did you tell anybody?
Speaker 2:My mom used to see that I was very ashy, but before I even had diabetes, we used to put on um, I used to put lotion on my hands like all the time, but I stopped and so it got even more, um, even more worse, even now. How yeah?
Speaker 2:because when you get dehydrated, that's what happens, right yeah, wow, like you don't feel it on, like you feel very itchy and like it's an, it's annoying, but, um, so when I we we, I always used to put on. Like one day I used to put on lotion, like five squirts and it was like big and three minutes it's gone. And I live five like 54 seconds away from my school and I was almost gone.
Speaker 1:Wow, oh, you live real close to your school.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I live. So say this is where I live, and then you go up, take a left, take another right, take another, and you're there. Oh okay, I literally timed it 54 seconds away.
Speaker 1:Do you walk to school? I're there, okay, I literally timed it 54 seconds away. Do you walk to?
Speaker 2:school. I get there, I go there. My mom drops me off, but I walk home from school. But I used to in like second grade, I used to get picked up because, well, we just got moved there. We moved there one year ago, I think. Mm-hmm. Or two maybe, I don't know, but I used to walk home at third grade and fourth grade. Now.
Speaker 1:Got it, so you would walk home because you live close by yes, right.
Speaker 2:We just got there so we didn't know the neighborhood a lot, so we didn't know if there was creepy people or anything. Yeah. But now the last robbery in our neighborhood was like 1984. And then there's no other things in our neighborhood.
Speaker 1:How'd you figure that out?
Speaker 2:First Halloween, when we moved there, our neighbors right next to us told us the last time there's a robbery or crime here it was 1984, I think. Wow. I think it was our other neighbors. So we lived up here and it was like right here Got it. Right in front of us. Okay. So let's get back to the like, how we didn't know sure, whatever you want to talk about.
Speaker 2:Yes, um, when I had to go, and then my teacher realized I was drinking water like crazy and then everyone had to go to the bathroom, so one after we got that was sorted out, we went to the doctors, like I said, went to the emergency room. Oh, actually, my teacher. So I think the day before we went to the emergency room we were talking, we found that I had diabetes, but we didn't do anything crazy. So the next day we went to school. My teacher told me so this is what we do, to go to the bathroom. So my teacher told me just do this and you go to the bathroom anytime you want. And, um, if you need a nurse, just rate. No need to go to the nurse, just raise your hand. And if you need to do anything, um, for lunch, you're gonna lunch at 11.34 or 30. But I go there at like 11.20 because I need to take insulin. Oh, before I eat, because I take this, eat and then give me insulin, I have to take it before.
Speaker 1:So you give yourself insulin.
Speaker 2:Yes, I can show you soon.
Speaker 1:Okay. Soon.
Speaker 2:So after and then the day before that, I think after lunch, 11, I mean 10, one o'clock, one o'clock, one o'clock, um, that's that's when we left to go to the er because we didn't know. Like the doctor told us I had diabetes, but we didn't, we didn't do so much crazy stuff about that until we actually went to the er and told us how had diabetes, but we didn't, we didn't do so much crazy stuff about that until we actually went to the ER and told us how my blood sugar is crazy, like in the 600s like.
Speaker 1:Your blood was in the 600s. Your sugar levels were in the 600s.
Speaker 2:Wow, 600s, and then when I used to go to the Adidas house, that's dangerous man. I know like crazy, like 500s, like very high, it's like high, high, higher than 400s, like 400 is considered very, very high, but like 500, 600, crazy high like dki high and I had like what's dk? Um, that's I 'll, that's we're getting to that. Okay.
Speaker 2:We got to the nurse, they told us I had DKA, which is I don't even know what DKA stands for, but it's when my blood sugar is very high and you get ketones, which is acid in your body, basically. So when we got there, they rushed, they pricked me. It hurt Like pricks, me like it hurt like pricks. You know, I have it actually with me, but yeah, like pricking, I don't.
Speaker 2:I don't remember what it was, but they, I said, they said it was very high, so and then so, and then we, we, we waited, waited. We got into a room like in the lower class and then, like the sink, we stayed there for three months. I think the second night or maybe a little later, like at nine, they took us to the emergency room because how high my blood sugar was, and like they every um, like they had IV right here in my arm, right here, and then, before that, they tried to take blood from me and I didn't get blood at all they couldn't find the vein they went here do you know why they couldn't find the vein?
Speaker 1:I don't know. Actually, because you were so dehydrated. When you're dehydrated, it's very hard to find a vein to draw blood from. Yeah, so you were probably super dehydrated. You know, I could only imagine Wow, you're pretty brave man. You're pretty brave to go through all of this stuff and to still stay positive about it. And, you know, just keep you know with a positive attitude. Yeah, that's gonna that's gonna do a lot for you, not only now, but as you get older too. Yeah, because you're an example. You're an example for other young men that probably you know, don't?
Speaker 1:They're learning that they have diabetes for the first time and they don't know how to. They don't know how to adjust to it, because it is an adjustment. It's not just an adjustment for you, it's an adjustment for everyone, right? For your grandparents, your parents, everyone, even me, right? Because you come to visit my house and play with my daughter, your cousin. I got to make sure that I have the right foods here for you, that you know. I can't just give you junk food when you get here, because like like diet coke or water yeah, right and diet coke I.
Speaker 2:It's like a treat yeah kind of like candy, but better for me, so like if my blood sugar's been good, I can have it okay but um aspartame. Aspartame is in diet stuff yeah which they say has cancer, which can give you cancer.
Speaker 1:So we kind of have that less often as um as normally how was it, when you went to school, when you went back to school after this whole thing, after being in the hospital for a few days, after figuring out exactly what the diagnosis was was that you had diabetes type one and getting all this information? Because it's a lot of information, right, like it's a little bit overwhelming, right? You're kind of like, oh my God, like you know, you're getting all this new information when you go back to school, right, and you go tell your friends, what do your friends say?
Speaker 2:My close friend. His name is Luke.
Speaker 1:What's up, Luke? What's happening?
Speaker 2:He didn't really think much of it. I didn't say he wouldn't care. I didn't think much of it until we got more into and see, when I go over his house, how it's low or high. Because one day I went to his house and this was recent, like two weeks ago. I went to his house and I changed my Dexagon, which tells me my blood sugar.
Speaker 1:You do that yourself. You switch that out yourself.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you just rip it off like a bandaid place it in kind of like this and then it just goes in like 60 miles per hour.
Speaker 1:Really, it goes in quick. You have to press it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you have to press a button like this.
Speaker 1:Got it, and then it shoots out it shoots out. It shoots out. Wow, when do you know that you have to change it?
Speaker 2:It tells me, actually I can pull it up right now.
Speaker 1:Oh, the app tells you it's time to change out the.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so I go on to settings right here and then I look all the way down Counts for all that stuff. You can see right here. Last time it gave me my calibration which told me my blood sugar it was. What time was it? I don't know, that was a long time ago. But this Sensor expires. You can see right here Sensor expires. Look for sensor expires, okay, and you see the date.
Speaker 1:Yes.
Speaker 2:That's when it expires, and it tells me the time too. Oh, wow. And I can show you on my pump. I can pull it out right now.
Speaker 1:So the sensor expires October 21st of 23 at 8.14 pm. Yes, so that's when you have to switch it out? Yes, october 21st of 23 at 8.14pm yes so that's when you have to switch it out, and it's going to give you like a reminder it's going to give me actually this, gave me a reminder actually now, because it expires today oh right this one expires today.
Speaker 2:This one, not this one so what's that one then? So this is my pump. This is basically a pancreas. Oh wow, you can see like, wow, I put an over thing over it so it doesn't break off, right? Right Because you can see the difference from the bigger difference from this.
Speaker 1:Yes.
Speaker 2:Because it's not going to get caught on barely anything. But, this can get caught. It's like the on barely anything but this can get caught. So, like the first day, the first time I had this, I put it on my thigh, and every time I put it on pants it like ripped the back, like this part off.
Speaker 1:Got it.
Speaker 2:And like that wasn't good, so we put like tape over it. Okay. Kind of.
Speaker 1:And then the next we had to change it every three days.
Speaker 2:Every three days you got to change that out. Yes, every three days. Whoa Actually we can. Let's see when this changes.
Speaker 1:So is that one similar to that? Like you put it on and then you press a button and it.
Speaker 2:Actually no. So this rips, we just rip it off and we have to put insulin manually into it. So we have a little bottle, we have to put insulin manually into it. So we have a little bottle, we have a syringe, pull it up and then we place it in here actually, and then it takes three clicks and you can see right here it says change pod and then 24, you left in reserve reserve wow wow, that's, that's so like 20, you means um units, units means insulin right, okay so christian.
Speaker 1:Could you imagine? Just imagine that you didn't have this technology yeah, I would prick myself, I.
Speaker 2:So when I first had diabetes and first got off the hospital actually when I ate food they um, they gave me shots. It's like I put on my thigh or arm you had to inject yourself.
Speaker 1:Yes, okay, yes, okay.
Speaker 2:Yes, I think stomach too, and I used to hit a muscle and it hurt so bad. Oof. But when I first did that for like three months the first three months, I think- so can you explain that part to me again about how you stick yourself? Okay, yeah, so I used to do it on my arm, both arms, thighs, legs. I used to do it on my arm, both arms, thighs, legs.
Speaker 2:I can't even do it on my butt wow but, um, I always used to do thigh because after I hit a muscle on my stomach, I hated it, so I always used to do thigh. So I used to put do it right here or on the side. Okay, wow. So inner or outer?
Speaker 1:Yeah, so who teaches you how to give yourself insulin?
Speaker 2:The nurse.
Speaker 1:The nurse taught you how to do it when we were in the hospital, they taught us where we can put it. Okay.
Speaker 2:And then I used to, just so you're supposed to squeeze it like this. Okay. And then place it in and then just press it down.
Speaker 1:Got it.
Speaker 2:So you like twist the cap kind of like this and it goes to 30. 30 units is crazy a lot. Yeah, you don't want that right 30 units is like eating a whole buffet, like candy, everything. Right, okay like candy, everything right, okay. So probably people are gonna need higher, like five units, because they're bigger, they need bigger meals for now. I'm usually taking either two units or three units, depending on the meal okay, so what were you saying?
Speaker 1:so um oh, I know, I know what I wanted to ask you. I know so. So they're teaching you how to give yourself insulin at the hospital. They're teaching you. So, when you do it for the first time, who gives it to you when you get home? Not in the hospital.
Speaker 2:Oh, okay. So in the hospital the first time was the person, the nurse. But then I think, like the fourth time I had a meal, I gave it to myself.
Speaker 1:So you gave it to yourself, I gave it to myself in the hospital, in the hospital, yeah, after the nurses training you and doing all this stuff. Yeah, wow, was that scary.
Speaker 2:You don't really feel it. Have you ever had stitches? Yeah, okay. So it kind of feels like that, but it's like this big. Okay and little less so, and I think every three months you're gonna have expires and they had to get a new one wow so um what is? It wait what expires every three months so when I had the pen I had to expire. I think it expires every month or three months. Okay, we had to get a new one out, a new pen. Yeah.
Speaker 1:But it doesn't matter. You still got to stick yourself. Yes, you still got to, no matter what. The act of actually puncturing your skin with the needle, yeah, you have to do that.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Because there's no other way for it, to you know, unless, unless, you have that.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I think I got this like a month ago, I think. Okay. So this is basically a pancreas. It gives me insulin every hour, so like a tiny drop in the water kind of.
Speaker 1:Instead of insulin. So is it giving you insulin according to what the other sensors telling you, or is it just giving you a little bit at a time?
Speaker 2:and you have to manage okay, so yes and kind of no, so this that was funny.
Speaker 1:Go ahead go so this um tells me my blood sugar and it also connects with this well, that's okay, that's what I'm trying to get at right.
Speaker 2:So it's kind of.
Speaker 1:So it's working together.
Speaker 2:Yeah, to keep you Steady and.
Speaker 1:Right to keep you balanced right, yeah, not go low or high. Gotcha okay.
Speaker 2:So wrong thing. So I press this little, like you see, that cap kind of I press that to take insulin. That's what it looks like, the little insulin bottle, and I put 100 units in here. Whoa. Like that's very a lot. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:But we're not going to have all that. So I put my carbs. So 60 would be three units. And then UCGM means correct my blood sugar, and I'm not going to do that because I corrected it a little while ago. But CCGM means 0. Blood sugar, and I'm not going to do that because I corrected it a little while ago. But C says me 0.8 U. U means unit, which is insulin. So that's kind of what it gives me. And then, so that basically works together. And then I'm going to tell you about the activity mode and switch mode. So switch mode means I'm in automated mode right now, as you see, automated, which gives my daily hour insulin. Little drop of insulin, kind of like a pancreas gives you that hour insulin for it doesn't mix up your blood sugar.
Speaker 1:Yes. So, Well, I wasn't aware of that. I just learned that.
Speaker 2:Oh, you just learned that now.
Speaker 1:Right this minute. So thank you yeah.
Speaker 2:So you see this IOB right here. Mm-hmm, I don't know what that means, but 1.5U is the units, so how much I have in my body, right? Now Got it.
Speaker 2:It was one unit and five one and a half units. Okay, Okay. So right here this is the graph. It tells me how like my blood sugar is now and how it's been. So I've been steady on the way here and then went down a little and went up until now. So it's been going up until now and now it's steady. So that arrow is steady. Up means going up. Double arrow means going up fast. Double arrow means going up fast. Down means going down double.
Speaker 1:So right now it's supposed to be roughly 120, right.
Speaker 2:Yeah, 120.
Speaker 1:It's where we would like to be.
Speaker 2:Close to like. We want it to be in the hundreds. Got it? We want it to be under 180.
Speaker 1:Under 180, okay.
Speaker 2:Anything higher is considered high.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 2:Or very high.
Speaker 1:Got it. So right now at 330,. We're high right now.
Speaker 2:Yes, that's very high.
Speaker 1:That's very high. So you're trying to. Bring it down, bring it down, bring it down and you said you corrected earlier.
Speaker 2:I corrected at 3.34. Okay. So like an hour ago.
Speaker 1:I think, oh, wow, okay, so it takes some time for it to kind of so when we first got out of the hospital, we had to wait 15 minutes to eat.
Speaker 2:every time Got it. Then that was annoying Every time I had to eat. Imagine waiting 15 minutes after you take insulin and you have to stare at your food while everyone else is eating.
Speaker 1:Just imagine that. Yeah, that's no good.
Speaker 2:And then sometimes if I was lower, I didn't wait at all. So in school when I had to wait 15, I used to go a little earlier to wait.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you were saying that, right yeah.
Speaker 2:So I used to bring my lunchbox to there. I used to bring my lunchbox and my mom's write how much carbs down. So actually I can show you what we used to do. So I used to go on the calculator Let me find that Calculator. And then I forgot what my thing used to be. I think it was like 70 for correction and then 24 for carbs. But this is already knows. It has its own calculator, so we don't have to calculate it anymore. So I'll say I'm having 60 gram of 60 carb meal, 60 carbs. So I put 60 here and I divide it by I think it's 24. 24 equals 2.5. So I think we changed my correction stuff so it's going to be a little higher than that. And then 75, I think it was, or 80 was for my correction, like for connecting my blood sugar. So if I corrected it now it would be 0.8.
Speaker 1:Got it. So, right now that it's high, yes, right. How do you feel right now?
Speaker 2:I don't feel anything.
Speaker 1:You don't feel anything, you feel regular regular.
Speaker 2:Yeah, my lips are a little chapped because I was licking it, but that's yeah, but.
Speaker 1:But I'm just saying, like, right now you feel, you feel, you feel okay, right, yeah. So so right now that, since your sugar is high, but you feel okay right, if you were in school right now, would you like go out on the playground, would you play sports, would you engage other kids, like would you start playing a game of basketball, or would you kind of like sit back and wait for your sugar to come to stabilize?
Speaker 2:so that can be out an hour 30 minutes to make it down oh so that's going to be annoying, but I could do anything really if it's high. But if it's low I have to go to the nurse, take 14, I mean 4 tablets, sugar tablets or 5 Skittles, depending 5, 10, or 15, depending on my blood sugar.
Speaker 2:So, I can show you. So when I go to recess, actually, I press this like little three lines right here. I press it and then it goes to this you can see switch mode automated manual. Manual means you're not going to get your hour insulin, which is not good. So sometimes at night or sometimes regularly, it makes you turn. Automated restriction mode, which makes you turn into manual mode. Wow, and then, I don't know, set time bolus. Bolus is your insulin, no other word for it. And then activity. I can actually put it on right now and take it off. So you see, it goes to 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18.
Speaker 2:It can go all the way to 24 hours. It can go all the way to 24 hours. So say you're in the army and you're going on an all-day trip to I don't know, you're in war for the whole day. You put it on 24 hours. That's just a thing.
Speaker 1:So you put it on 24 hours, meaning that you're going to be active for 24 hours.
Speaker 2:Active for 24 hours Right, okay, you're going to be walking, running. You're going to be active for 24 hours. Active for 24 hours, right, okay.
Speaker 1:You're going to be walking, running, you're going to be doing stuff, you're going to be moving around.
Speaker 2:For like the whole day Got it and then next day, so I can actually not put it on 24 hours, but I can put it on one hour and say it stops my hour insulin. And then right here it tells you how long I can just cancel that right now so that beep's telling me it's gone? Got it okay it's giving my hour insulin now, and then these switches this um little mark saying it's on automated mode which is good, and this tells me my blood sugar.
Speaker 2:so this one tells me one is going to expire and one to change it. So it says change 24 units left in the thing and then pod expirations today at 8.21 pm. Wow. So that's what you want to see.
Speaker 1:So that's what you want to see. I think for me right now, as I'm listening to you and watching how you're navigating through your phone, it's pretty amazing that at your age you're so in tuned with how this all works and how it affects you, because ultimately, it's you right, it's you, it affects you because, ultimately, is you right, like it's you. But I think it's very impressive that you're able to not only show me, but you're navigating, a pretty complex I mean application almost you know what I mean. Like that would take me a long time to try to like figure out. And you're you're not not only have you figured it out, you're just like moving through. You're not not only have you figured it out, you're just like moving through, you're navigating it. It's pretty impressive. May I ask you two questions? Yeah?
Speaker 1:So if there were, like a group of young boys and girls who were just diagnosed the day that you left the hospital, the way you were feeling, if there was a group of kids who were feeling that same way, like what would you tell them?
Speaker 2:so the day I left, I felt perfect. Fine, I felt like now. So I don't want to say anything, because I felt fine.
Speaker 1:I felt well, no, you felt, you felt fine, but you felt fine. But you were just diagnosed with type 1 diabetes.
Speaker 2:Well, I was diagnosed for seven months. That's what we like. They said four months or three months, that's what they thought how long I've been diagnosed for. So really, I've been diagnosed for seven years. I mean seven months.
Speaker 1:Right, but you hadn't gone to the hospital, you hadn't taken insulin. No, you hadn't gone to the hospital, you hadn't taken insulin. No, none of that, right, yeah? So the doctors are thinking and I don't even want to talk about because I wasn't there, I'm not a doctor, I'm not a medical professional in this area whatsoever, I'm more. I'm asking in terms of the way you were feeling like as a person, not feeling that how did you? Was your sugar up or down as a person?
Speaker 2:and how did I react?
Speaker 1:yeah, like if there were a group of kids right now that are experiencing the same thing you've experienced. What would you tell them?
Speaker 2:so I would say it's not the worst thing and it's not the same thing you've experienced. What would you tell them? So I would say it's not the worst thing and it's not the best thing that would happen to you, but say it's even better for you. You get a healthier life. You're going to be way more healthier than average people that have like or people that have like treats or like. You're going to be healthy, very healthy, and then you're going to be healthy, be strong. So take that as an advantage and have better. Your blood sugar is going to be better. You're going to feel amazing. You can do anything you want, basically Mostly. But you can do anything, but just watch out for your blood sugar and, um, if you go high or low. So if you had your pump, if you had a pump, you would put it on activity mode for how long you're having uh, you're playing or doing whatever. But if you had uh injections, try to wait like 30 minutes or an hour after you take that injection so you don't go low.
Speaker 1:Okay, I have another question. So what have you learned from this entire experience?
Speaker 2:So far.
Speaker 1:So far.
Speaker 2:So I learned that I had to eat way healthier and how I feel better, like stronger I actually I had more muscles now than back, when we did not know, and I used to be a little more chunky. I used to be 101 pounds. Now I'm like 81. I lose a lot of weight, but now I'm a perfect weight for me.
Speaker 1:Wow, is there anything else you?
Speaker 2:want to share with the people that are going to listen and watch this. No matter what medical disease or anything that happens to you, don't make it stop you from anything you want.
Speaker 1:I like that.
Speaker 2:Actually, can I redo that? Yeah, yeah, go ahead. Don't if you have a medical disease or anything, don't make it. Stop chasing your dreams. Okay. That sounds way worse than the first one.
Speaker 1:It's all good, brother, thank you. So you're going to come back. You're going to come back and hang out with me on Spark and Stride yeah, awesome. We with me on Spark and Stride yeah, awesome. We would love to have you back, man. All right, christian, thank you so much. It was awesome talking to you and I hope that this was also beneficial to yourself in terms of getting out your message and how you've bounced back from this diagnosis.
Speaker 2:Yeah, all right brother. Thanks for having me.
Speaker 1:You got it Spark and Stride, stay sparked.
Speaker 2:It's much it, you got it. Spark and stride, stay sparked.