First time on his own

[Amy C.]

I thought I would share this with folks who really understand. My son is on a 2-day camping trip with his Boy Scout Troop -- the first without a parent since going on the pump last September.

I didn't give Philip a lot of instruction on what he should do. After 9+ years of living with diabetes and many scout camping trips, he should know to test before he eats and to bolus for the food eaten. Philip seemed comfortable with doing this, but was focused on the activities on the trip.

What I was unprepared for, was my reaction. I could not go to sleep last night at all. The worry nearly overwhelmed me. At a decent hour this morning, I called the Scout Master, but he didn't answer his phone. I finally drove out there and totally embarrassed myself. Philip did great! He lowered his basal, treated his sugars when they were almost low and he had a lot of activity. The leaders know what to do in an emergency. Why was I so panicked last night?

Hopefully, I will be able to sleep tonight. I wish I had prepared myself more for the diabetes aspect. I was working hard on getting Philip's stuff together to work on the camping merit badge and forgot to get things together for the diabetes aspect.

I will say this: the pump makes it much easier to manage diabetes on a camping trip. The shots were a problem for the scout leaders.

[selketine]

That is really great that he has done so well. I can only imagine how you feel - I know I'll feel the same way when that day comes. Hope you get some sleep tonight!

[allisa]

Wow Amy.....I think you did a great job letting your son be a kid !!

And I know I for one, would have been in the same boat as you...no sleep....were you on here at 3 AM last night ??

Only thought for next trip....invest in cell phone for him.....I'm sure an excpetion could be made for him.....and would give YOU peace of mind to know he could reach you whenever and vice-versa ! LOL


I hope he enjoys the rest of his trip.....and I'm glad you posted so I know that the future can be promising and fun-filled for our kids !!

[Boo]

How great that he has proved himself to be so responsible! He deserves a reward when he gets home. (And you deserve a reward for letting him go!)

[zimbie45]

way to go mom...

I ould have done exactly the same as you... And probley will.. we are in girlscouts ( daisies) this year .. next year brownies and we will do more outtings and camping trips.. im a bit nervouse now.. I will go since she is so young but wow...

[Amy C.]

It ended up that he did pretty well. I have decided to create a new basal setting for camping as well as change all the ratios. Temp basals end and you don't realize it.

He was -40% last night and ended up only a litte high this morning.

He made a stab at counting all the carbs. I would looked at the labels a little than he did rather than guess. At least he remembered what he ate -- it helped that he cooked most of the meals!

Best of all, he bolused for all the food he ate and drank, tested the correct amount and treated his low sugars. I wish he could feel a low before it reaches in the 40s, but it worked out ok.

This would not have been possible without the pump. It was in the upper 30s this morning and he found it rather hard to get blood out of his fingers.

I tried to be complementary.

[nantomsuethom]

Amy, I know exactly how you were feeling!!
The first time Thomas went camping without me (I am a scout mom, my husband stays home with our daughter) we didn't get much sleep either. The scoutmaster always allowed him to call before they went to sleep. It helped a little but we were still nervous through the night.
His troop camps once a month and he camps with the OA. Now he doesn't call any more before he goes to bed and we still get a little nervous but know he will be ok.
He too does pretty good with guessing carbs and correcting bgs.

[piratelight]

It is so nice to hear that as our son gets a bit older he will be able to do the scouting trips etc. How did you get the leaders trained if you don't mind my asking?

[Amy C.]

Scout leaders are to be briefed on the medications a scout is on. I did the same sort of training I did with his teachers. I did demonstrate how to give the glucagon shot and how to treat a low where he can drink with assistance if needed. At first, I wrote down when he should test and give a shot, but this wasn't followed too well.

Now that Philip is older, he remembers to test before eating and feels most of his lows. I wanted the leaders to know what to do in an emergency and to call with any questions.

Since you can have different leaders on each trip, this requires perserverance to keep everyone updated.

It is helpful to have a parent go along at first to help the child do what he is to do. Philip has been a scout for 2 years before he successfully did everything on his own. We had several system failures on shots.