Prejudice in Sports.......

[mom to a sports nut]

Have you or your child faced 'discrimination' in your competitive sports field due to type 1 diabetes? I would be interested to hear how you handled it.

[3js]

has your daughter experienced this? we are not involved in organized sports for a few years- pre dx.

my son starts martial arts again in the fall. i am interested if this is an issue for kids.

[otisdaddy]

I was a former professional hockey player and the fact that I was a diabetic was a negative factor in many scouts eyes. From their standpoint, if you have a a "non-diabetic" player comparable in skill level to a diabetic player, they will choose the non-diabetic player every time. It is less of a risk to them. I even had Bobby Clarke, one of the best known diabetic athletes, tell me this. What I had to do was work hard to keep my diabetes in order and use this "discrimination" as a motivating factor on an every day basis.

[Tamara Gamble]

My son is only twelve, actually today is his birthday so he is thirteen. He plays AYSO soccer. Not a proffesional sport but still a sport, I notice that his coach consistantly picks on him and has put him into tears. We had a ref last year who knew Tyler as well due to the fact that he has a son his age and he was relentless with him. I don't know why. I have often wondered if it somehow has to do with the fact that he has diabetes. This is the only difference between him and the others. It really irks me though. I think to myself, that he has enough to contend with every single day of his life. He handles the diabetes extremely well. He loves soccer. I get angry because I feel like they just suck the joy out of it for him. Why? I just don't get it. It's a recreational sport for crying out loud. And he's a good player. Not the best but he saves alot of butts out there. Fast. He is so fast it's crazy.

We haven't said anything yet because we have no proof. We just support Tyler.

Tami

[OSUMom]

My son is only twelve, actually today is his birthday so he is thirteen. He plays AYSO soccer. Not a proffesional sport but still a sport, I notice that his coach consistantly picks on him and has put him into tears. We had a ref last year who knew Tyler as well due to the fact that he has a son his age and he was relentless with him. I don't know why. I have often wondered if it somehow has to do with the fact that he has diabetes. This is the only difference between him and the others. It really irks me though. I think to myself, that he has enough to contend with every single day of his life. He handles the diabetes extremely well. He loves soccer. I get angry because I feel like they just suck the joy out of it for him. Why? I just don't get it. It's a recreational sport for crying out loud. And he's a good player. Not the best but he saves alot of butts out there. Fast. He is so fast it's crazy.

We haven't said anything yet because we have no proof. We just support Tyler.

Tami

Oh I could get on a rant with some of these kid coaches who think it's professional sports! My husband has heard 5 and 6 year olds crying driving by tackle football practice at 6PM on hot summer nights with their pads and helmets on. It can be insane.

For your son's situation it's hard to say, but you know maybe this coach sees real potential in your son. Maybe he's pushing him harder because he sees that something in him that is so good. :confused: You know like he expects more out of him because he seems talented and has greater potential. I would like to think it's that and not that a coach ( and a dad himself) would be harder on a kid because of the D. Either way it's wrong!!! Sorry for that experience - when the coach sees him tearing up - he should lay off no matter what. Geesh!

[jlwilts]

I am aware of two types of interest.
Insulin is a banned subtance under the rules of the International Olympic Committee as the hormones it contains promote muscle growth. Others say that insulin enables those who use it to recover more quickly from exercise and that users have an unfair advantage as they can consequently pursue a more intensive training regime. I find that I am asked questions about insulin use sometimes from those seeking to ascertain if I am gaining an unfair advantage.
Coaches and administrators are sometimes obliged because of the strenuos nature of a sporting activity ask about a participants diabetes management, this might feel like discrimination to the person with diabetes as they attract disproportionate attention.

[mom to a sports nut]

I am aware of two types of interest.
Insulin is a banned subtance under the rules of the International Olympic Committee as the hormones it contains promote muscle growth. Others say that insulin enables those who use it to recover more quickly from exercise and that users have an unfair advantage as they can consequently pursue a more intensive training regime. I find that I am asked questions about insulin use sometimes from those seeking to ascertain if I am gaining an unfair advantage.
Coaches and administrators are sometimes obliged because of the strenuos nature of a sporting activity ask about a participants diabetes management, this might feel like discrimination to the person with diabetes as they attract disproportionate attention.

But several type 1 diabetics have competed in olympic games and been successful. How then can insulin be a banned substance??

[somanybakers]

My son, a first baseman and 8 years old, felt low during a game one Sat afternoon. The coach instead of calling a time out for him to check his sugar pulled him and wanted to replace him. I went to the dugout and insisted he let him check and go back in after a quick drink. The coach just didn't realize what a quick fix it was. I was insistent because I did not want my son to, in the future, ignore the way he was feeling so he would not be taken out of the game. I'm not sure he would unless it was a close game.
Nancy

[KitKat]

My son's baseball coach asked him to take off his insulin pump so he would "look like" the rest of the boys on the team. My son didn't share this with me until two weeks had passed. My son said, "Doesn't he know I want to be like the other boys!" It broke my heart!

[lhauver]

My son was diagnosed recently (October, 2008) and he was right in the middle of his soccer season in high school. He was a starter on the team, and rarely came out of the game and suddenly, after the coach learned of his diagnosis, he did not start or play much. My son wrote the coach an email, rightly assuming he was trying to protect him from danger of over-exertion, explained his situation, how the running and playing was good for him, etc. The coach continued to start him after that, and we had no more problems. It will be interesting as time goes on, during the different athletic tryouts, to see if he is discriminated. I have hope that he will not be discriminated against.

[OSUMom]

My son's baseball coach asked him to take off his insulin pump so he would "look like" the rest of the boys on the team. My son didn't share this with me until two weeks had passed. My son said, "Doesn't he know I want to be like the other boys!" It broke my heart!

I'm almost speechless reading your post. My son does remove his pump with basketball because of going too low with the pace of the game/exercise, but this coach of your son's.... ugh... like I tell my boys better to not say anything at all if I don't have something nice to say. :mad:

Sorry your son had this situation - breaks my heart too. :cwds:

[OmgItsJohanna]

I am aware of two types of interest.
Insulin is a banned subtance under the rules of the International Olympic Committee as the hormones it contains promote muscle growth. Others say that insulin enables those who use it to recover more quickly from exercise and that users have an unfair advantage as they can consequently pursue a more intensive training regime. I find that I am asked questions about insulin use sometimes from those seeking to ascertain if I am gaining an unfair advantage.
Coaches and administrators are sometimes obliged because of the strenuos nature of a sporting activity ask about a participants diabetes management, this might feel like discrimination to the person with diabetes as they attract disproportionate attention.
would it exempt insulin for medical reasons? because as i read on another post in this thread, there are olympic athletes with diabetes, and of course, they would have to have used insulin to get to where they are [but not to an unfair advantage], or else they would probably not even be able to compete, due to the hyperglycemia that would accompany not taking insulin. I'm very curious about this topic, because it is walking a thin line between keeping you alive (as in diabetes cases) and using it to make you stronger (abuse cases.) Anyone have any ideas on this subject? i'd love to hear it.

[OSUMom]

In my opinion it absolutely is not going to be banned for the person who is insulin dependent. I wouldn't worry about that.

[skimom]

If you are a diabetic athlete you must get a medical clearance to indicated that the insulin is a medical necessity. This way you will not be subjected to the risk of disqualification due to abnormal blood/urine tests, (especially where drug testing is an issue). I have a daughter in high performance sport and as long as you have the medical clearance there are NO problems

[Tigerlilly's mom]

Thankfully Tyler has not met any discrimation yet. I always let the coach know that he is diabetic and that Tyler will let him know if he is feeling low. I also make sure that the coach knows that Tyler will not pester him on the sidelines with "COACH COACH, is it my turn to play" or anything like that, so if Tyler is trying to get his attention there is a GOOD reason, not just him looking for more playing time. I also assure the coach that I will be there at all practices and games so if anything does come up to just send Tyler over to me. (His hockey coaches have glucose tablets on the bench with them at all games - I don't want to have to run (fall) across the ice during a game):p

[OSUMom]

If you are a diabetic athlete you must get a medical clearance to indicated that the insulin is a medical necessity. This way you will not be subjected to the risk of disqualification due to abnormal blood/urine tests, (especially where drug testing is an issue). I have a daughter in high performance sport and as long as you have the medical clearance there are NO problems

Yep, I was just reading about Missy Foy marathon runner who has Type 1. There is paperwork to be filled out with proper medical identification, but then you're good to go.


“I went to the Olympic trials, but the night before I was told that I wasn’t going to be allowed to run because I was taking insulin. What had happened was they had decided in the weeks before that they were putting insulin on the ‘controlled substance’ list and I had not filled out the appropriate paperwork. Nobody ever told me this. And so that night the race staff called in a physician to come in and do a physical and rewrite all my prescriptions in his name and fill out the paperwork and fax it to the U.S. Olympic Committee so that I could run the next day.”

[Missy Foy]

Hi everyone,
Had to chime in on this one. There are so many caveats to consider here. First, is your child competing at a level high enough to be considered for US Olympic program drug testing? If no, don't worry about any of this - they don't come knocking on your door out of the blue. Also, what is the National governing body for your sport? For me it is USA Track & Field and I fall under the auspices of USOC (US Olympic Committee), IAAF (International Amateur Athletic Federation), IOC (International Olympic Committee), USADA (US Anti-Doping Administration), and WADA (World Anti-doping Administration). Because I was in the Olympic Dev't Program for 2 years, I was taught all the processes and all the hoops. Each governing body has their own special drug lists. Some drugs are banned for all sports, but some are sport-specific. Technically, insulin is a banned substance, but through USADA, you apply for something called a TUE (Therapeutic Use Exemption). They aren't trying to make it difficult for diabetics, but trying to prevent the abuse of what is an anabolic hormone - body builders and sprinters abuse it all the time! I've actually been asked for insulin! The TUE is usually granted for 3 years or so. A bigger hassle for a lot of diabetic athletes, though, is the ban on asthma inhalers - a lot of diabetics also have asthma. The TUE for inhalers requires getting off the inhaler(s) for a short period of time and having PFTs (pulmonary function tests) done to prove the need for the inhaler. It's awful. My TUE for albuterol expires next Jan and I'm already dreading it! So, if you think your child is participating at a national or world class level, contact the governing body for his/her sport and let them direct you from there. Usually, this doesn't even become an issue until college level or beyond, but it's always wise to ask.

[OSUMom]

Missy, thank you for posting!!

I saw your piece on DLife recently, and you are such an inspiration to people with Type 1 diabetes and their parents!!! Thank you and congratulations on your success!!! :)

Wait a minute - so you have to be off of the inhaler for a period of time. That can be life threatening. My younger son has asthma. How crazy is that.... Well we won't have to worry about that unless his lacrosse playing takes a dramatic turn. ;)

[Mom2rh]

Wow cool! A world class athlete was here! That is so awesome.

Missy...if you ever come back and see this...our son is involved in swimming and lacrosse (and we wish he would run!) but we try to encourge him by pointing our successful athletes who happen to have T1D...so we will be watching you! Thanks for chiming in.

[Max's Cause]

We have never experienced that issue, although I must admit that when we first got Max in to sports after his diagnosis we landed probably the best coach on earth and have been able to keep him with the same coach through soccer, baseball, and football over the last three years. I also participate as an assistant and serve as a coach on his football team.

One thing I do notice though is that Max will sometimes try to use his diabetes to avoid some of the tougher things in practice. I think it's important for a coach to be understanding about diabetes but not let him use it as a crutch and expect him to give it his all.

Team sports have been a tremendous confidence booster for Max post diagnosis, and the awareness/support he brings to the disease through the friends and parents on his teams has also been amazing.

[bgallini]

My son has experienced some discrimination in sports b/c of his diabetes. He was 15 at dx and was in the middle of a recreation league soccer season. Admittedly, he was not playing all that well just before diagnosis (probably hard to do anything well with undx diabetes). But he actually was played less after dx. I think the coach was freaked out by the dx. BUT this was rec soccer and the deal is if you pay, you play. He should have been played 50% of the game no matter what. Emails to him and to the people in charge didn't improve the situation. We got another coach the next season (had to call and freak out on them b/c they put him with the same coach despite my clear instructions not to) and I do think he played more that season but I was fed up with the league and didn't let him play with them anymore after that 2nd season.

He now plays for his high school team. This is a different set of rules. He's not guarenteed 50% play time and the coach was clear with him about this from the start. I'm honest, he's not a great player. And he's not even as committed to the game as the other boys (missed most Mon practices for a band practice). But he's on the team and plays some and he's happy with that. This coach does not seem freaked out by the diabetes and he has no need to be....Alex handles it all and has only gone a little low once during a practice.

[Aine Maire]

I feel so sad to read about prejudice against children with type 1 and I feel so lucky in the coaches that my sports-mad son has had, over here in Ireland. They take such great care of him. They know about his diabetes and while they don't treat him any differently to the rest of the team, they watch over him carefully. He has never been omitted from a team...in fact quite the opposite...they encourage him to take care of his diabetes so that he will be "good to go" for his training and matches. I thank God for their kindness and goodness every day.