Kid first…diabetes second…easier said than done.

That is my mantra.

Since our diagnosis with Type 1 Diabetes over 4 years ago when my little guy was just a teeny baby in my eyes I have tried my absolute best, and with pretty good success I think, at letting him live as normal as life as possible. After my initial breakdown of hysterical crying and dropping to my knees in the Sugar Free aisle in our Shop Rite I realized that for my son to have a happy, healthy, normal life even living with a chronic illness 24/7 for the rest of his life, I would have to make diabetes fit into our life and not the other way around.

Many families try to make this their mantra as well, yet many have a hard time succeeding at it. And I find holidays like Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas really test our mettle as to whether we are true to this mantra or not.

The way our house works with regards to making a food decision I ask a few questions: Is it healthy? Is it a good food choice? Is it the right time for something such as a treat? Would I let my daughter without diabetes eat it? It’s the last one that really has kept me grounded. If I can answer yes to the previous questions and then a final yes to the last question, then I do say yes to my son, the child with Type 1 diabetes. If my daughter’s allowed candy, then my son is allowed candy.

This time of year, with Halloween fast approaching, I see many places like dentists, orthodontists and schools that have candy buy backs. They buy back the candy that the children received on Halloween in exchange for a small gift or a dollar amount. The purpose of these buy backs is to keep America’s children’s teeth healthy, their weight in check and as a measure of good will as some of the candy is donated to troops. I have not seen one dedicated to buying back candy from kids specifically with diabetes, yet many parents’ of children with diabetes seem to gravitate towards them.

Prior to my son’s diagnosis he had 3 Halloweens under his belt. Not once did I consider going to a buy back. Yes, he was just a baby, and yes, I’m sure we ‘helped’ him finish his candy, but a buy back was not ever something I considered. If I was a buy back participant than maybe I would consider it for my children now, but I wasn’t so I don’t.

We trick or treat. We are candy people. I steal the candy from my kids as we trick or treat. We eat the candy for a few days. I bolus accordingly. We are pumping so bolusing between meals is a bit easier than when we were on shots, but even on shots we did it. I would add a few pieces of candy to his meal bolus so that he could enjoy the candy with the same shot that was given for dinner. Yes, giving the candy when he ate might not have been exactly the way we did it before diabetes, but you have to work with what you have. A shot regimen doesn’t allow for easy snacking between meals, but we always made best of it. Candy was eaten and enjoyed just like every other kid.

Now I am not knocking the candy buy backs. They are great if that’s what a family wants to do. But our involvement or lack thereof in a buy back has nothing to do with diabetes and everything to do with our love of candy and our goal of living a normal as life as possible for us.