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| Wide ranges of A1Cs I am around 8.4 |
Good Morning everyone! This past weekend my boyfriend and I did travel three hours to get Tampa Florida. (Long drive right! smh) The conference was better then I could ever imagine! Meeting Miss America was amazing and she was so friendly! Kyle Cochran looks even better in person! Crystal Bowersox was so down to earth and what an amazing singer! I was also about to meet 150+ people with type 1 diabetes all in my age group. Since I was diagnosed at age 18, I never got a chance to go to diabetes camps or develop a close knit group of diabuddies until now.
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| Joey and I at the dinner cruise! |
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| Got Insulin? |
Ok, to start off the hotel was amazing. My boyfriend Joey and I got nice room with a king bed, while everyone else had two double beds and a roommate. We arrived late to the first activity which was quite hilarious. Each group was given a theme songs, we got the Friends theme song, and we had to turn that song into a song about diabetes. Our group thought we had it in the bag, but everyone was reading the lyrics on their phones and so out of sync. The following day there were break out sessions and a dinner sunset cruise. I will tell you one thing, I was surprised by how much cake and candy was at this conference. It really felt like we were all "normal" besides the insulin pumps and cgms beeping and singing. At the dinner cruise the food was served buffet style, and there was unlimited free drinks, alcoholic drinks. T1D's definitely know how to party! The DJ on the upper deck was playing cool dance music and everyone was having a blast. I was sad to leave, but I am glad that I have made around 20+ new facebook friends! It is a wonderful feeling knowing that you have a support group there to chat or share concerns with.
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| Group shot Kyle Cochran up front with his D.A.D. (Diabetic Alert Dog) |
At the conference I was able to meet 3 D.A.Ds or Diabetic Alert Dogs. It truly opened my eyes to how amazing they are and what a difference they can make for us with type 1 diabetes. I have looked into them before and I even filled out an application for a D.A.D. The only reason I am slightly hesitant about it is because of the money. I am a full time student and I work full time. Unfortunely, I am not financial stable to own a dog. I am applying for Nursing school in Sept 2015. With all my bills, and medical bills, my medical supplies and tuition, I don't have $15,000+ to throw at a D.A.D. I did find a company who trains diabetic alert dogs at a lower cost because they actual adopt dogs from local shelters to be trained. I believe that their prices run about $7,500 and I would still need to travel out of state. I was thinking about starting a fundraiser. But I am not sure if my support group is supportive enough to help me get $7500+ to get a dog and to travel. Looks like I might be waiting until the end of Nursing School to get a dog with my hard earned money. Hopefully I will not die in my sleep in the mean time.
Now here is a remarkable scene that almost brought me to tears, and this shows how much we all care about each other. I hope we can all remain close and be there for each other in times of need. Thank you #SWD2015 <3
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