A parent's and son's perspective

Owen was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes when he was 10 months old. I thought that he had his first case of the flu, only it wasn’t the flu, it was ketoacidosis. It was the scariest thing to see him so sick. He lost weight, he couldn’t drink an ounce of water, he was in pain, lethargic and his skin turned blue. His blood turned into poison. The doctors and nurses couldn’t tell me he was Diabetic at that point because at that point it didn’t matter, he was going into a coma. We had to wait to see if the insulin would work. The months prior to Owen being diagnosed I didn’t think anything was wrong, I thought it was just his personality. Little did I know, his pancreas wasn’t working.

Being the mother of a Diabetic child who was so young, completely changed parenthood for me. I remember I often felt envious of other mother’s with their healthy babies. They didn’t have to pack all the extra stuff like glucose monitor’s, strips, lancets, syringes, alcohol swabs, charts and juice, snacks and glucagons. They didn’t have to count carbs, or give their children needles to keep them alive. 

Seeing Owen grow as a toddler is absolutely amazing. He is the healthiest boy. He plays baseball, loves soccer, and trucks or anything with 4 wheels. He is so smart, able to check his own sugar at the age of 3 and can tell when his sugars are low or high. He has been on an insulin pump for almost 2 years now. He loves his pump. It’s a part of him, like his hair or feet

Diabetes has affected Owen the most. He needs insulin every time he eats, every time his sugar is too high, he needs juice when he is too low. Owen is the one who has to live with symptoms of highs and lows. His life revolves around food. 

As a single parent, Owen’s life is literally in my hands, and mine alone. If I could change one thing in my life I’d want my little boys pancreas to work again. Living with Diabetes has and will continue to make us both strong and motivated. 

Most of the time Diabetes is manageable, you get used to all the extra care involved, but there are those times when I break down and cry and wish more than anything we could find a cure.

FRONT PAGE INFO

Registration Run opens at 8:00 am Start time 9:30 am

Community Walk begins at 11:00 am

5 Km and 10 km fun runs
Registration and after-party at "Old Pressroom Pub" Water Street, Pictou

A word from our Chair

Thanks again for your continued participation in our annual event to support the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. Keeping with tradition we have scheduled our run and walk to take place on the last Sunday in September on the Jitney Trail in Pictou.  So mark September 25th on your calendar and get ready for a great day of fun and fitness on the beautiful Pictou waterfront.

For the last seven years the Pictou County Walk to Cure Diabetes has been recognized as the top community walk for JDRF in Canada.  This only happens because of the commitment you and our sponsors have made to this event year after year.  Each year our event attracts new families and individuals who live with diabetes but we have just as many participants who are not directly affected by this disease and for their own reasons choose to participate, register for the run or collect pledges for the walk and do their part in the race towards a cure for Type 1 Diabetes.  Because of this commitment we are getting closer to a cure and making unbelievable advances in the management of this disease.

Diabetes has been part of my world for the last 11 years.  While I do not own the disease personally I have watched my son transform from a newly diagnosed three year old bewildered and terrified by the sudden onset of injections and finger pokes to a young man trying to live his life his life like any other normal teenager.

Every stage of managing a child with diabetes has its challenges.  Today, our son Ben is learning that how he manages his diabetes as a teenager will impact his life as an adult.  Until there is a cure, children and adults living with diabetes face a myriad of potential complications of their disease.  It is a fact that frightened me 11 years ago and perhaps even more so today.  This is a fear faced by all parents with children with diabetes and it is the driving force behind all of the efforts of every individual committed to finding a cure for this disease.

But if you want to meet someone who is fearless, then you are going to have to take a few moments at our walk this year to seek out our 2010 Youth Ambassador, Owen MacDonald.  On the back of the pledge form you can read a little of his story written by his incredible Mom, Victoria.  And check out our web site www.pictou jdrf.ca for some great pictures taken at the photo shoot for the promotional materials. 

If you have any questions about the event this year please give me a call or drop me an e-mail.  Extra pledge forms are available at the Pictou County YMCA and Fulmore’s Pharmacy in Pictou.

See you on September 25th

In gratitude

Crystal MacKinnon-Murray
Event Co-ordinator  2011 Pictou County Walk to Cure Diabetes

For more information give me a call at

902-485-1965 orcrystal@seabirch.com

Register

To register, CLICK HERE

To register for the walk, including the option for collecting pledges, CLICK HERE