My teen has just been diagnosed… help

My teenager has just been diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes and I’m feeling overwhelmed. Can you give me some guidance to help make our family’s transition as smooth as possible?

Thanks for your question and I’d love to help. First you must understand and get educated about Type 1 Diabetes so get googling so you have a basic understanding of the science and what your teen is having to deal with (and you and your family).

Teenagers especially can feel anger, frustration, embarrassment, isolation, denial, guilt and fear with their diagnosis - I know this firsthand as I was one when I got diagnosed!

Parents may feel guilty about the fact that your teen has been diagnosed thinking how you could have prevented it happening and can go through a grieving process. It’s hard to come to terms with the fact that your child has a condition that will need to be managed for the rest of their lives. Families will go through a period of adjustment after they find out their teenager has been diagnosed with type 1 diabetes so give yourself a break and don’t expect to have all the answers right away. It’s going to be a learning process for everyone so keep communication lines open and talk it out.

Your child will need help from the family and loved ones to establish a routine to manage their diabetes effectively. Just like a baby or toddler who thrives with some structure, when newly diagnosed this routine will start to give everyone a feeling of some control while knowing that many things can happen (ie high and low blood sugar episodes that will become your new norm). 

It’s also a good idea to look for support groups to find out how you and the family can educate yourself around not only the black and white science of diabetes but the extremely important emotional side of the diabetic journey.

Encourage your teenager to discuss their diabetes with friends and educate them on signs to look for when their blood sugar is low and what they can do to assist. Many of their friends may have no idea what an individual goes through with type 1 diabetes so education helps everyone.

It’s also imperative to communicate and tell their teachers, coaches, mentors and anyone else they interact with regularly so they can support your teenager to make daily life as smooth as possible.

New challenges will definitely arise as your teenager goes through different life stages so be ready for this and keep communication open to work through it together.

In my opinion, the most important thing to remember is that knowledge is power. With proper diabetes management people with this condition can most definitely live a long and very normal life.

Please reach out with any other questions you might have on your journey. Take all help that’s offered! :)