parenting helps us to know how the father loves us.

[Aussie Mum]

My youngest son Tom, who is now 4 was diagonosed with diabetes when he was 14months old.  I wrote a testemony for our parish magazine and wanted to share it with other parents.

I am aware that it is rather long but I really did see God working in my life and my husband did too.

Seeing God in our trials.

Our son Tom was diagnosed with diabetes early this year.  This was a time of great trial for both Steven and I, but also a time when we were able to see God working miracles in our lives.

In January of this year we moved to Millicent from Adelaide.  Not long after our move, Tom became sick.  At first we thought he had the flu.  It wasn’t until he was admitted to hospital that we realized that the problem was more serious.  He had become seriously dehydrated even though we had been maintaining his fluids.  His body had started to shut down with blood being directed to his vital organs.  His hands and feet were blue and always cold.

In the hospital they had to establish a drip for Tom to re hydrate and to get some blood to test.  As he was so dehydrated they had trouble finding a vein.  Tom was in a lot of pain and I felt totally out of control with the situation.  Once the drip was in and they had collected some blood, I left Steven with Tom at the hospital and went home to the rest of our family.

I went back to the hospital at 3pm.  The blood test results were back and we knew that Tom had diabetes.  I was told that he would need to go to Adelaide for treatment and that the flying doctors would be taking Tom with a team from the Women’s and Children’s Hospital.  

When the team arrived from Adelaide to retrieve us, they had some test to do before we could leave.  I felt both frightened and overwhelmed at all that was going on around me.  Most of all I felt totally helpless and unable to do anything to help Tom who was very distressed.

Once all the tests had been done we were flown to Adelaide.  We arrived at the hospital late in the evening.  I was very tired at this stage but still needed to talk to doctors.  I wanted to get Tom settled for the night before I went to bed.  

The doctor on duty came and talked to me about Tom and what symptoms he had had in the lead up to being admitted.  She also explained what treatment they would be giving him and what tests they would be doing.

The first thing they had to do was establish another drip line to get the insulin into him.  They were still having trouble finding his veins.  I held his arm still while they tried to find a vein and prayed like I have never prayed before.  All the while Tom was looking at me and screaming out in agony.  I can still remember the way he looked at me and seemed to ask me why I, his protector was helping these people do this.  He couldn’t see the whole picture.  He could only feel the pain that he was in.  He didn’t realize that if they didn’t get a drip into him that he would die.  I felt as if I had betrayed his trust.  After trying to get the drip in the arm several times and failing they decided to call in another doctor who decided to put the drip into a vein in his head.

Tom was kept in intensive care for 48hours.  He was monitored by a nurse at all times and received treatment to bring his sugar levels back to normal.  We were then moved onto a ward for the rest of the week.  Over that week I received training on how to treat Tom’s diabetes.

Through out the week that I was in hospital with Tom, I had a lot of time to both pray and reflect on life.  The most important thing God revealed to me was that when we are in pain and it seems like he is not there, he is with us but cannot stop the pain, just as I was unable to stop the pain for Tom.  When it feels like God is betraying us, he isn’t, but we cannot see the whole picture, just like Tom couldn’t

God also makes these times easier by looking after the little things.  It happened that my brother was down fro the weekend.  It couldn’t have happened at a better time.  He was able to look after the other children while Steve and I were at the hospital with Tom.  Also Fr John was at the hospital before we left and was able to anoint Tom.  As my brother was down for the weekend he was able to take Brigette back to Adelaide so that my parents could look after her.  Steven was very supported in Millicent with several people looking after the boys and Madeline and others having them out for tea.  After I got home with Tom, people were still bringing around meals and helping out with general household chores.

When we have trials in our life, it makes us pause and reflect on the more important things.  It also made me realize that I cannot do thing on my own. Steve and I were both very grateful for the support that we received from the parish and school community.  We felt very glad that we were a part of it and that people were so willing to help and make the load we had to carry lighter.

Tom will have diabetes until they find a cure.  This is a big thing for a little boy to live with.  Just as Steven and I help him with it, so God does with big things in our life too.  Whenever trials come our way it is always easy to see the things that God is not doing.  The challenge for us all is to see the things he is doing.

Cheers
Therese

[LMarsh]

Thanks Therese that was a great testimony.
I'll be praying for your family!
God Bless,
LMarsh

[Aussie Mum]

Hi LMarsh,

Your welcome.

Thanks for taking the time to read it and thank you for the prayers.

I will pray for you as well.

Cheers
Therese

[DovesWings]

That's a great testimony Therese!!!

My middle child, my daughter Erica, was diagnosed at age 6 with diabetes(she's now 10).  The doc's here never admitted her to the hospital...her sugars were out of control.
That was a hard day...my BIL was dx'd w/ liver cancer the same day we found out about Eri.  Funny thing is, I was so calm.  I did a LOT of praying...found some peace, and kept busy w/ working, taking care of 3 children and learning all about diabetes and how to control it...w/ a Diabetes Educator, endo and a nutritionist.  

Last July Eri went into DKA...I was sicker than a dog at that time w/ a diseased gall bladder(removed the following month)...and here came Eri sicker than me...it just slammed her.  It's amazing the strength the Lord gives us...I was to the point of barely being able to move b/f that happened to her, and all the sudden my strength was restored.  She was taken right in to the ER and they kept her for the night.  They, too, had a VERY hard time finding a vein, she was so dehydrated, etc...and then the amount of piggybacks in that one IV...she was so sore and weak.  When she was first brought into the ER she kept going in and out of conciousness, was like in a totally dazed and confused state, would go hot and cold and she was so sore you couldn't touch her.  She looked wild and crazed.  It was so gut wrenching, but I KNEW the Lord would protect her and keep her safe.
The nurses were told about my illness, and had brought me homemade chicken noodle soup and crackers...and I slept in the hospital bed w/ Eri.  I prayed all night, and realized, and thanked the Lord, for the strength He had given me to get through that w/o being sick at all.  He is so amazing.

(that was her only DKA...although she was at the extreme opposite from the beginning...hypoglycemic, and would go into shocks and seizures...at one point the verge of a coma(she totally bypassed the seizure)...the Lord gives me the strength and peace to see her through the episodes...and praise God, she hasn't had a seizure in over a year!!!

[Aussie Mum]

Hi DoveWings,

Thank you for telling me about your daughter.  I was nearly 8 months pregnant with our 6th child when Tom was diagnosed.  I am totally shocked that your daughter wasn't admitted to hospital when she was diagnosed.

I am not really sure what dka is.  Is is ketoasidosis?(probably spelt that wrong)  This is what Tom had when he was diagnosed.  

I found the first year was by far the hardest.  I think having a new baby certainly contributed to this.  Now it is three years since diagnosis.  I feel much more confident in making a decision on what Tom needs.  I am starting to recognize hypos and hypers.  He certainly is a lovely boy when his sugars are normal.  I find that good control makes a big difference.  

Cheers
Therese

[DovesWings]

Hi Therese..

Wow...to be nearly 8 months pregnant and have your then 14 month old diagnosed had to be tough!  It's such a young age!

You're right..dka is the ketoacidocis.

I, too, was shocked that they didn't admit her into the hospital when first diagnosed.  I mean, to see a reading at 548 and say "whew, she's finally lower"...now that is pathetic!  It was 3 months later that all she experienced was lows.
We've been watching her closely, but as we've been told, she's going to be entering puberty(she'll be 11 in August), and that's when the whole hormonal thing shakes up the body again.  
I'm just praying and believing that she will get through this well, and a cure will be found soon!!!(I was told w/in the next 5 years, so we shall see!!!)
Do you notice a big difference in attitude w/ your son Tom when his sugars are too high or low?  I have so many ppl who don't have to live w/ diabetes say that it is just an excuse for Erica to be w/drawn or nasty, tired or lazy.  

God bless you and yours!!!
Robin

[nChrist]

Thank You Sincerely Aussie Mum & DovesWings,

Your testimonies about your children were beautiful. I'm sure that it is hard to talk about such difficult subjects, especially when the illness involves small children. It's an encouragement to trust more and more in our Lord and Saviour. Jesus is with us during our times of greatest difficulty, and HE loves to hear our prayers.

Thank you for sharing something so difficult. I and many others will be praying for your children.

Love In Christ,
Tom

[Shylynne]

For thou didst form my inward parts: Thou didst cover me in my mother's womb. Psa 139:13

[Shylynne]

The other day my two-year-old son Daniel surprised me with a gift. It was a small pot, half filled with sand, into which he had stuck a pink flower and a handful of leaves. The flower was drooping, the leaves were withered, and the pot itself was old, mud-crusted, and cracked. But he presented it to me with eager hands, a sweet smile, and a heart full of love. I displayed it in a place of honor—the center of the table.

As I looked at Daniel's gift, the words from Psalm 51 immediately came to mind: "O Lord, open thou my lips, and my mouth shall show forth thy praise. For thou hast no delight in sacrifice; were I to give a burnt offering, thou wouldst not be pleased. The sacrifice acceptable to God is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise" Psa. 51:15-17

What have I offered God today? I thought. Distracted worship, stumbling words of praise, inadequate thanks, my flawed sinful self. Yet, I know he accepts them, as he accepts me, with loving hands and a smile because I am his daughter and he delights in my love.

—Tanya Ferdinandusz

[nChrist]

Shylynne,

AMEN SISTER!!  THANKS!!

Love In Christ,
Tom

Ephesians 1:12-14  That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ. In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

[Shylynne]

'Out of the Mouths of Babes' (Psalms 8:2)


"For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God".

[2nd Timothy]

The other day my two-year-old son Daniel surprised me with a gift. It was a small pot, half filled with sand, into which he had stuck a pink flower and a handful of leaves. The flower was drooping, the leaves were withered, and the pot itself was old, mud-crusted, and cracked. But he presented it to me with eager hands, a sweet smile, and a heart full of love. I displayed it in a place of honor—the center of the table.

As I looked at Daniel's gift, the words from Psalm 51 immediately came to mind: "O Lord, open thou my lips, and my mouth shall show forth thy praise. For thou hast no delight in sacrifice; were I to give a burnt offering, thou wouldst not be pleased. The sacrifice acceptable to God is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise" Psa. 51:15-17

What have I offered God today? I thought. Distracted worship, stumbling words of praise, inadequate thanks, my flawed sinful self. Yet, I know he accepts them, as he accepts me, with loving hands and a smile because I am his daughter and he delights in my love.

—Tanya Ferdinandusz

WOW...Praise God!  Thanks for sharing this....made my day!

Grace and Peace!