By Curtis Farrow
My name is Curtis Farrow, I have lived in the Barriere area my whole life. I have three siblings and we live on a farm.
On December 28, 2018, my life changed.
In December of 2018, I noticed that I was not feeling well. I told my mom, and she booked me an appointment with Dr. Roman. After a two hour basketball practice, I went to my appointment. The doctor checked my blood sugar and he said I was 20.5 (average blood sugars are between 4-7), my mom and I did not know what this meant. We went for a blood test, but the doctor said we needed to go to Kamloops right away and pack an overnight bag just in case.
Once we got to the hospital the nurse diagnosed me with Type 1 Diabetes. Nobody in our family has Type 1 Diabetes, we knew nothing about it. I waited for a bed for two-and-a-half hours. Once a bed finally opened up my doctor told me a little bit about Type 1 Diabetes. We had to stay in the hospital for three days and learned so much more. It was very overwhelming.
Type 1 Diabetes is an autoimmune disease. Something has caused your pancreas to stop producing insulin. We all need insulin to pair with the food we eat, to turn it into energy for our bodies to use. A Type 1 Diabetic has to get their insulin from an external source. This is usually in the form of a needle. Most Type 1 Diabetics take an injection with each meal, and another needle with a slightly different insulin once or twice a day. Also, to help control keeping track of their blood sugar levels they have a device called a Blood Glucose Monitor, that they put a small drop of blood on to read their blood glucose levels about eight times a day.
How does diabetes affect me? Diabetes affects me because of my soccer and basketball games. I need to check my blood sugar so I do not go low, and I have to eat a healthy snack and make sure I’m not too high, because it is very unhealthy for your body.
Sometimes it’s annoying. If I’m trying to figure out the carbs [carbohydrates] in something [to drink or eat] and I can’t find how many carbs are in them, then I have to wait to eat my dinner or my lunch. Other than that it’s not too bad.
If there was a cure for diabetes that would be awesome, because I would be able to go back to playing my sports without having to worry about going low or going high, and I could go back to living a normal life like every other 12-year-old.
Scientists are not really sure what causes Type 1 Diabetes, they know that something has stopped your pancreas from producing insulin, but they are still trying to pinpoint the cause.
Type 1 Diabetes is an autoimmune disease. Something has caused your pancreas to stop producing insulin.
We all need Insulin to pair with the food we eat, to turn it into energy for our bodies to use.
A type 1 diabetic has to get their insulin from an external source. This is usually in the form of a needle. Most Type 1 diabetics take an injection with each meal, and another needle with a slightly different insulin once or twice a day.
Also, to help control keeping track of their blood sugar levels they have a device called a Blood Glucose monitor, that they put a small drop of blood on to read their blood glucose levels about eight times a day.
Type 1 Diabetes can run in families. That being said, there are a lot of people that just get it for no reason. There is nothing you did, or did not do, to get Type 1 Diabetes. It is not your fault. It has nothing to do with diet or exercise.
Who are JDRF?
JDRF is a global leader in turning Type 1 Diabetes into “type none”. They have been around for over 40 years. Their main mission is to find a cure for Diabetes, they also contribute to treatments and community advocacy.
In our region we usually have a lot of events planned to help raise funds for JDRF. Due to COVID-19 most of our events have been cancelled. But as a result we are doing a new event this year called JDRF House ParT1D for a Cure which is presented by Omnipod. This is an exciting online event that will take place on Sunday, June 14.
Anyone can tune in, and we have a large celebrity guest list which includes George Canyon, Max Domi, the youth ambassador which is me, Curtis Farrow, and so many more.
To register and find out more go to: www.jdrfparty.ca
If you would like to make a donation to JDRF, my family has a team, and we are doing a 10km hike. If you would like to donate to our team please go online to www.jdrfparty.cadonate and donate to: Team:Farrow Family.
Here are the top five things that you should know about Type 1 Diabetes
• Type 1 is an autoimmune disease. Something has attacked our pancreas to stop insulin production
• There is no cure, or prevention of Type 1, it is only managed by giving insulin everyday.
• Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes are completely different diseases. So different that they should not share the same name
• There is no “Diabetic diet”. Type 1 Diabetics need to eat the same healthy diet as any person. This includes carbs, protein, healthy fats, vegetables and fruits. The only difference is that people with Type 1 Diabetes should avoid skipping meals and they monitor and count carbs to regulate the amount of insulin they will need to take.
Anyone at any age can develop Type 1 Diabetes. Typically it is diagnosed between 12-14 years old, but it can happen from infancy to middle age.
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From Mom:
On Dec. 28, 2018, our lives changed for ever,” says Curtis’s mom Angeline Farrow,” On this day I casually took Curtis to the doctor. He had been really thirsty and it was kind of strange. Then the doctor checked my son’s blood sugars using a blood glucose monitor and it showed Curtis had a blood glucose count of 22. I had know idea what that meant. The doctor told us we needed to go to the emergency in Kamloops and pack an overnight bag. We thought the whole thing was precautionary. Once in Kamloops the triage nurse told me that Curtis was Type 1 Diabetic. Right there in triage I was told our son had a life altering diagnoses.”
Angeline says they spent three very long information filled days at the hospital, where they were taught “everything we needed to know about Type 1 Diabetes”.
“It was very overwhelming and one of the most challenging moments in Curtis’s life,” told the Mom while noting “doctors and nurses at RIH were incredible”.
She notes that Curtis will have this for the rest of his life.
“A child with Type 1 is so resilient and tough,” added Angeline, “They learn to check their blood sugars up to eight times a day with finger pokes. They learn to give themselves injections up five times a day. There is no days off. This is everyday, every hour. Before you eat you count carbs to dose your insulin. Before you do an activity you have to eat to prevent your blood sugars from dropping.”
Mom says that some days are awful! “No matter what you do your blood sugars are too high or too low. This is mentally and physically challenging. Other days are easy.”
The Farrow Family say “Curtis has been a rock star”. They tell that in the beginning Curtis told all his friends and classmates. He educated them. His friends look out for him. His support network is huge, and his siblings are there for him everyday. They help him, they get him snacks. They sit with him when he is having a low and can not play any more. They wait at the dinner table for him, until he is done carb counting and getting his insulin.
Curtis Farrow really is a “rock star”!
