Undiagnosed

I've had lots of emotions running through me this week. A lot of them have to do with the recent loss of an young boy who died as a result of going undiagnosed with Type 1. And far too many before him as well.

I realize that it wasn't Jada. But it could have been.

Jada showed the symptoms for about a month before she was diagnosed. She was constantly thirsty and going to the bathroom ALL the time. A few weeks before diagnoses, we were at the circus and spent most of the time going back and forth between our seats and the restroom. She had even dropped an entire clothing size within that month. I never knew anything was wrong. I can see now, looking back at the photo from the circus just how sickly she looked. She had really horrible meltdowns at meal times. She was cry and throw fits when it was time to eat. Once she ate, she was fine for a while then cranky again. I even warned her kindergarten teacher about it. But I never knew. The weekend before she was diagnosed, she laid around the house the majority of the time and I thought nothing of it except maybe kids need lazy days too.

I, however, was as sick as a dog that weekend. Slept a lot. Fever. Chills. Sick. Sick. Sick.

And because of that, Jada was diagnosed.

If I had not been sick, I would not have taken off of work. And I definitely would not have taken Jada into the doctor for laying around.

But I was sick and I brought Jada in just in case she was coming down with something.

Even then, I didn't mention the thirst, urination, and weight loss to the nurse. When the doctor came in, I mentioned them as a "Oh yeah. And she's been drinking constantly, peeing all the time, and she dropped a clothing size in weight in the last month." He says "Did you tell the nurse all this?" Nope I sure hadn't. Didn't think much of it.

By one that afternoon, she was diagnosed and we were headed for Pediatric ICU.

So like I said. It could have been Jada. And it would have been had I not been sick.

I wish I would have known the warning signs. I wish that there were precautions in place to prevent children and adults from not being diagnosed.

I've never been so thankful in my entire life for being sick.