When Alison Higgins was first diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes as a child, she was deeply concerned about what her life would be like: would she be able to play sports? Travel? Go to birthday parties and eat a slice of cake?
Higgins, who was 9 at the time of her diagnosis, met with diabetes educators at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta to learn how to manage this chronic, life-long and complex illness. She and her parents learned about monitoring blood sugar levels, insulin dosing, carb counting. The diabetes educators also helped Higgins and her parents come to terms with an illness that requires constant monitoring and can be both emotionally and physically stressful.
“Diabetes can feel incredibly overwhelming,” she said. “But I remember my educators telling me, ‘Don’t allow diabetes to stand in the way of anything you want to do. Prepare well, but go for it.’”
About a year after her diagnosis, Higgins participated in a tennis program for children with Type 1 diabetes. She planned out the timing of her meals and adjusted her insulin dosage to prevent blood sugar levels from rising too high or dipping too low.
But she watched as one by one all of the other young tennis players stop playing because they weren’t controlling their blood sugar levels.
“They were sick. But I was OK. I wanted to play tennis,” she said. “That experience stuck with me. I wanted to help them so they could play tennis and do all of the things they wanted to do.”
About nine years ago, Higgins joined Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta as a diabetes educator. She is part of a large team of 28 diabetes educators at Children’s — six of whom are former patients.
Credit: Jason Getz / Jason.Getz@ajc.com
Credit: Jason Getz / Jason.Getz@ajc.com
Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta treats about 500 patients a year with Type 1 diabetes, and 200 patients with Type 2 diabetes.
There are two main forms of diabetes: Type 1, formerly called juvenile diabetes, and Type 2, the most common kind, formerly called adult-onset diabetes.
Type 1 diabetes is a chronic autoimmune disease that prevents a person’s pancreas from making insulin. Type 1 is usually diagnosed in children and young adults and symptoms often develop quickly and are more severe, according to the Mayo Clinic. There are about 2 million Americans who have Type 1 diabetes, the American Diabetes Association (ADA) reports.
Georgia’s Department of Public Health estimates about 1 million people in Georgia, or about 12% of the population, have been diagnosed with diabetes. About 230,000 people in Georgia have diabetes but don’t realize it, according to the state agency.
Credit: Jason Getz / Jason.Getz@ajc.com
Credit: Jason Getz / Jason.Getz@ajc.com
Justyna Zabinski, a diabetes educator at Children’s who is also a registered nurse, was diagnosed at age 3. She credits her care team with giving her the skills and confidence to thrive despite her diagnosis.
She remembers her educators telling her to “Go for it. If you want to fly to Europe, run that half-marathon, or play college tennis: do it. Never let this condition stop you from living your life.”
“Usually when I start my classes, I tell them you are going to be OK,” said Zabinski who is now 25. “I usually say I also have Type 1 diabetes. I was diagnosed here and you are going to be just fine. There are usually tears, like waterworks, but I want to relay that level of trust.”
For August Harder, 5, a life with diabetes is the only life he knows.
He was only two years old when his parents noticed he was suddenly thirsty all of the time, eating constantly and just not his usual happy self. His mother, Elizabeth Harder, took him to his pediatrician and August’s blood sugar was so high it didn’t even register on the physician’s glucometer. They went straight to Children’s Egleston’s campus where he was diagnosed with diabetes and was hospitalized for three days to get his blood sugar levels stabilized. It was also a time for his parents to begin their diabetes education — Higgins was their educator.
Credit: custom
Credit: custom
Harder went home with three binders of information and stays in regular contact with Higgins and other members of the Children’s health care team. At first, Higgins called her every morning at 8:30 a.m. to review August’s numbers and adjust his diet and insulin doses.
Carb counting and making calculations on insulin doses can be tricky. Several other factors besides diet can affect blood glucose levels including exercise, hormones and stress.
Higgins was a constant source of reassurance.
“She would always give me the reassurance I needed to tell and she would tell me you’re going to figure this out. Don’t beat yourself up,” said Harder. “And when she shared with me that she had Type 1 as well, that just added another level of comfort.”
Diabetes educators also keep it real.
A tennis player, Zabinski played at a collegiate level at Mercer University. She planned ahead, timing her pre-match meal an hour or two before the match, monitoring her glucose levels during breaks in the game, and bringing both regular sugary Gatorade and Gatorade Zero with no sugar for what could be long grueling matches.
But she didn’t always do that.
“Growing up I remember a match when my blood sugar was low but I didn’t want to stop,” she said, her eyes filling up with tears. “I was winning the game and I didn’t stop because I didn’t want my opponent to think I was mentally giving up or had an excuse to stop.”
“Finally, I was like, ‘I am not going to win this match if I don’t take care of myself.’ I learned from that moment.”
It drove home the importance of prioritizing her health — even when the child in her didn’t want to be different. Over the years, she’s also learned the importance of being kind to yourself as you experience the ups and downs of living with diabetes.
“There will always be highs and lows in life, that being with your blood sugars or with life situations, it is so important to give yourself grace and remember that you are doing the job of an organ,” she said.
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