For two young Saskatchewan boys, being diagnosed with diabetes doesn’t mean they can’t be children.
12-year-old Ryder and 10-year-old Logan Wilm from Saskatoon were both diagnosed with type 1 diabetes.
Andrea Wilm, the boy’s mother, says that when you start with diabetes there are a lot of lifestyle changes. As a parent, she had to explain to her children why she had to prick her fingers before meals, snacks, activities, and bedtime. Regarding bedtime, Andrea points out that diabetes doesn’t sleep. She recalls that she and her husband often had to crawl into the boy’s room at night with flashlights on their heads to stick their fingers to check their glucose levels during the night.
Andrea says that she learned from dealing with diabetes that most people take everyday activities for granted.
“You know, for me as a parent, I think a lot of people take day-to-day life for granted. Any simple activity like swimming or an overnight stay with my boys. I think this is so normal activity for people, but for us it takes a lot of planning. “
She adds that there is so much involved in getting out of the house and knowing how to take care of her.
Ryder was diagnosed at the age of 2 and Logan at the age of 5. So the Wilm family have been dealing with diabetes for 11 years and they say the advances in care they have seen from then until now are truly remarkable.
Both guys started using the Freestyle Libre 2 system, which eliminated the need for finger bumps and Andrea adds that it reduced a lot of stress and helped the guys live more independent lives. The Freestyle Libre 2 system is now also reimbursed by the Saskatchewan government for diabetics ages 4-17.
Freestyle Libre 2 measures a person’s blood sugar level every minute via a small sensor that they wear on their arms. Andrea says it’s pretty discreet and the boys scan the sensor with their cell phone and it shows readings that are automatically transferred to both Andreas and the boys cell phone. Andrea says it reduced a lot of stress as the guys play a lot of sports like hockey and now they can get a quick scan on the bench between shifts. The system also has optional glucose alarms that will sound on your phone to let you know when your glucose levels are high or low.
Both Ryder and Logan share their experiences to help others explain.
“I think it is important to share my experiences with others so that children know that they are not alone and that diabetes is manageable and you can still be a child. I think it’s important to share my story with others just so they know what’s going on. Especially kids who are in my class at school because it would be so embarrassing just to see me scan my phone over my arm when they have no idea what’s going on. “
“In 2018, almost 100,000 people with type 1 and 2 diabetes lived together in Saskatchewan, and that number is increasing every year,” says Andrea.
Both Logan and Ryder are very active guys who enjoy hunting, fishing, quad riding, playing many sports such as lacrosse and baseball, as well as playing video games.
For those starting their journey with children with diabetes, Andrea says it is so important to let your child be a child. You may have diabetes, but that comes second, being a kid should always come first.
