GoFundMe: Support Savannah's Journey with a Diabetic Alert Dog

My daughter Savannah was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes when she was three years old. I didn’t know much about this new diagnosis, but soon became aware of the challenges and impacts this diagnosis would have on our lives. We spent several days and nights in the hospital. Our hospital stay was a crash course on how to manage Diabetes. I was initially overwhelmed and the simple ease of just napping on the couch with Savannah was no longer. I quickly learned that Diabetes requires 24/7 monitoring. Five years later, Savannah and I have a good routine but still each day presents with challenges.

Today, Savannah is a caring, active, resilient almost 8 year old. She loves gymnastics, playing outside, swimming and is very active in sports. Savannah loves to swim and is constantly losing a signal on her CGM which makes this activity very challenging. We work everyday to not allow Diabetes to define her. However, Type 1 Diabetes impacts her life everyday. There are decisions every hour of every day, in order to keep her blood sugar in a healthy range. Savannah's blood sugar must be monitored 24/7, including throughout the night. 

GoFundMe: Support Savannah's Journey

As a single mother, I am thankful for the modern technology as my family is able to follow Savannah's CGM and alert me as a back up during the night. Due to exhaustion, I have missed a few low blood sugars which can be a matter of life and death. Blood sugar that is too high, leaves Savannah feeling awful, irritable, unable to participate in activities she loves, and leaves her at risk of future complications. On the other hand, low blood sugar is more immediately threatening and if left untreated, can lead to seizures, unconsciousness and worse. Savannah uses a continuous glucose monitor, as one of the essential tools to manage her Diabetes. The CGM reduces finger pricks and alarms to lows and highs; however, technology is not always reliable, and currently she does not feel and respond to her blood sugar changes. This increases her risk of life-threatening consequences due to fluctuating blood sugar.

Thanks to the help of my State Representative, Marcus Vaughn and his staff, I was put in touch with Diabetic Alert Dogs Of America. Savannah was accepted into a service dog program! I quickly learned the fees (to have the dog fully trained and certified) is more than I can handle alone, so I am moving out of my comfort zone and asking for help.

After months of researching, I know that having a Diabetic alert dog will benefit Savannah’s life in so many ways! A Service Dog will alert to lows and highs, increasing her safety and relieving some of the burden and worry that I experience. Savannah cannot attend play dates without me. She has never been to a sleepover, not even with family. She cannot attend just any summer camp. She must wear a fanny pack with her devices inside so her sugar is monitored at all times. We haven't had much snow in MA for sometime, but she couldn't play in the snow a couple of years ago without her sugar crashing from the energy it took to truck through the snow to find the perfect sledding spot. 

It will be wonderful for Savannah to enjoy a more (normal) childhood like her cousins and peers. I will feel safer at night with the (backup) support of her dog. Having Diabetes can feel lonely. I worry far too often about the added stress this diagnosis puts on her. In addition to helping keep her safe, I know that a service dog will provide Savannah with a feeling of security, friendship, and emotional support.

It is very uncomfortable to ask for help, but having a child with a permanent, life threatening condition has taught me a lot and I am humbly taking on this journey to ask for help for Savannah to meet her Diabetic Alert Dog. Every little bit will help and if you are unable to support in a financial way, please help us get the word out by sharing. Savannah and I appreciate your support!

You can help this cause by donating at the GoFundMe page ->   https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-savannahs-journey-with-a-diabetic-alert-dog

Weekly Wellness Update from the Franklin Health Department - Diabetes Awareness Month

Via the Franklin Health Dept

"November is Diabetes Awareness Month. Diabetes is the eighth leading cause of death in the U.S. 

You can prevent type 2 diabetes by making lifestyle changes to build health habits! "

Learn more today:  https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/prevention/lcp-details.html 

Weekly Wellness Update from the Franklin Health Department - Diabetes Awareness Month

Health Department: Diabetes Awareness Month

November is Diabetes Awareness Month. Over ⅓ of US Adults have prediabetes & more than 8 in 10 of them don't know they have it. 

Lean more: diabetes.org

American Diabetes Association

035 - Frank Presents - Caron Grupposo - a discussion on diabetes (audio)

In this episode, Frank Falvey is joined by Caron Grupposo, a registered nurse at Milford Regional Physician Group teaching diabetes education, to help support patients with diabetes. The two discuss what is diabetes, warning signs, treatment and how Caron educates and cares for patients.

Audio file -> https://frank-falvey.captivate.fm/episode/035-frank-presents-caron-grupposo

035 - Frank Presents - Caron Grupposo - a discussion on diabetes (audio)

Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution

Have you seen the Food Revolution? Quite impressive.

Time to wake up on obesity

There are a number of problems in this world but many of them pale in comparison with obesity.

Franklin's budget problem is minor. The trash fee is minuscule.

Jamie Oliver gave this talk at TED recently. It is a powerful and yet easy message to take a step on. Today.

Powerful? Wait until you see the wheelbarrow!



What are you going to do?
When are you going to start?

In the News - diabetes, Charter School

By Joyce Kelly/Daily News staff

GHS

Posted Sep 22, 2008 @ 12:23 AM

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FRANKLIN —

More than anything, Ivy Patten wants a cure for juvenile diabetes, so her 14-year-old son, Tyler, can live a normal life.

The possible complications he and others diabetics face are "not a pretty picture," she said: blindness, amputation, nerve damage, kidney problems and death.

"My fears are several. First, a cure will not come very soon. You're always afraid blood sugar is going to go too low and he'll go into a seizure, pass out and die, and it's a very real fear," Patten said.

Many things can trigger problems with a diabetic's blood-sugar level, she said, and often they are not under a person's control.

Technology can help people manage diabetes, she said, but that is not enough.

"We really need to get a cure ASAP," said Patten, especially because the longer a person has diabetes, the greater his or her chances of complications.

,,,,,

For more information about the walk at the Franklin Town Common on Saturday, Sept. 27, which takes place from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., log on to www.hotshots4thecure.org.

Read the full article in the Milford Daily News here

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By Joyce Kelly/Daily News staff

Milford Daily News

Posted Sep 21, 2008 @ 11:43 PM

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FRANKLIN —

Renting out the historic Red Brick School is a top priority for the Benjamin Franklin Classical Charter Public School, said Principal Kevin O'Malley.

"The topic is still under discussion here. I can assure you, it's a front-burner issue," O'Malley said.

Charter school officials have met with the Brick School Association and had several discussions with Town Administrator Jeffrey D. Nutting about leasing the nearby property.

O'Malley has introduced the topic to the charter school's board of trustees, who will discuss the prospect at their next meeting, on Oct. 2 at the school library, he said.

"The idea is to have position papers presented where we'll talk about whether it's a good idea or not a good idea for the school," O'Malley said, noting that he is unsure whether the board will vote on Oct. 2.

"We're at a point where it's in everyone's best interest to discuss this thing and come to a conclusion. If we don't decide (on Oct. 2), then we will very soon," he said.

Town officials have been great and are making the process easy, O'Malley said. He said the charter school community wants to give back to Franklin, too.

Read the full article in the Milford Daily News here

Franklin Industry - Echo Therapeutics Inc

Help for diabetics on the way from Franklin:

A small Franklin company says it is developing a novel device that could potentially let diabetics continuously monitor their blood-sugar levels - without having to draw blood.

Echo Therapeutics Inc. is expected to say today the device passed one of its first key tests, a pilot study with two dozen patients in the intensive-care unit at Tufts Medical Center in Boston. The Symphony system, a disc about the size of a half dollar, is designed to read glucose levels through the skin and transmit the information wirelessly to a nearby computer or hand-held meter. Currently, diabetes patients must normally prick their skin to draw a few drops of blood and place them on a measuring strip.

"I think it's extremely promising," said Dr. Stanley Nasraway, a Tufts University School of Medicine professor and director of surgical intensive-care units at the medical center. Nasraway said Echo's experimental device appeared to be reliable, relatively accurate, and easy to use, though he cautioned that it must first be tested in much larger clinical trials with a wider group of patients.

Read the full article in the Boston Globe