The Top 10 Strategies To Help Your Child Stay on Track With Their Diabetes Management Plan

1. Keep your child’s diabetes management plan as simple as possible—the more complicated it is, the less they’ll  want to stick with it.
 

2. Keep a food/blood glucose diary.  Try to let your child keep track of the results.  Decorate the journal with stickers or other things your child may like.   You don’t have to use the type of journal that comes with a testing meter….be creative.  Use notebooks, diaries and anything else that keeps your child interested.
 

3. Set clear written goals for yourself and your child.   Goals can be as short as “Eat less food today.” or “Walk around the block.”    Remember, if you set a goal for your child make sure they are a part of the steps needed to reach the goal.  For example…don’t set a goal for your child to exercise more and then not include the child in the planning of more exercise.  If your child likes walking more than bike riding try to include the walking in your day.   If they like a certain type of food more than others try to include that food in their meal plan as long as it fits in.
 

4. Try to set both long and short term goals for your child and recognize all the progress they make.  It’s easy to fall into the pattern of noticing what they don’t do instead of the diabetes management tasks they do well.
 

5. Join a support group (online, offline, etc…..)   This can give you a feeling of being supported, even if you’re only a lurker on an e-mail discussion list.  Joining a support group can also get you out of the isolation you may have created for yourself.   As a caregiver don’t forget to give yourself some care too.
 

6. Try to be organized.  This can help a lot when it comes to keeping your child organized and on schedule.  So much of diabetes is linked to scheduling so if you’re able to do things on time your child may be more apt to do the same.
 

7. Remember, your child is a child first and diabetic second  It’s easy to get overwhelmed by diabetes.  It seems to invade every part of your life, but try to remember that your child is still just that….a young person who has likes, dislikes and still enjoys having fun.   Having to be linked to meters, tests, doctors and monitoring can get frustrating for them too, so try to have some stress-busters (playing a game, talking about their feelings, etc…) in mind for them.
 

8. Be your child’s partner as well as their parent when it comes to diabetes management.  As a parent you do have the final word on most matters, but including your child in some diabetes management decisions can only help them for later life.  You don’t have to turn total control over to your child, but try to let them give you input as much as possible.
 

9. If you have a special goal you want your child to reach (losing weight, not overeating, testing, etc…) make a simple progress chart so they can see how they’re doing.   You might not want to hang the chart for public viewing (like on the refrigerator) just in case the child doesn’t reach a goal.

10. Remember to give yourself a break.  Diabetes isn’t predictable and no matter what you and your child do their blood sugars might be too high or too low.  Try to keep things in perspective and strive for the best you and your child can do.