Kids First, Diabetes Second: tips for parenting a child with type 1 diabetes

Kids First Diabetes Second is a fantastic book filled with great tips, suggestions and advice for newly diagnosed families of children with T1D (Type 1 Diabetes). I wish this book was available when my son was diagnosed with type 1 back in 2008. The author shares her personal story about her daughter's diagnosis and as a fellow D-Mom, her words, feelings and responses mirrored my own throughout the book. What I loved about this book is that it is real. It is a book written by a Mother's journey/life experience from before diagnosis to present day. The book was also enjoyable to read as it featured stories from other D-Moms, D-Dads and friends of the author with Type 1 Diabetes. The one thing that is perfectly clear is that despite the anxiety, feeling of helplessness and being overwhelmed initially, managing this chronic condition does become easier. It truly does. This is my 4th year helping my son manage his T1D and checking blood sugars multiples times a day and taking insulin is as automatic as brushing your teeth. The author also provides a fantastic showcase of resources that any parent or caregiver will value. Resources include information about books, websites for advocating,support groups, school resources (504 plans), travel information especially for airline travel, snack tips, carb counts and an extremely valuable carb factors of common foods and much more. This book is a valuable resource for newly diagnosed families but also for families that have been successfully managing their child's care for awhile. Kudos to the author for writing a much needed book for families of children with T1D!!

As the mom of a five year old who is 6 months into a Type 1 diagnosis, I found this book to be fantastic. The book is the perfect marriage of good, solid information (both technical and practical) with the writing style and perspective of a mom. (Clinical and technical books have been great for my education of Type 1 diabetes health condition itself, but this book fills a huge gap). It was exactly what I was looking for, and it'll make a great reference and resource as we start school in the fall, begin sports, etc.

In reading this book I realized that diabetes doesn't define the child. The time spent reading this book showed overwhelmed parents who had to learn a whole new skill set, the writer presented her travels through diagnosis to application of things learned in a clear and concise manner. I have used this book as a resource for a parent with a newly diagnosed T1 child. The parent stated she learned so much from the information published that she has since asked for a copy of this book to share with another parent of a T1 diabetic. I have added the book to my reference library.

From a distance, the cover looks inviting... but only from a distance. Look closer and it really breaks your heart and brings perspective to what parents and kids who are dealing with diabetes. Leighann Calentine really brought home for me what members of my family are dealing with related to a recent diagnosis. I bought the copy for them but ended up reading the book first, and thoroughly enjoyed it.I plan on giving copies of this book to anyone I know who has children of any age dealing with diabetes.

Great amount of information for those getting acquainted with the T1 lifestyle. Gives some great ideas and perspectives from a caretaker that has been there and done that. Helps reduce the learning curve in my opinion.

My grandson was diagnosed at 6 years old with type one diabetes. This book helps the adult to treat the child as a child and not as a child as a disease. It is fabulous and I would recommend it to any lay person who has a child or grandchild that is newly diagnosed with type one diabetes and you are trying hard to understand it.

I ordered this book on my kindle less than a week after my 15mo old son was diagnosed with diabetes. I had just left the hospital with him two days prior and did not know anyone else with a child with T1 and after days in the hospital learning how to take care of him and getting that crash course in diabetes, I desperately needed to hear about someone else's journey with the same disease. I could relate to the beginning of this book so much with the diagnosis, the hospital stay and the worries of being able to care for my son. The book was also filled with many tips that I'm sure I will be using in the future and are things I hadn't even thought about yet. My only regret is that I didn't buy the paperback version, since I am sure I will be scrolling through searching for certain parts many times.

This book is a great comfort to those with a child newly diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. I read this book several months after my child was diagnosed and there were some things I already knew, but many things I had not thought of or that we had not encountered yet. It reads like a friend telling you her experiences...and that is exactly the comfort that a parent needs with their child's diagnosis. When I finished reading it I had the urge to turn back to the first page and start again...it truly was that much comfort to read. This book should be recommended to all families of children newly diagnosed. I recommend it for grandparents who will be helping in the care of a grandchild, or anyone who wants insight in to living with type 1 diabetes.