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The Party of 6, Altamonte Springs, FL (2025)

12/15/2025

We’ve been having a hard time getting Bryson’s blood sugar in a lower range and today at church his alarm went off because he was over 250 and got up to 275.

What’s also scary about that is he told me he was having trouble seeing.

I don’t get it. We’re doing all the right things but it seems like it’s not working. It’s like the insulin isn’t going anything for him. I’m so stumped. I think I kinda have some things figured with this Type 1 diabetes and then it all changes - please tell me there will be a new normal, that this will get under control.

Why isn’t it working? Today it took an hour for the insulin to bring him down just a little, then he ate - a healthy lunch with 25 carbs, and then he goes back up.

Tonight he was close to 200 so we gave him 1 unit for correction and that was over an hour ago and he’s at 187 and that’s WITHOUT his long lasting insulin on board too.

What am I missing? Do we need a different insulin?

We were doing lower carb and the nurse said that’s not good for him and how he needed all these carbs to grow, but I feel like we had a better grip on all of this when I was doing it that way.

I’ve heard of the honeymoon phase but that should make him low because his body would be producing insulin.

I’m really wondering about all of this…. It doesn’t make any sense.

God give me wisdom and protect Bryson through all of this, amen

12/15/2025

A kiddo with Type 1 isn’t for the faint of heart. Just when I think we have it kind of figured out something shifts and I’m all anxious about it again because he’s high or low, or I’m questioning the right insulin amount based on a piece of paper.

Let me tell you about this picture and how we’ve watched it tonight! This is the most amazing invention ever, it’s called the Sugar Pixel by and it’s connected to Bryson’s CGM! You can set alarms and colors to customize it so that it always shows where his current blood glucose levels are and alerts you when he’s out of range, it’s been the best thing ever!!

Tonight we watched it closely as he dropped over 100 points in less than an hour. I, personally, think that the lows are scarier than the highs especially as we’re going to bed.

I haven’t slept well in a long time. Even before Bryson was diagnosed I wasn’t sleeping well because I knew something was wrong but I couldn’t figure it out. And now waking up and checking his Sugar Pixel every hour along with late nights and full days. I’m exhausted. This isn’t something that you can prepare for and I don’t know if it will end. I’m trying so hard to get him in a good lower range without all these ups and downs but we’re definitely not there yet. Give me tips.

I’m also struggling because I feel like I need to spend more time with the other kids too. Ryan suggested going on a date with each of them so I need to plan something.

I know this will get easier, at least that’s what people say….

12/10/2025

2 weeks ago today our world just kind of stopped. Bryson was admitted to the hospital and diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes.

After a few days in the hospital he was released which was exciting but scary all at the same time. It was all so new and scary and so much to learn with constant finger pricks, giving insulin for every meal, knowing what to do when he goes low - I’ve described it to people as having a newborn baby again.

Just like a newborn, I’m sleeping next to him, checking to see if he’s still breathing, watching over him, praying constantly, getting very little sleep and questioning every thing I do - that’s been our first two weeks with Type 1

But we’re getting there and it’s getting better each day, we’ve learned a lot, and we’re pushing through continuing to learn and do our best for him and his body.

Tomorrow we meet with the endocrinologist and as my mind swirls with all these questions and wanting logic in all of this, I’d love to know what you think I need to ask. They told us it would be a 2-3 hour appointment, I’m assuming they’re going to re-teach us how to do his insulin and count carbs - hopefully the opposite of how they taught us in the hospital! I want to know how much to give for the carbs he eats, not over feed him just so I can give him insulin.

Is there anything you think I should ask? Or a tip you want us to know? Or something that you wish you knew sooner?

I did find out the hard way that a hot shower after insulin can drastically bring your blood sugar down because the hot shower helps the insulin to be absorbed in the body!

Bryson’s a little nervous about the appointment and so am I. I haven’t been following their protocol of 45-60’carbs per meal and I’m praying that’s received well and we can learn how to give him insulin for what he does eat. I’m also praying for the financial part of it, they required us to pay for the visit up front and I know they will be giving us a CGM so I’m praying they have samples so we can start that tomorrow. And I’m praising God because so many of you have donated to help Bryson with this diagnosis so now we don’t have to worry about the financial part too, thank you so so much 💙

12/07/2025

We did it, our very first outing with Bryson’s Type 1 diagnosis.

This week was a lot of firsts. Our first week home from the hospital, Ryan’s first time traveling for work and our first outing. Ryan’s company Christmas party was this weekend, his coworkers feel like family especially his boss and their family so as much as I was stressed to drive over an hour with the kids, and worried about Brysons diabetes, we had to go, we were all looking forward to it.

The hardest part was timing. Bryson couldn’t eat the foods on the buffet so we ordered off of the menu for us and it took longer. He was starving but I felt like I couldn’t let him eat until he had insulin and he was high the whole day and I didn’t want him to go higher. I feel like I’m not in control with all of this and I don’t like it. I feel like it was such a loose protocol with all the timing and how much insulin to give and how many carbs I’m supposed to shove in him - literally have you ever added up 45-60 carbs? It’s like eating at McDonalds or having thanksgiving every meal? It’s ridiculous and you can see it in his tummy on the last picture. I stopped. I’m not giving him that many carbs any more. He can’t process the carbs/sugar so why in the world would they say to give him so many? I need logic and that’s not logical.

Pray for our appointment on Wednesday, I need to know if this is the right doctor who will help us to do this as naturally and as logical as possible. I know he needs to insulin, but I also know there’s power in food and how it works for our body- I control my Crohn’s Disease by food. I don’t eat inflammatory foods so my gut and joints aren’t inflamed so that helps my arthritis too. I know my body needs help with certain vitamins and supplements so I take them.

My brain is constantly swirling making notes and analyzing how he feels and how he responds to the insulin, foods and activities, what works and what doesn’t and things like a walk and water can bring the blood glucose levels down.

It was a hard but good week, but we know more and are stronger going into week 2 with Type 1 Diabetes

Stay strong in whatever you’re going through, you’re gaining wisdom & strength 💙

12/05/2025

Such a hard day, Bryson’s type 1 diabetes was all over the place from 70-275.

He had a horrible headache because of the extreme low to the long high. He’s been so strong but had a meltdown, he said I hate this mom. All I could do was hold him and encourage him. I didn’t say me too, although I thought it, he needed to hear what a good job he’s been doing, how proud we are of him, and how the earth is not our eternal home so this isn’t forever.

**Did you know that a warm/hot shower makes insulin absorb faster and better?
I do now!! He took a shower after his lunch which is also the time he got insulin and he dropped to 70 after the shower. He was shaky and so pale. That was scary. We did as instructed but I think the juice brought him too high too fast. They say to give juice then prick his finger after 15 minutes but I think I may do 15 and then 20 to see if it’s slowly coming up so that we don’t put him so high so fast. And because this is all so new, I did what I know and that’s walk and water to bring it down. I share this so that hopefully others can learn from our experience this T1D is so hard.

Bryson keeps complaining about itching on his chest with some visible bumps. I don’t know if it’s gluten so we took that out yesterday or if it’s the insulin. I emailed the Dr last night asking for a sooner 1st appointment.

His stomach is so swollen/distended. I feel like he’s eating too much because we keep having to add more food to get him to 45-60 carbs as instructed. That’s too much, he’s never eaten that much. He only weighs like 76 pounds at 5 feet tall. I feel like I’m over feeding him just to meet the carb mark. I called the on-call doctor last night and he said that when I come for this first appt they’ll change everything to giving insulin for what he’s going to eat, not like it is now where I give insulin based on what he’s at.

I told Bryson that stuffing him with carbs doesn’t make any sense to me and that we’re not going to be over feeding him anymore. I think all foods are important but we’re literally making his plate and trying to find MORE food. I feel like it’s a game. More in comments ⬇️

12/04/2025

It’s been such a stressful week and not a lot of sleep mixed in with anxiety and Ryan going out of town so we did something to make it easier.

My sweet friend Cassie’s son has Type 1 diabetes and she’s the first person I reached out to when we found out about Bryson. She’s an advocate for her son and moms helping their kids with Type 1. She came to the hospital and we hugged and both cried, this is a life changing diagnosis. She said she remembered how she felt and just wanted to be there for us.

She couldn’t believe that they wouldn’t give us a continuous glucose monitor so she gave us one!!! I knew Ryan had to go out of town, which normally is fine the kids are older, but Type 1 has changed a lot of things. So yesterday I texted her and followed all the instructions and put it in - it was so easy and Bryson said that he didn’t even feel it, that the finger pricks hurt more than this!!!

Last night every time I woke up (which is still a lot) I could check his cgm and know what he was at instead of stressing and worrying if I should wake him up and check him - and he had a low and I only knew bc of the cgm!!!

I woke up in a slight panic at 6:20 and reached for my phone to see that his sugar was currently 90 and had been lower just a little minutes before. For him, that’s too low of a low because of how high he’s been for so long, we’re gradually trying to get him where he needs to be. So I pricked him to make sure it was accurate and it was so I gave him some which he’s always wanted to try! And that brought it up 4 points after 15 mins, so I gave him some juice that put him back into the 130s where he seems to be operating the best.

I’m so thankful, I would not have woken him up and wouldn’t have known anything until he was up to eat breakfast unless he happened to wake up.

Did you know you can buy a cgm over the counter? They’re just for your personal data but this is better than not knowing!!! I think it’s still important to prick his finger to have the data for the doctor but I will be insisting that we go home with a prescription for a diabetic cgm at his appointment.

Thanks Cassie 💙💙

💙Tiffany

12/03/2025

T1D. One of the most stressful parts about Bryson’s Type 1 Diabetes is not knowing.

They flood you with so much information and tell you that your baby isn’t producing what he needs inside his body to survive on his own, but you can’t see it, you missed many of the sign before knowing he has this autoimmune disease.

Then they tell you that the only way to know is to wake him up and prick his finger and watch the blood come flowing out and put it on a test strip to see what’s going on inside his body.

It’s an internal battle every time I wake up thinking about him in the middle of the night - is he ok? Should I go wake him up and test him? What did he eat for dinner, was it enough to sustain him through the night? What were his levels at night? I gave him long last lasting insulin before bed, surely that will work all night…right? His blood sugar levels were 193 at midnight so is he lower or higher, it’s been hours? I know he needs his sleep so I don’t want to wake him, I need my sleep and to calm this anxiety so I want to test him, should I go wake him up?

every. night.

Do you know that your body does so much for you when you sleep? It doesn’t have to concentrate on anything else but you and that’s what it does. It’s a powerhouse at night repairing cells, fighting off toxins, germs and rejuvenating and repairing you and so much more. It’s incredible!

So no, I don’t want to wake him up because I know how important sleep is. I know I need sleep too, the heart palpitations and anxiety aren’t being helped when I don’t sleep and continue this cycle every night. I’ll do it every single day for the rest of his life, but I don’t have to, the medical equipment has come so far that are things to tell me what’s going on inside his body.

I asked several times for a continuous glucose monitor (cgm) and everyone said no. Doesn’t this seem counterproductive to his healing to wake him up every night 1-3 times?

And because I know all that, I go back and forth in my head & keep getting up to check on him or test him.

I don’t think that’s fair to the child or the parent. Type 1 Diabetes in itself is a lot, and not knowing has been one of the most stressful parts.

12/03/2025

Look who’s leading our walk!!!

Bryson didn’t lead the entire time, however, we was able to keep up for the whole 1 mile walk!!! That’s a huge praise!!

Before he was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes he was so tired and had zero energy and he couldn’t keep up - a few days before I took him to the doctor he was taking naps!

I feel like the signs of T1D were so subtle which makes it even more scary!

These are the symptoms I wrote down to talk to the doctor about, hopefully this helps someone to put the puzzle pieces together so you don’t end up like us where it was almost too late.
Urinates a lot
Drinks a lot
Little energy
Doesn’t wake up rested
Always hungry
Soft stools
Bruises easily
Takes forever to heal
Bloated
Cold a lot especially extremities

I don’t know if all of these point to Type 1 Diabetes or not, I just know these are some symptoms that were going on in Bryson before he was diagnosed.

If you have T1D or a kiddo that does, what would you add to the list? I want to help others so that they can be aware and hopefully catch it sooner than we did

💙Tiffany

12/02/2025

We’re getting there…

Yesterday was the first day that we were all able to walk our morning mile!! That’s a huge praise because Bryson hasn’t been able to keep up or was just too tired to even go and he did the whole mile!!

A few weeks ago Ryan had planned to take the day off and it was perfect timing, we moved over the weekend and it was so good to have this extra day of rest and time together.

We’ve cycled Bryson’s long lasting insulin to bedtime and he had a much more stable night with his blood sugars, which is also a first! He even had a cookie with dinner baked by the twins & our friends!

We’re slowly figuring out the carbs and protein and how much he needs or doesn’t need, we already eat clean because of all our different food allergies and intolerances, but this is different. We’re getting there.

The nurse we had 2 hours of education with from his new endocrinologist’s office called yesterday to check on him and see if we have any questions! Which I’m so thankful for!!

I got more sleep last night, the wake up in a panic has eased a little. I was able to get a full workout in yesterday after I gave Bryson his insulin and Ryan made breakfast, and I got a few walks in, including one with a friend - exercise really does your body good!!

We did find out that our health share most likely will NOT cover his hospitalization or ongoing medical treatment and supplies.

When we called they told us to go ahead and submit the bills, even though they likely won’t cover them, and that even if they did cover it, his medical supplies would only be covered for the 90 days after the hospital stay.

While we were in the hospital, the financial office called because we’re marked self-pay with our health share, they asked for some paperwork to see what we can qualify for. We got all that notarized and submitted and now we wait & pray that we will get some type of help for all of this. I trust God. I know it will all work out, I know that He will provide - He already has in so many ways including how so many of you have selflessly given to Bryson! We thank you from the bottom of our hearts, it means more than you know.

So we wait, pray & trust.

12/01/2025

Let me tell you about the GoFundMe for Bryson…

Ryan went to the store to get a few last things for our Thanksgiving celebration, which Bryson asked if we could still do while he was in the hospital. As Ryan was going out the door Brayden said “hey dad can I get this Tshirt from it’s on sale for Black Friday?” Ryan said we’ll see…

A few minutes later Ryan calls me crying, he said “Tiff when Brayden asked me about the shirt I thought how do we tell our kids that things are going to be really tight and not worry them? Then I got a notification that Rob & Ashley sent us money, it’s a reassurance that God hears us and that He will provide.”

I sent Ashley .and.places a text thanking her and telling her all of this and she praised God with me and then said “would you care if I set up a GoFundMe for Bryson?”

Ryan and I had discussed it and my response was we need to pray about it. Ryan’s concerned that the health share could say that this was a preexisting condition and won’t cover it, or that they won’t cover all of it because they do have a max (he had an MRI, ultrasound, bloodwork every hour, 2 days of PICU, and more) or that they won’t cover the ongoing care of insulin or supplies - there’s so much unknown. We already have 3 endocrinologist appointments scheduled in the next 6 weeks and we give him 4 shots of insulin a day. Plus with some different foods we’re getting for him for highs and lows, it’s a lot.

When Ashley asked if she could set up a GoFundMe it took my breath away, we prayed if we should consider doing a one for Bryson or not. Now here was my sister in Christ, who has also been praying, asking if she could set one up for Bryson and help spread the word.

So I said yes. How can you say no to an answered prayer?

That’s why we have a GoFundMe for Bryson. It’s all about him and his care and making sure he’s taken care of. He’s so gentle & sweet, he would never ask for anything from anyone but even at 12 he would do anything for anyone. He’s already so humbled that anyone would donate to help him with all of this.

If you’re thinking about helping, pray, God will show you what to do 💙

https://gofund.me/3400de8fc

11/30/2025

1st night home from the hospital with Type 1 Diabetes was long. I knew he was going to go low, I just had a feeling because at dinner his blood sugar level was only 174.

We’re supposed to check his blood sugar between 12 -2am every night, so at 12:30am when I checked him his blood sugar was 95 with a clammy forehead and feeling shaky so we gave him 15g of applesauce, 15 mins later we rechecked and it was 99 so we gave him 15g of apple juice.

They told us to go by the rule of 15s - check him and if he’s below 100 then give him 15g of sugar and recheck in 15 mins.

So 15 mins later we rechecked his blood sugar again and it was a little higher but because it was the middle of the night and he wouldn’t eat for hours (per the directions) we gave him 15g carb snack with protein and rechecked it 15 minutes later and it was 180, back to his normal!

When I first checked him it took me 3 sticks to get any blood, he was cold, low blood sugar and thirsty and I just couldn’t get enough blood to fill the glucose monitoring strip. I felt so bad, not only did I wake him up but I kept having to poke him. Thankfully, if you know Bryson then you know that he’s super sweet and laid back and said “it’s ok mommy“

I checked it again at 3:45 and he was 219
Praise God!!!

His target is 80-180 and I know 219 sounds high but it’s kinda been his normal as we bring him down from the really high highs, you can’t do it too fast or it’ll shock the body and at 95 he was clammy and shaking.
This morning at 7 he was 178 which is a praise bc it stayed up through the night.

I think that between those 12:30am and 7 am I pricked him at least eight times to get those draws. I think that the pricker that they gave us to prick him with isn’t as strong as the one at the hospital so maybe it’s not going as deep? I have it set to the highest setting to spring forward. I’m milking his fingers first, making them warm, gravity, doing every trick I know. Let me know if you have any tricks

Pray for Bryson and for something for me, I need for these random heart palpitations & the flight or fight I’ve been having to go away, I know God’s in control yet my body’s reacting this way
Thank you 💙

The Party of 6

12/15/2025

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12/07/2025

12/05/2025

12/04/2025

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11/30/2025

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