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Thursday 1 January 2015

Actually, something changed today

My child, beautiful willful Kittencat, has a tendency to hypoglycemia. I've been aware of this for a few months; when nursery had an unexpected kitchen staffing problem and the management stepped in, for all their best efforts, the menu was basically a diabetics worst nightmare, processed carbs and sugar galore. My first clue to the excessive sugar being the problem was when Kittencat started to complain about excessively itchy eyes, as I had this all my life, and it magically vanishes on a diet with virtually no sugar. But Kittencat had several individual days where she was basically catatonic, no energy, high temperature, tendency to vomit first thing in the morning, and yet fine the day after, and it didn't immediately strike me that there was a link between these days and the sugar and the white carby goodness. I'm still falling back on the misinformation of my youth, so occasionally it takes me a while to draw these oh so obvious connections. But I am reading. And some of my reading touched on hypoglycemia. And this is exactly what is happening with KC. I'm reluctant to get her formally diagnosed, as that involves forcibly pumping her full of a shitload of sugar, but basically, if my kid has too much sugar, she runs around like she's batshit crazy, then turns into a lifeless little ill person, dizzy, nauseous, temperature, exhausted. The reaction isn't always within minutes and can occur the day after, or indeed be a sort of cumulative effect over a number of days. But my observations are generally seen to be the over application of a little knowledge, and I found out today that my mother thought I'd been explaining a series of bugs as if caused by food. She told me this because she realised she was wrong. Kittencat had jelly after her lunch, went batshit crazy, then limp and lifeless and temperaturey and nearly asleep for several hours on their sofa. And we talked, and my theory was food, and hers was viral. And I agreed it might be, but we'd only know if it persisted beyond the day. And I'll tell you straight, the mother, a former very well qualified nurse, was seriously worried about the state the child was in. As was I, but it's happened before, and we deal. And then, at 17:30, she sprang back into life. Colour returned to her cheeks, a fervent desire to eat replaced the nausea and she ate tea, and it was as if nothing had ever occurred. The mother was flabbergasted, and explained that because she'd never seen it, she hadn't realised that I was being anything more than an overbearing mother, applying limited knowledge with gay abandon. Fact is, I research exceptionally thoroughly when it comes to my child and her health.

While I'm unhappy that this occurred, because it's no fun for anyone, particularly poor little Kittencat, both I and my mother are glad she's witnessed it. If only so that we're all on the same page, and that I no longer get told to stop being so overbearing for insisting that Kittencat can't have sugary things more than one day in a row.

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