Podcast 1 Diagnosis Transcript Melissa House You know, kind of that concept or feeling that I'm normal that I'm a normal kid. Just because I have diabetes doesn't mean I can't do things. So it was Jennifer Van Syckle Roughly 64,000 Montana adults have received a diabetes diagnosis in their life. That's about the population of Helena and Butte, combined. When someone's diagnosed with diabetes, often they need a hospital stay, and that can average about four days and cost $25,000. That's how much a brand new Toyota Camry costs. Thank you for joining us on today's episode of Talking Health in the 406, where we're one community under the Big Sky. I'm Jennifer Van Syckle, your host. Longtime health care worker turned health educator and I'm joined today by Melissa House, type 1 diabetes survivor and double organ transplant recipient. She also happens to be the manager of the Montana Diabetes Program. Welcome, Melissa. Unknown Speaker Thank you, Jennifer. Great. So Jennifer Van Syckle Melissa, before we get going one question we have to ask you; Butte, pasties? Ketchup, gravy,or nothing on them? Ketchup and gravy. Oh, I was not expecting that. I am a ketchup only person. Okay, Melissa House depends on the day. Oh, we gotta throw a little butter on top. Jennifer Van Syckle Oh my gosh. I love it. I love it. That's my next pasty. I'm doing all three ketchup, gravy, and butter. Beautiful. So Melissa, Butte girl you were raised in beautiful Butte America. And you had kind of an interesting childhood. So tell me about life. Your young years, active healthy kiddo. How was that? Melissa House Yeah, I grew up in a very active family. We were always outdoors, camping at the lake. Huge family togetherness. I mean, we did everything together. So very, very active. I twirled baton, and it was great because I got to travel around the state. For part of the time growing up every summer I lived in Great Falls at my coach's house with several different teammates from Billings, another one from Butte two from Helena. So yeah, always active, always moving. Never had time to just sit Jennifer Van Syckle Awesome. Awesome. And then at some point in your childhood life kind of threw you a curveball. Can you tell us about those days leading up to that and how that was? Yeah. Melissa House Um, so I noticed I remember I was young and really didn't know what was going on. But I could drink like a gallon of water in 10 minutes. And then it was like, instantaneously, I needed to run to the bathroom. And it was like non stop, drink, go to the bathroom drink, go to the bathroom. And in the evenings, I would have severe leg pain. And my parents just thought it was growing pains. You know, you're doing a lot, shin splints, things like that, because it would go away. It wasn't all the time. And it was just getting worse. You know, as the time go, I remember coming home from Boulder from doing a clinic and having to stop at a friend's of my grandparents house in Elk Park. So I could use the bathroom. I couldn't really even make it from there. Jennifer Van Syckle And that's about 30 miles from Boulder to Butte. So less than 30 miles. Right. Melissa House Wow. Yeah. So it was just, you know, it was kind of crazy. I remember I was in the fifth grade, at the time. And you know, my parents just thought, oh, it's growing, you know, things are changing. I'm active, you know, doing a lot of things that, you know, that's kind of what was all involved in, you know, what was going on. So really didn't think anything of it. And I can remember it like it was yesterday, my mom had made a doctor's appointment for me to get in and all I cared about because it was a Friday, all I cared about was that I had a sleepover planned. Oh, for that night. And that's I just wanted to, you know, get it was a birthday party of one of my classmates and friends and that that's the only thing I was concerned about. I did get a miss school that day, though. Jennifer Van Syckle And so you went to the doctor, did you go to your pediatrician or to an Express Care where what did you do Melissa House it was Express Care at the time in Butte. And of course my mom knows everybody in Butte so it was like call Oh, yeah, you know, bring her in. So we went in, I really didn't know what was going on that you know, running tests doing a lot of different things. I was again, just like okay, can we get out of here? Let's go, Let's go. And all I remember is, you know, I don't really remember much of what they talked about. But I remember we we left the doctor's office and we went to Dairy Queen. Oh, gosh, did Unknown Speaker you have your diagnosis at that time? Melissa House I did. And I had just been diagnosed with diabetes. And you went to Dairy Queen? Yes. Yeah. And I had ice cream, I imagine. Oh, yes. Oh, yes. had ice cream. And it was funny, because, you know, that was, you know, oh, gosh, I can't let me do the math now, how long ago that was? I mean, that was 30 years ago. Yeah. Um, so, you know, diabetes at the time wasn't something that was really talked about, you know, it was people had it. You know, people knew of people that had it, but it wasn't a big conversation starter. It wasn't something that was brought up in a lot of conversations. So I had no clue what it meant. Yeah. Jennifer Van Syckle And kudos to Express Care, you know, a kiddo walks in the door. And they had the presence of mind to test you for diabetes. Granted, you had one of the biggest symptoms of frequent urination. But we hear these horror stories on how subtle diabetes can show in kids and how it can be overlooked by so many physicians, you know, things like irritability, stomach ache, starting to wet the bed, all of a sudden, out of the blue can all be signs of diabetes. And thank goodness, they were able to catch that. And so then tell me about life. After that diagnosis, how did you even learn how to deal with this new world that you were suddenly put into? Where did you find help? What did you do? Yeah, it Melissa House was kind of crazy. It was a whirlwind. And like you said, you know, with the diagnosis that can be so different. For me, it was textbook. And I think that was one of the easiest things for them. It was textbook symptoms. But it was crazy. Like I said, it was a Friday, I was disappointed because I couldn't do the sleepover. And we kind of had to figure out so went back to the doctor and spent the rest of the day there learning, you know, really learning about what was next, what were the medications, what was, you know, the care what all that looked like, one of the things I think growing up in Montana, small towns. My nurse from my doctor at the time for my pediatrician lived like a block away from me. And because it was the weekend, I went over to her house, I learned how to check my blood glucose levels. I was able to go over there, I they put me on insulin, of course. And I was she was able to help me learn how to do insulin injections all by myself. So for the first probably two to three weeks that I was diagnosed, I went to her house every morning, every evening. In just she was awesome. I got that one on one attention with her. And she kind of helped both my mom and my dad and I through that initial process. And it was a learning curve for everybody. Because again, it was what is diabetes? We don't know a lot about it. So it was definitely a learning curve. And being a kid, how do you fit that into. Absolutely. What a normal fifth graders doing Jennifer Van Syckle birthday time and in class, and somebody brings cupcakes to school? What, you know, how did that affect your life? Yeah, and Melissa House it was different than it is now. Because you didn't have a lot of options. So, you know, it was like, do you miss out on all of that? Halloween, you know, with all of the the sharing of the candy and all of that kind of stuff. And there was a lot of unknowns at the time. So it was like, Can I have a piece of gum? Can I have something you know, and my mom and dad were really good. They let me participate in everything. So I got the candy. I brought candy I was able to share, but then it was like bringing it home. Here you go. And I am not going to deny did I sneak candy at times? Oh, yeah. You know, it was like, nobody's looking. I'm gonna take a piece, you know, now or later chocolates my favorite still to this day? So you know, I had that. Yeah, that going? But yeah, it was very different and learning how to handle all of those situations. Jennifer Van Syckle Yeah. And can you thinking back? Can you think of any other unique struggles that you had that the average person wouldn't? wouldn't even consider where we are aware of, you know, no candy, no sugar. But what if you did have to go to a sleepover? What if you wanted to go out on a hike? You know, what, can you give us some insight on what a person with diabetes might be facing and struggling with? Yeah, and I think it's very Melissa House different for for kids. And, you know, as kids are diagnosed, it's that struggle of trying to fit in and still be, you know, kind of that concept or feeling that I'm normal that I'm a normal kid. Just because I have diabetes doesn't mean I can't do things. So it was learning. I was very into sports and things when I was growing up and like I said, I twirled baton and all of that. So it was trying to manage that manage how I felt like how my body felt when I did different activities. And what that looked like it was I having a low blood sugar was I having a high blood sugar, you know, fitting in timing of when I had to take my insulin and what was happening during that time, and really having to take the time and pause making sure that I always had snacks. So it was hard. I mean, you know, it was really difficult just trying to be a normal 10, 11, 12 year old, and then fitting all of this extra stuff in, you know, and learning about food. I think that's thing, something that everybody really doesn't understand. And, you know, as a kid trying to, oh, you can't eat this because of the carbohydrates, or you can't have this or, you know, try this. But I was very fortunate to have amazing family. My grandma took it on, she was a baker, and took it on to I'm going to try anything and everything. pies, cookies, cupcakes, cinnamon rolls, she found a way to make them, you know, so I could enjoy them as well. So it was just, you know, a lot of learning. And a lot of being afraid. Yeah, sleepovers were different. I can say probably for the first year, there was only one or two friends that I could sleep over at their house. One was because her mom was a nurse. And the other they were just close family friends. So you know, my mom knew. Yes. Comfortable. Jennifer Van Syckle Yeah. So if you were diagnosed today, if you were that 10 year old fifth grader, what, what recommendations? You know, How would things be different? What recommendations do you have for families out there today? Who are facing a diagnosis, whether they're in fifth grade, or whether they're 50 years old? What do you have to recommend? Yeah, Melissa House I think things are very different. From when I was diagnosed to now, again, it was kind of a very taboo subject at the time. So when you were trying to find help, help, it was very individual. So you know, finding a dietitian or finding anybody like that it was very your own, you're on your own. And there were resources out there. But I think today and you know, I hate to say this, and not in a negative way. But in more of people today that are diagnosed, I think are a little bit more fortunate because of the services and things that we have. Even in Montana, we have a lot of programs and resources, there's a lot of support groups, there's a lot of activities for kids. We have diabetes, self management, education and support programs across the state. You know, and the thing about it, even though we have all this, these services, 42% of Montanans still are not accessing any of these services, and they're great resources. So, you know, if I were to say one thing about, you know, what you need to do, if you get diagnosed today, don't be afraid to reach out for help, you know, ask your provider, ask friends or family members, you know, get that support system, and, you know, reach out to the local health care systems and providers, because there are a ton of resources out there, whether it's in person, it's online, you know, in a group setting, there's just lots of opportunities out there and to be your own advocate. I learned through the years that you can't always count on somebody else to point you in the right direction. Sometimes you have to count on yourself to get you to where you need to go. Absolutely. Jennifer Van Syckle You need to ask questions to really find the right answers. Yeah, Yep, absolutely. And at our website, diabetes.mt.gov we do have a map of all the diabetes care and education specialists in Montana. And if one is not available locally, I know telehealth is throughout the state. And given the recent pandemic, there's been even more telehealth options and dieticians. You name it. There's always somebody there to help. Absolutely. Perfect. Well, Melissa, thank you for joining us today. And patient advocacy is key. You know asking questions, ask your provider, ask your family, ask your friends for help, and just know that you do have access to diabetes care. So thank you for joining us on this episode of Talking Health in the 406. Remember to take care of neighbor because we're one community under the Big Sky. Transcribed by https://otter.ai