HLA , Genetics and GUILT

WOW oh Wow oh wow oh wow............. I have been studying (or trying to) the possible Genetic link to diabetes. I truly DON'T understand half of what I read ... but I'm a Pit-Bull when it comes to Care Giving, and, as my husband has been having serious health problems since age 47, I have schlepped him from one Specialist to another and picked up more books than the Public Library!





So, Grandpa Bill is HLA Positive ... some B-27 gene effected causing him to have a cavalcade of disorders ... the most recent is Lupus Anti-Coagulating Disorder (??) which is NOT Lupus but it causes Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT's) which are a REAL BUMMER!





Being HLA Pos, he has a 50/50 change of passing the Gene to Amy ... and Amy has a 50/50 chance of passing to her issues and so on and so forth ... NOW, if I understand the explanation, if there is an extra allele present, it's almost an 90% chance of developing diabetes!





Bill and I were discussing it ... and of course, he feels terrible that he may have passed on this gene ... it also makes me wonder, as the "Family Cemetery Plot" in Ludington , Michigan, has a whole section MARKED "Children and Babies" ... can you believe it? No names ... just a head stone marked ...so sad!





I guess NOTHING is going to change the diagnoses ..but, it helps to understand why or MAYBE why...and definitely an advantage when a CURE for certain types of diabetes is isolated. The "fanatic" in me wants to have ALL the G-kids tested for this Genetic Link .... but to what end? Just more to worry about I guess ... so, I'm not even going to approach the issue. The Family, with the exception of me, wants to pretend that the G-Child is no different from anyone else. I believe this is a mistake ... but I, too, don't want her to grow up thinking she's a victim .... but she NEEDS to know that her very life hangs in the balance of keeping her BG in order (something that she doesn't understand at this point and doesn't care about). Like so many blogs I follow, her numbers have been all over the board in the past two weeks ...and no one has wanted to deal with it ... even ME! I'm just not up to the "fight" it might cause .... the ONLY good thing about the past 14 days is FINALLY ...Amy is LOGGING food and insulin and BG #'s !!!! You have NO idea how it helps to trend the BG when you write down everything consumed and all the injections and times given ..... let's hope she maintains this journal I made for her 8 months ago! (I've been trying to journal over the phone, but its hit and miss at best!)



I got Amy a very COOL diabetic scale that gives a complete Nutritional Label for over 1000 different food items ... its so cool, I just know (and pray) she'll use it! and it remembers up to 100 entries! (Heidi D-Tales, Thank you for the wonderful idea!)

OFF to Tennis!! just write LOSER across my forehead! boohoo!!