August 12, 2022 • 13 mins
Diabetes is something that has hit the African-American community hard but even harder with our
toddlers. We are finding that more and more toddlers are being diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes,
faster than we can find additional diabetic knowledge and supplies to support them.
In this week’s episode, I will be sharing my thoughts as a mom of a 3-year-old toddler who was
diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. We will be discussing my true feelings of fear when it comes to
being a mother of a Type 1 Toddler. What I fear the most and why will all be shared in this two-part
series.
To learn more about Ce’Onna Meilani Johnson, you can follow her here
https://www.instagram.com/ceonnameilani/?hl=en
https://www.youtube.com/c/CeOnnaMeilani
If you like to learn more about Dr. Dionna, you can follow her here
https://drdionna.com
https://www.instagram.com/drdionnalifecoach
https://www.youtube.com/drdionnalifecoach
You can also purchase her two bestselling books titled
Be Your Own Life Coach: How to Life Coach Yourself Into What You Want here
https://drdionna.com/product/be-your-own-life-coach/
Where Did My Half Brother Come From here https://drdionna.com/product/be-your-own-life-
coach/
toddlers. We are finding that more and more toddlers are being diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes,
faster than we can find additional diabetic knowledge and supplies to support them.
In this week’s episode, I will be sharing my thoughts as a mom of a 3-year-old toddler who was
diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. We will be discussing my true feelings of fear when it comes to
being a mother of a Type 1 Toddler. What I fear the most and why will all be shared in this two-part
series.
To learn more about Ce’Onna Meilani Johnson, you can follow her here
https://www.instagram.com/ceonnameilani/?hl=en
https://www.youtube.com/c/CeOnnaMeilani
If you like to learn more about Dr. Dionna, you can follow her here
https://drdionna.com
https://www.instagram.com/drdionnalifecoach
https://www.youtube.com/drdionnalifecoach
You can also purchase her two bestselling books titled
Be Your Own Life Coach: How to Life Coach Yourself Into What You Want here
https://drdionna.com/product/be-your-own-life-coach/
Where Did My Half Brother Come From here https://drdionna.com/product/be-your-own-life-
coach/
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
This is the FCB Radio Network coomof the best Personalities and we're a real
Tiglets see online at FCB radio dotcom FCP. Hello everyone, it is
(00:22):
doctor Deanna, your host on TalkingTallis with Type one diabetes, and tonight's
episode is going to be about thoughtsof fear as a diabetic mama. I
like to share with you guys someof the thoughts and things that I've had
that has just been really on mymind that as a MoMA, we go
through and it's going to be aconsistent process that we go through this,
(00:45):
and so I just want to beable to share this with you guys and
be able to, you know,get some feedback from anybody else who's going
through this, and just let youknow you're not alone. So let's get
into this podcast. So we areback, and one of the first things
that really just have me thinking aboutthe fear and how it has taken over
(01:12):
me is losing my dad to diabetesin general has been such a hard and
devastating thing for me that I reallyhave not figured out how to mentally get
away from that thinking. When Ithink about what the future looks like for
my daughter, I have prayed Ihave lifted myself up. Now I have
(01:38):
another acronym about fear as a lifecoach, and I believe it's finding alternative
reactions to your circumstances. I thinkI'm missing the finding alternative and easy reactions
to what you're dealing with if I'mnot mistaken. But I have to come
(01:59):
back and maybe put that on thescreen or put that in a description to
let you guys know what it is. So normally I'm a person as a
person that is into the be yourown life coach movement, who has started
this movement, who has books onthis, as a psychologist, as just
a motivational speaker, I'm normally onthe up and up, and I don't
(02:19):
really talk about fear like that becauseI feel like I always have my heavenly
Father to keep me from being infear of anything. But as I get
into this topic with you guys,I'm talking about some of the fear that
I have and related to my baby, and that's a different kind of fear
that I probably shouldn't still have,but I do have, and I'm just
(02:44):
sharing with you that it does existregardless of all those things I just told
you, regardless of you know,doing this and doing that and staying motivated.
You know, Normally it's not somethingthat I really concern myself with its
fear. But on today's topic,we're gonna specifically talk about what I go
through as fear as a diabetic mama. So that's just where I am,
(03:07):
and I just want to be upfrontwith you, guys. I want to
be real and I want you toknow that I too go through it,
even with everything else that I preachon the other side of things, but
when you're a mama and you aredealing with things with your baby's health,
you're talking about a whole different thingthat requires so much more of you,
(03:28):
and that also is alarming and concerning. So the biggest thing is, like
I said, my first thing Iwould have to say would be thinking about
my dad and what life would havebeen like with him here and him helping
me and not having that support,and what life can look like for my
baby as she gets old, andwhat I want to make sure I provide
(03:50):
for her that was not there formy dad, even in myself and the
knowledge and the skill sets. Sothat's one thing. Another thing is,
you know, everyone assumes that whenyou get diagnosed, you're already excited about
it. You're happy about it,you're into it, and that's that or
(04:11):
not so much excited, but you'vehad time to welcome and embrace this diagnosis,
even if it's been a month,a week, a year. And
I remember at the hospital the daymy daughter was diagnosed, and everyone coming
into the room, Oh, howare you? And this is good.
You're here at least you find itout. Now you know this is great.
It's gonna be okay. Life,it's gonna be good. And I
(04:34):
didn't feel any of that, andI still don't. In some cases,
it's better than where it was whenI found out, but it's not great.
Okay, it is. We're blessedand it's good and it's manageable.
So you guys know that it willget better, and I know it's gonna
(04:54):
get better for me. But Ifeel like I'm still adjusting to the news
because of the fact that there's stillso many unknowns, uncertainties, things that
keep happening that you think you gotdownpad, that you think you got covered,
and you're just in fear of whatelse is next, what else that
I didn't know? Why didn't youtell me this three months ago. Why
are you asking me now if sheis alerted to gluten food and tell me
(05:18):
why. I want to know allthis stuff now so that I can avoid
her going through things later, LikeI don't want to wait and tell us
an issue and I have to cometo you and I say, look,
this is an issue. I needhelp. I need to know why this
is happening. And it's too latebecause you guys didn't give me the information
I needed to know prior to inthe beginning, and every doc's appointment,
(05:39):
let me tell you, I wouldcome in there with my questions, guys,
and I would slam them with somuch information that they would have to
gonna get two and three assistant doctorsto come in and help me understand things
because they couldn't answer my questions.You know, how do we know this
is not happening in her body?Can we do an X ray? Can
(06:00):
we do this or that? Canwe stay on top of it? They
won't do a lot of those thingsbecause they have to follow a routine.
Some tests are once a year,you know. I think it's what's the
ciliac that they talk about once ayear? You know? And now they're
telling me, we probably don't needto do it for a few years.
And I'm thinking, like, no, do what you need to do every
six months to make sure if she'sgood, we're gonna stay good. That
(06:23):
what I'm doing is working, whatshe's doing is working, what my family's
doing is working. I need toknow this. I don't want to wait
until something is happening. And alot of times they just don't care like
you care, even though they're thepracticing doctors, they don't care like you
care. And so that is afear of minds as well. In terms
(06:44):
of what's to come, what's next. One of my biggest ones that I
really felt I had already knew inmy heart was having more kids. Guys,
I really didn't want more kids.I just did not want more kids
because I knew see On was goingto be a lot of work. I
knew that I had to give upeverything in order to take care of her,
(07:05):
and I was willing to take thatroad in that fight, even if
it was alone, because people don'tunderstand, you know. And so getting
pregnant and having my third baby,getting ready to welcome my new baby in
a few weeks, I have hadto readjust my thinking. I've had to
realign my goals. I had toreevaluate my life, and I had to
(07:30):
determine that if it wasn't meant,it wouldn't have happened. If God didn't
build me up for this moment tobe there for other parents who are going
through the same thing, then Idon't know what else. I know that
what I'm about to go through interms of the scheduling between Siana waking up
in the middle of night or mehaving to wake her up because she's low
and to give her something to drink, and having a new baby, It's
(07:51):
not an easy road that's going totake place. It's going to be difficult,
and at some point we'll get ona pattern that works for everyone.
But I fear that I fear havingmore kids. I remember, you know,
seeing Patty. Shout out to you, Patty and your baby, because
I know y'all are going to comeon the podcast soon. But I remember
seeing you at the park and meetingyou, and I was so excited to
(08:13):
see your daughter with her decks,call on her arm, and I was
just like, where's your mom,where's your mom? And so she thought
that something was wrong, and Isaid no, I'm just so happy to
see you, guys, like Icould have hugged her, okay, And
to know that there was other momsin the area that she knew that was
also going through stuff was a blessing. Guys. It was such a blessing.
And I've seen her with her newson. He was probably like one
(08:35):
or two, I don't know,but he was ranking from her, just
like CJ would do for me whenhe was young, and just yank from
you. A boys, it's justhardcore, okay. They just gets going.
And I was just like, I'mso happy that I do not have
any more kids outside of Siama,and her daughter was mine. I think
(08:56):
when we met them and I'm lookingat her and I'm like, I don't
know how you do it. Iknow it probably wasn't a choice to maybe
have her baby. Maybe it was, I don't know, but I know
it wasn't my choice. But Godhas given me another opportunity to be there
for another little human and to bethere and give them more love than what
I already have. I didn't evenknow I had more to give, because
(09:16):
I know my baby takes up twentyfour seven of my time, and you
know, leading into that having otherkids. I fear not giving my other
son, my other baby, whichis now my other son, all the
time and attention he needs as he'sgetting ready, prepared to becoming adult and
going to this world, balancing outand hoping that he doesn't get jealous because
(09:37):
his sister is a girl, andyou know, I got to dedicate more
time to her, just not becauseof who she is, but because of
her health. You know, thosefears are there, They're high in my
life, and I just deal withthem the best way I know howland Each
day I take it slow to tryto you know, change my shape,
(09:58):
reshape my thinking. That makes sense. So having more kids than having other
kids that you have to connect withstill be there for take care of.
I'm glad my son is a littlebit more self sufficient, but he still
needs his mama. You know,he's got only a few years left with
me, and I want to poureverything into him to make sure he's prepared
(10:18):
for this world and he has whathe needs to be a good adult,
a great human successful in life.As well as Sianna, you know,
as she goes off and doing whatshe's doing every day and as a model
and an actress, right now.You know, I just want to give
them all that I can. AndI didn't know that I was going to
have even more love to give tosomeone else a third kid, and I
(10:41):
know there's other moms out there thathas so many more kids. I was
one of those of us raised inthe house of eight, and you know,
I couldn't imagine it shout out tomy mama because I don't know how
she did it. I know thatif I had to, I could do
it, just like I'm gonna haveto be here for this next baby.
(11:05):
But it's not like I wanted toor I want to then another fear,
guys, is I have noticed thatsince I started the Pocket Underwear Company,
there are some families that have twotallers that are Type one, and I'm
hoping that one day I can getone of them on this podcast to talk
to them, because I know theirlife has to be so drastically different than
(11:30):
ours. But maybe it's simple becauseof the fact that they have too that's
going through it in they're there foreach other because I used to always want
Sianna to have somebody she can relateto. And I remember having this conversation
with my sister and she was nowin agreement. I'm like, well,
yeah, she can have noble friendstoo, but it's even better if she
has someone that was in this wholerealm of diabetes with her so that she
(11:50):
can talk about her struggles with thatperson because she talks about it to me,
and for a while, I justkind of, you know, seem
like I can relate, But atthe end of the day, I'm not
diabetic and I can't relay. Guys, I just can't, no matter how
much I try. And you knowthat comes with also being a parent.
Sometimes you can't relate to what yourkid is going through because of the fact
(12:11):
that you're just not in their shoes. But you feel for them, you
are fair for them, you arepraying for them, you're there for them.
So those are things that I dealwith and I think about as well.
You know, I don't want tothink about the possibilities of having another
kid also going down the same roadI went through with Sianna. I don't,
but the reality is that it couldhappen. It could happen, and
(12:37):
I would be even more prepared becauseI've been through this already. That doesn't
mean I still want to go throughit or that I want to see another
kid of minds go through so muchin life as so little, so young.
Pot guys, that's all we havetoday on talking talks with Type one
diabetes. I think you Paul fortuning in, Thank you all for the
(13:00):
support, I thank you all forthe love, and we look forward to
hearing from you guys and seeing youin the next episode. The FCB Radio
Network first class broadcasting worldwide,
This is the FCB Radio Network coomof the best Personalities and we're a real
Tiglets see online at FCB radio dotcom FCP. Hello everyone, it is
(00:22):
doctor Deanna, your host on TalkingTallis with Type one diabetes, and tonight's
episode is going to be about thoughtsof fear as a diabetic mama. I
like to share with you guys someof the thoughts and things that I've had
that has just been really on mymind that as a MoMA, we go
through and it's going to be aconsistent process that we go through this,
(00:45):
and so I just want to beable to share this with you guys and
be able to, you know,get some feedback from anybody else who's going
through this, and just let youknow you're not alone. So let's get
into this podcast. So we areback, and one of the first things
that really just have me thinking aboutthe fear and how it has taken over
(01:12):
me is losing my dad to diabetesin general has been such a hard and
devastating thing for me that I reallyhave not figured out how to mentally get
away from that thinking. When Ithink about what the future looks like for
my daughter, I have prayed Ihave lifted myself up. Now I have
(01:38):
another acronym about fear as a lifecoach, and I believe it's finding alternative
reactions to your circumstances. I thinkI'm missing the finding alternative and easy reactions
to what you're dealing with if I'mnot mistaken. But I have to come
(01:59):
back and maybe put that on thescreen or put that in a description to
let you guys know what it is. So normally I'm a person as a
person that is into the be yourown life coach movement, who has started
this movement, who has books onthis, as a psychologist, as just
a motivational speaker, I'm normally onthe up and up, and I don't
(02:19):
really talk about fear like that becauseI feel like I always have my heavenly
Father to keep me from being infear of anything. But as I get
into this topic with you guys,I'm talking about some of the fear that
I have and related to my baby, and that's a different kind of fear
that I probably shouldn't still have,but I do have, and I'm just
(02:44):
sharing with you that it does existregardless of all those things I just told
you, regardless of you know,doing this and doing that and staying motivated.
You know, Normally it's not somethingthat I really concern myself with its
fear. But on today's topic,we're gonna specifically talk about what I go
through as fear as a diabetic mama. So that's just where I am,
(03:07):
and I just want to be upfrontwith you, guys. I want to
be real and I want you toknow that I too go through it,
even with everything else that I preachon the other side of things, but
when you're a mama and you aredealing with things with your baby's health,
you're talking about a whole different thingthat requires so much more of you,
(03:28):
and that also is alarming and concerning. So the biggest thing is, like
I said, my first thing Iwould have to say would be thinking about
my dad and what life would havebeen like with him here and him helping
me and not having that support,and what life can look like for my
baby as she gets old, andwhat I want to make sure I provide
(03:50):
for her that was not there formy dad, even in myself and the
knowledge and the skill sets. Sothat's one thing. Another thing is,
you know, everyone assumes that whenyou get diagnosed, you're already excited about
it. You're happy about it,you're into it, and that's that or
(04:11):
not so much excited, but you'vehad time to welcome and embrace this diagnosis,
even if it's been a month,a week, a year. And
I remember at the hospital the daymy daughter was diagnosed, and everyone coming
into the room, Oh, howare you? And this is good.
You're here at least you find itout. Now you know this is great.
It's gonna be okay. Life,it's gonna be good. And I
(04:34):
didn't feel any of that, andI still don't. In some cases,
it's better than where it was whenI found out, but it's not great.
Okay, it is. We're blessedand it's good and it's manageable.
So you guys know that it willget better, and I know it's gonna
(04:54):
get better for me. But Ifeel like I'm still adjusting to the news
because of the fact that there's stillso many unknowns, uncertainties, things that
keep happening that you think you gotdownpad, that you think you got covered,
and you're just in fear of whatelse is next, what else that
I didn't know? Why didn't youtell me this three months ago. Why
are you asking me now if sheis alerted to gluten food and tell me
(05:18):
why. I want to know allthis stuff now so that I can avoid
her going through things later, LikeI don't want to wait and tell us
an issue and I have to cometo you and I say, look,
this is an issue. I needhelp. I need to know why this
is happening. And it's too latebecause you guys didn't give me the information
I needed to know prior to inthe beginning, and every doc's appointment,
(05:39):
let me tell you, I wouldcome in there with my questions, guys,
and I would slam them with somuch information that they would have to
gonna get two and three assistant doctorsto come in and help me understand things
because they couldn't answer my questions.You know, how do we know this
is not happening in her body?Can we do an X ray? Can
(06:00):
we do this or that? Canwe stay on top of it? They
won't do a lot of those thingsbecause they have to follow a routine.
Some tests are once a year,you know. I think it's what's the
ciliac that they talk about once ayear? You know? And now they're
telling me, we probably don't needto do it for a few years.
And I'm thinking, like, no, do what you need to do every
six months to make sure if she'sgood, we're gonna stay good. That
(06:23):
what I'm doing is working, whatshe's doing is working, what my family's
doing is working. I need toknow this. I don't want to wait
until something is happening. And alot of times they just don't care like
you care, even though they're thepracticing doctors, they don't care like you
care. And so that is afear of minds as well. In terms
(06:44):
of what's to come, what's next. One of my biggest ones that I
really felt I had already knew inmy heart was having more kids. Guys,
I really didn't want more kids.I just did not want more kids
because I knew see On was goingto be a lot of work. I
knew that I had to give upeverything in order to take care of her,
(07:05):
and I was willing to take thatroad in that fight, even if
it was alone, because people don'tunderstand, you know. And so getting
pregnant and having my third baby,getting ready to welcome my new baby in
a few weeks, I have hadto readjust my thinking. I've had to
realign my goals. I had toreevaluate my life, and I had to
(07:30):
determine that if it wasn't meant,it wouldn't have happened. If God didn't
build me up for this moment tobe there for other parents who are going
through the same thing, then Idon't know what else. I know that
what I'm about to go through interms of the scheduling between Siana waking up
in the middle of night or mehaving to wake her up because she's low
and to give her something to drink, and having a new baby, It's
(07:51):
not an easy road that's going totake place. It's going to be difficult,
and at some point we'll get ona pattern that works for everyone.
But I fear that I fear havingmore kids. I remember, you know,
seeing Patty. Shout out to you, Patty and your baby, because
I know y'all are going to comeon the podcast soon. But I remember
seeing you at the park and meetingyou, and I was so excited to
(08:13):
see your daughter with her decks,call on her arm, and I was
just like, where's your mom,where's your mom? And so she thought
that something was wrong, and Isaid no, I'm just so happy to
see you, guys, like Icould have hugged her, okay, And
to know that there was other momsin the area that she knew that was
also going through stuff was a blessing. Guys. It was such a blessing.
And I've seen her with her newson. He was probably like one
(08:35):
or two, I don't know,but he was ranking from her, just
like CJ would do for me whenhe was young, and just yank from
you. A boys, it's justhardcore, okay. They just gets going.
And I was just like, I'mso happy that I do not have
any more kids outside of Siama,and her daughter was mine. I think
(08:56):
when we met them and I'm lookingat her and I'm like, I don't
know how you do it. Iknow it probably wasn't a choice to maybe
have her baby. Maybe it was, I don't know, but I know
it wasn't my choice. But Godhas given me another opportunity to be there
for another little human and to bethere and give them more love than what
I already have. I didn't evenknow I had more to give, because
(09:16):
I know my baby takes up twentyfour seven of my time, and you
know, leading into that having otherkids. I fear not giving my other
son, my other baby, whichis now my other son, all the
time and attention he needs as he'sgetting ready, prepared to becoming adult and
going to this world, balancing outand hoping that he doesn't get jealous because
(09:37):
his sister is a girl, andyou know, I got to dedicate more
time to her, just not becauseof who she is, but because of
her health. You know, thosefears are there, They're high in my
life, and I just deal withthem the best way I know howland Each
day I take it slow to tryto you know, change my shape,
(09:58):
reshape my thinking. That makes sense. So having more kids than having other
kids that you have to connect withstill be there for take care of.
I'm glad my son is a littlebit more self sufficient, but he still
needs his mama. You know,he's got only a few years left with
me, and I want to poureverything into him to make sure he's prepared
(10:18):
for this world and he has whathe needs to be a good adult,
a great human successful in life.As well as Sianna, you know,
as she goes off and doing whatshe's doing every day and as a model
and an actress, right now.You know, I just want to give
them all that I can. AndI didn't know that I was going to
have even more love to give tosomeone else a third kid, and I
(10:41):
know there's other moms out there thathas so many more kids. I was
one of those of us raised inthe house of eight, and you know,
I couldn't imagine it shout out tomy mama because I don't know how
she did it. I know thatif I had to, I could do
it, just like I'm gonna haveto be here for this next baby.
(11:05):
But it's not like I wanted toor I want to then another fear,
guys, is I have noticed thatsince I started the Pocket Underwear Company,
there are some families that have twotallers that are Type one, and I'm
hoping that one day I can getone of them on this podcast to talk
to them, because I know theirlife has to be so drastically different than
(11:30):
ours. But maybe it's simple becauseof the fact that they have too that's
going through it in they're there foreach other because I used to always want
Sianna to have somebody she can relateto. And I remember having this conversation
with my sister and she was nowin agreement. I'm like, well,
yeah, she can have noble friendstoo, but it's even better if she
has someone that was in this wholerealm of diabetes with her so that she
(11:50):
can talk about her struggles with thatperson because she talks about it to me,
and for a while, I justkind of, you know, seem
like I can relate, But atthe end of the day, I'm not
diabetic and I can't relay. Guys, I just can't, no matter how
much I try. And you knowthat comes with also being a parent.
Sometimes you can't relate to what yourkid is going through because of the fact
(12:11):
that you're just not in their shoes. But you feel for them, you
are fair for them, you arepraying for them, you're there for them.
So those are things that I dealwith and I think about as well.
You know, I don't want tothink about the possibilities of having another
kid also going down the same roadI went through with Sianna. I don't,
but the reality is that it couldhappen. It could happen, and
(12:37):
I would be even more prepared becauseI've been through this already. That doesn't
mean I still want to go throughit or that I want to see another
kid of minds go through so muchin life as so little, so young.
Pot guys, that's all we havetoday on talking talks with Type one
diabetes. I think you Paul fortuning in, Thank you all for the
(13:00):
support, I thank you all forthe love, and we look forward to
hearing from you guys and seeing youin the next episode. The FCB Radio
Network first class broadcasting worldwide,
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