Isle of Wight Diabetes Support Group

Making a Difference: Tammy Glover, Barbara Hinman lead diabetes support group

SMITHFIELD — Tammy Glover didn't want to believe the diagnosis when she was told her 2-year-old daughter, Morgan, had Type 1 diabetes.

"It was a lot easier for my husband to accept. I didn't want to accept it."

With some help, Glover has turned her shock into outreach and support for other families dealing with the condition.

"I've dreamed about this for about five to six years," Glover said, "to have a place where kids and parents can forget about diabetes."

Glover's daughter, now 11 and a sixth-grader at Westside Elementary School in Smithfield, is successfully handling the disease.

"From what I have seen here in our own school clinic, there is a real need for these families to be able to reach out to each other, if nothing else just to share the daily trials of dealing with this illness," said Barbara Hinman, Westside school nurse.

She and Glover created a diabetes support group for parents and students in Isle of Wight to share management ideas, dieting tips and their concerns. The group meets the first Monday of every month at Westside.

"This community didn't have a support group," Hinman said. "There is definitely a need."

Disease's impact

Hinman said there are five students at Westside with Type 1 diabetes, which was previously known as juvenile diabetes.

Within the county school system, there are 11 juvenile diabetics, she said. "This is certainly the largest number of this type of chronic illness we have seen in our school system," she said.

The support meetings also encourage students to be independent in managing their diabetes.

"It's not a quick fix — it's a way of life," she said. "We can't be there 24/7."

"Any time you feel a bit abnormal, you check," Glover said. "You just have to stay on top of it."

About the ailment

Type 1 diabetes is a disease in which the body's immune system attacks and destroys the insulin-producing cells of the pancreas.

According to the American Diabetes Association, Type 1 diabetes is usually diagnosed in children and young adults.

In Type 1 diabetes, the body does not produce insulin, a hormone that is needed to convert sugar (glucose), starches and other food into energy needed for daily life. Only 5 percent to 10 percent of people with diabetes have this form of the disease.

Various factors can contribute to Type 1 diabetes, including genetics and exposure to certain viruses, although the exact cause in unknown, according to the Mayo Clinic.

The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation says that as many as 3 million Americans might have Type 1 diabetes. Each year, more than 15,000 children — 40 per day — are diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in the U.S.

The group's big plans

Hinman also uses the meeting to facilitate how students can tell nurses at other schools in order to effectively treat a young person with diabetes.

"Although I am involved with their daily care at school," Hinman said, "I have pretty much just tried to facilitate getting this group off the ground and the families can make it their own."