Above: Elizabeth, age 5. Elizabeth was diagnosed at age 4 with type 1 diabetes. A few months later she began pestering her mom (iPump's founder, Lahle Wolfe) to start a "helping organization." |
Elizabeth Rose, The Child Who Want to Help Others and Came Up with the Idea for iPumpElizabeth was diagnosed at the tender age of 4 with type 1 diabetes. Upon her arrival at the emergency room her blood sugar was over 1000 mg/dL and she began to slip into a coma. But after three days of intensive care Elizabeth was finally stable enough to go home. The first few days at home were troubling as Elizabeth’s blood sugars unpredictably swung from high to low and she would break out in a rash after each of her shots. Her three siblings struggled to cope with their moody and fragile sister who once smiled easily and giggled at everything. In fact, now everyone in the family always seemed on edge because they knew that without getting the right amount of insulin Elizabeth could become very sick again or even die. Elizabeth’s 7-year-old brother had a particularly hard time understanding diabetes. He only knew that shots and finger sticks meant pain for Elizabeth so he hid her lancets and tried to sneak her sugary foods in an effort to “help” make her feel better. But the worst was yet to come … only one week into shot therapy Elizabeth developed an allergy to all types of insulin except rapid insulin. This meant she now had to get shots every few hours around the clock. In general, children are not good candidates for an insulin pump until at least one year after diagnosis. Most families need this time to adjust and to master the new skills of managing a life-threatening disorder. It also allows time for the pancreas to shut down and stop making any insulin on its own (the “honeymoon period”) when diabetes is especially hard to manage. Elizabeth could not wait that long. |
Elizabeth’s allergy proved to be a blessing in disguise; three weeks after her diagnosis she was placed on an Animas IR 1000 insulin pump. Only a few days on a pump 4-year-old Elizabeth said she felt like she had her life back – she no longer had to eat according to a strict shot schedule and she relished in being able to sleep late. She even named her insulin pump “Emily” and referred to her pump as her friend.
Even with insurance, Elizabeth’s family resources were stretched beyond their limits and their medical bills and insurance premiums now actually exceeded the family’s income!
Elizabeth’s mother began to look for help but every place she applied to turned her down because her income was over poverty standards. It did not seem to matter that their out of pocket medical costs were now in excess of $1,600 a month because they had to pay for COBRA insurance. In 2004, five months after her diagnosis, Elizabeth’s family sold their home to pay medical bills and moved out of state to start a new life.
Knowing what her own family had gone through, Elizabeth approached her mother with an idea. “Mommy, we need to help people with diabetes. We need to give pumps to other kids!” Every day for weeks Elizabeth would ask “did we help anyone yet?” And every day her mom would reply, “not yet.”
It took a long time to turn Elizabeth’s dream into a reality but today, iPump’s founder can look her brave young daughter in her eyes and say, “Yes, Elizabeth, we helped someone today …lots of people!”
You can Email Elizabeth (email account is monitored by an adult) if you want to share you or your child's story!
A Personal Letter From ElizabethDear Readers, My name is Elizabeth and I am now 10 years old. I got diabetes when I was only 4. Some kids get diabetes when they are even younger than I was. My mom figured out I have already been poked with needles over 25,000 times but I do not get shots anymore because I have an insulin pump and I love it! I hate shots and feel lucky to have a pump. I also have a diabetes service dog named Alex. I got him from Heaven Scent Paws. He is awesome! He smells my lows and my highs and alerts to them before I feel sick. I wanted to make something good happen out of having diabetes so I asked my mom if we could do something to get pumps for other kids. I love helping people and making quilts for other kids. Thank you for helping me make my dreams come true! Love,Elizabeth (and Alex) |
Above: Elizabeth and Alex (dressed as Peter Pan for Halloween - Elizabeth went as Tinker Bell). |
