It's all about connection
I'm sure many of you reading this will remember your teenage years, and the tumultuous period that that was. Some of you will remember what it was like trying to throw type 1 into that mix as well - at a time when you're already trying to fit in, having something else that makes you different just makes things harder. So on Teen Camp, we want to normalise type 1, and give these young people a support network that will carry them through this period of their lives and into the next.
The bus ride on the way down is always a little quiet, but once everyone has settled into their dorms, the camp activity instructors take over and it's straight into team building games. At this camp, quicker than any so far, the friendships were off to a flying start.
On day 2, it was off to target shooting and the pamper pole (a leap-of-faith kind of activity where you jump off a high platform, catch an object suspended in the air and let the harness catch you!). Then in the afternoon they juxtaposed an adrenalin-filled flying fox ride down the valley with an introspective group discussion about the challenges type 1 throws at you, led by our type 1 psychologist, Natalia Hazell, and mental health nurse and diabetes educator Beck Newton. It was back to fast-paced Minute-To-Win-It games after dinner though, where groups competed against each other to stuff cotton balls into jars, bounce ping balls into cups, and use brooms to sweep balloons from one end of the gym to the other. It was a fierce competition... and the best kind of chaos!
With all of the activity they were doing, we couldn't resist sneaking in just a few teaching moments to discuss how exercise affects blood glucose levels, and the various strategies available to account for it. Lead diabetes educator Amy Rush led a few five-minute "pow-wows" on how proteins and fats impact blood glucose levels, and how to use extended boluses and temp basals/targets.
Do we want these camps to be all about type 1? Absolutely not. The whole point is to show how type 1 can be shoved in the backseat (with a seatbelt on!) and not be controlling your life. But it would be remiss of us not to throw a couple of concepts in for how to keep that seatbelt securely fastened.
And while the teens were figuring out how to take over more of their diabetes management, the parents were learning how to slowly hand over the responsibility. It's a hard thing to do, of course, but such an important milestone. We always encourage parents to give themselves a break while their kids are on camp, which in practice means turning off their follow apps. Again, this is hard for a lot of people, but there's no better time to do it. This camp had a ratio of less than two teens per adult, which included 5 diabetes educators, two dietitians, 3 nurses, a clinical pharmacist, a psychologist and 7 adults who had over 100 years of combined lived experience. So if these teens weren't safe with us...
If they weren't already completely wiped, day 3 made sure they slept well, because it was abseiling and crate climbs in the morning, followed by raft building and kayaking in the afternoon. There were some big moments here for several kids who conquered their fears and pushed themselves to new limits. To add some extra excitement, an insulin pump met its demise when it got wet during the kayaking. Normally they would be absolutely fine, but there was a crack that went unnoticed so it was no longer waterproof. Perfect storm... 🙃
By the time dinner was finished that day, they were well and truly ready for a quiet evening, so the blankets and pillows came out for a movie night with popcorn.
At this point, a shout out definitely has to go to our clinical team and group leaders, who took it in turns to monitor blood glucose levels overnight, fending off the hypos and delivering corrections after some very active days!
Gone are the days of finger pricking each kid multiple times per night. Now, all the phones get collected at bed time and are monitored by the night crew. The powerboards and charging cables all together are quite a sight to see!
The first two nights were the most crazy, with muesli bars being handed out like Oprah giving away cars, but by night three nearly all the kids got to sleep through the night.
We returned on the bus Friday morning feeling satisfied and grateful, but 110% ready to sleep in our own beds again! Snapchat details were exchanged and plans devised to catch up - proof that connections were made!
Teen Camp is booked for next year and will be held from Tuesday 30 September to Friday 3 October. You can add your teen's name to the waiting list here. All campers will need to be between the ages of 13 and 16 by the time camp comes around.
If your teenage years are behind you but you have type 1, you might want to consider being one of our volunteer group leaders. Send an email to hello@type1familycentre.org.au and we'll be in touch.
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