July’s “Heart to Heart: T1D Caregiver Spotlight” is on Kimberly Brewer from Lakewood Ranch, Florida! She has a wonderful husband, two children, and a Mother-in-Law that she cares for daily.

Kimberly’s daughter, Ellie, was diagnosed with T1D at just seven years old in May of 2020. “I’m sure you can imagine what that was like…” says Kimberly. “Oh, did I mention at this time we lived in CA? Not the best of times to be in the hospital. Scary to say the least.” Back then, Kimberly and her husband couldn’t even be with Ellie at the hospital at the same time.

Now, 10 years old, Ellie has a heart of gold— she loves anything and everything art. She loves to draw and paint. Between making stop motion videos and doing gymnastics, this summer she taught herself how to crochet.

As a stay-at-home mom, who loves her children and kids in general, Kimberly became a substitute teacher at her children’s school. Being at the school has helped so much. “I’m there if Ellie needs me,” explains Kimberly. “But not only her, we have two other students with Type 1 diabetes. I am able to step in for the nurse if she is out or can go on field trips as an acting nurse.”

One T1D diagnosis and a cross-country move later, the Brewer family has learned a lot about managing Ellie’s diabetes the past three years. Below you will find more information about Kimberly and Ellie, as well as some helpful, realistic advice about being a T1D caregiver:

Throughout your child’s T1D journey, what have been the biggest challenges you faced?

“Together, the biggest challenge we’ve faced so far is making Ellie feel normal,” says Kimberly. “Making sure it’s kid before diabetes. We did a lot of crying as to ‘why her?’ (we still do a lot of crying).”

However, Kimberly states that her biggest challenge as a parent is probably every parent’s challenge: dividing your attention between your children. While Ellie is trying to become more independent with her diabetes care, she still relies heavily on her mother to count her carbs, tell her when to bolus, change sites, and sensors. “Where does this leave my son?” asks Kimberly. “Clawing for my attention, needing it. Making sure everyone is cared for and thriving regardless of Type 1 is my goal.”

While adjusting to life with a child with type 1 diabetes, are there certain things you found that helped you better manage their disease? What about something that helped give you hope when you were just getting started?

What helped Kimberly the most was her own personal research into nutrition. Prior to even having children, she knew how to read labels, and how carbs, fats, and proteins worked together. She claims that these skills laid a foundation to build upon when Ellie was diagnosed.

“Hope came from finding people like us. Finding children like Ellie, to let her know she is not alone,” explains Kimberly. “God graced us with a neighbor moving into Florida at the same time as us with a daughter who had T1D — that in itself has been truly amazing. I will be forever grateful in finding this chapter of JDRF when we moved to Florida.”

What skills/lessons has raising a T1D child taught you? For a parent of a newly diagnosed T1D, how would you compare those feelings to now? 

For the first few months of Ellie’s diagnosis, Kimberly felt like she never slept — sitting up for hours, knowing her alarm was going to wake her to prick her finger at 2am. Then later, after getting Ellie’s CGM, staring at her numbers and the graph. “Now that we are 3 years in, I do sleep a little better,” says Kimberly. “And we have come to take the highs and lows as they come and go, breathing a little more calmly every day.”

Can you touch on why it’s important for T1D caregivers to come together?

Kimberly believes that coming together with other parents and caregivers is truly amazing — “Knowing someone is going through what you’re going through is extremely helpful. Finding someone in the same stage of diagnosis as you and finding someone further along to tell you ‘It’s gonna be okay,’ touches something inside of us that only they know.”

JDRF has many support groups for those living with T1D and their caregivers – for more information, visit jdrf.org/t1d-resources/personal-support/. If you’re looking for local support in the Northern Florida area, send an email to northernflorida@jdrf.org and we will make sure you get connected with other families, support groups, and events we host throughout the year.

What has JDRF meant to/done for your family?

“JDRF has connected us with wonderful people, and lifelong friends,” says Kimberly. “We have participated in so many events in the 2 short years we’ve been here: Tampa Walks, Sarasota Walks, the Gala events, local monthly Cups of Hope, and more.”

This past year, Ellie was selected to serve as one of JDRF Northern Florida’s Youth Ambassadors and was even invited to speak with Congressman Buchanan on the costs of insulin in the Promise To Remember Me Insulin Affordability Act. She has also been to Florida Diabetes Camp two years in a row and loves it!

What is the most important thing you would want other parents of children with T1D to know?

Kimberly had tons of advice for other T1D Caregivers! See below for some words of encouragement and guidance:

• “Take a breath and slow down… you being calm helps them be calm.”
• “Find your tribe and get involved.”
• “The best trick to have up your sleeve is this T1D community. They are an asset unlike any other. “
• “Oh, and podcasts…. I listened to podcasts about T1D on my drive across the states for 2 weeks. The Sugar Mama’s Podcast (which happens to be from a mom in our JDRF Northern Florida Jacksonville Community) and the Juicebox Podcast were my favorites.”
• “Last trick… send them to camp, I say again, send them to camp. You will not want to, but believe me, they need it and you need it.”

A True T1D Champion

We believe that because of parents and caregivers like Kimberly, the children living with T1D in our community are given the support and care they need to succeed in life and in managing their disease. To anyone caring for a child with T1D, please know that you are not alone in the sleepless nights and heavy days. JDRF Northern Florida is here to help you and can connect you with a network of other T1D caregivers to share advice, struggles, and words of encouragement.

For more information or to submit someone for our “Heart to Heart: T1D Caregiver Spotlight,” please contact Dori Rivers at Drivers@jdrf.org.