Our Story

Its YOUR choice!

Our Story


My name is Melisa. I am from Puerto Rico and I live in Salt Lake with my family. And this is the story of how our life changed. It all started on August 28, 2004. That is when I met Jared. Getting out of my car, I saw it for the first time, his catheter. I asked and he responded it was his pump…his insulin pump. Jared has been fighting Type 1 Diabetes since he was 12. Fifty months later, we were married in Salt Lake City, Utah. Shortly after, in March 28th 2010, we were lucky enough to receive our first and only child. She was a blessing from heaven. A miracle through grace. She was a swollen, mid-sized baby that represented hope. She was here and so was our future. She was and still is so beautiful. We named her Siani Aintzane, which means woman full of glory. She sure felt like she was giving us a glimpse of what God’s glory was like! She quickly taught us many things that we never thought about. She has not stopped changing our lives. Every day is an adventure with her!
Our biggest adventure started in November 2012. We had started our toilette training and Siani was doing well. I had started to encourage her to drink more water to help with “practicing”. She did well. Then she started to be too enthusiastic about drinking. She wanted water, juice, everything she could get her hands on. It seemed too much to me. Because of a cold she had, I didn’t worry too much. Things went back to normal after a few days. Then she started to get another cold and started binging on drinks again. This time, only water. Because we knew that there was a small possibility that she would later on have to deal with Diabetes, her diet has been very balanced. We did not avoid letting her enjoy goodies, but we never gave sugary things like sodas, no excessive candy, no excessive cookies…etc. So I had mixed feelings. She loves drinking water but it was a lot. I kept track of her water intake and it was as much as an adult. This started to be a red flag for me. I could hear alert bells ringing all over my head. The next day, she kept drinking even overnight. She wet her bed because her night diaper could not hold all the liquid. The second night she did this, we got a meter and tried to test her blood sugars. She refused. She fussed. She kicked and screamed. There was no way to make her. It was 2 AM and we tried for so long…we were going to be up the next day to go to church so we let it go. I also did not want to make the situation more traumatic. The next day, after church, the drinking started again. I fed her and got in my car and drove all around Salt Lake County looking for Diastix to check sugars in her urine. No one had it. I could not believe it!!! Rite Aid and Wal-Mart offered to order it…and get it in three days! I kept saying, I need this NOW. After two hours, I settled for ketone sticks. Came home. Made her go potty, tested her ketones…three times. Then came the dreaded result. Her ketones were…large! There was no mistake.
We struggled to get her to the only clinic that was opened on Sunday night. We spoke to receptionist and here she was, taking her time. As I am telling her that she has large ketones, that her sugars must be in 400s and she is still taking her time. Once we got in, I explained and the doctor was like…”kids get ketones when they are sick”. I was like…are you kidding me? As he takes his time, all this information is running though my mind: ketones, frequent urination, extreme thirst, her mood swings and tantrums…it ALL sounded like onset. She was a trooper when they drew her blood…no poke, drew three tubes of blood. My little ray of sunshine is solid! We comforted her and she was right back to wanting to drink and look at books. A few minutes later, the doctor came running down the hallway screaming…”It’s not good Dad! When I heard that, I started to get our things together. I just asked the number? 5??. I just heard that is was in the 500s. I blocked out the rest. I leaned against the wall…ad asked “Is she in DKA (Diabetic Ketoacidosis)?” She was not. Thank God! She was not hyperhydrated and we were going to be okay…right? We rushed to Primary Children’s Hospital. It was snowing cats and dogs! Those 10 or 15 miles were the longest of my life. They were waiting for us. The doctor had called them. They got started working with her. She was in the 600s by the time we got to the hospital. Those were hard days in the hospital. Huge changes. Many doubts going through my mind…how was I going to get her to let me check her an dose her alone at home. So many questions…too many questions. Not many answers.
But we named right this little one…she is full of glory. The dictionary defines glory as: Great honor, praise, or distinction accorded by common consent; renown; Something conferring honor or renown; Majestic beauty and splendor; resplendence; the splendor and bliss of heaven; perfect happiness. She is just that. Beautiful, praiseworthy, a piece of heaven and a wonderful example of being happy and accepting no matter what.
Then officially, it was said and decided. She has Type 1 Diabetes. At 2 yrs. 8 months a part of her life is decided. We are spectators and facilitators. We know what God has a plan for her. There is a reason for this.
We are taking one day at a time. Planning ahead. Staying on schedule. Being as smart we can be about all the details that we need to be aware of. Above all, we have been greatly blessed. We realize that God’s hand has been present in our lives and has helped us every step of the way…every day. I feel like I was lucky because with pre-med under my belt, good understanding of the disease and living somewhat aware of the possibility, we caught it before Siani went into a crisis. We know that is not common. Usually a crisis is what triggers the diagnosis. That was a huge blessing from God all on its own.
We share our diagnosis story, not trying to recruit pity party goers or to get attention. We share our story for healing, for awareness, to build a sense of community, to help people see that it is okay.


Our daughter is our greatest accomplishment, our greatest gift. Her diabetes is also a trial that we are willingly accepting. However hard it is at times, accepting God’s will and this challenge is an opportunity to grow. There might not be a cure yet, but we are beating this every day, with every reading, with every meal, with every good habit that we build, with every opportunity she gets to learn bit by bit about what she needs. In sum, life just got sweeter!
Melisa

Wife of J, TD1 since 1989
Mom of S, TD1 since 2012, Diagnosed at 2 yrs. 8 mos.

"Courage is NOT the absence of Fear. It is the sense that something else is more important. The fearful will never live a day, not one day in life."

"There are people who make things happen; there are people who watch things happen; and there are people who wonder what happened. To be successful, you need to be a person who makes things happen" James Lovell, Astronaut