PLEASE HELP

This is a special post and I hope that any or all of you can help me

Having had type 1 for 40 years, I suffer from hypo unawareness. I live alone. Makes it even more worrisome. Last year an acquanitence died. He was type 1 and was approximately the same age as me and the same amount of time with the disease. He took very good care of himself.

One night, after testing, he went to bed with his wife. During the night he suffered such a low that he fell into a coma during the night. The next morning his wife couldn't wake him. He passed away 2 days later, never having regained consciousness.

That is my biggest fear, especially since I am alone. I started looking at transplants but was interrupted when I discovered that some dogs can be trained to detect low blood sugar and can alert the diabetic well before the low hits.

I started searching and discovered that there are very few trainers to train these dogs. I did find one in Texas who was very sympathetic to my problems. 

She accepted me and I have been working at raising funds to pay for Abbey, an Australian Shepherd (she is pictured on my picture page. I have raised almost half of the required $7500 but I now need some help.

There are 2 places that you can help me. You can join iGive.com and do online purchasing through them at thousands of stores. I will receive a percentage of your purchase.
http://www.iGive.com/BethEdenFredAbbey

The second place is directly to trainer's PayPal account. That is ann4352@suddenlink.net

Log into PayPal and click on the tab marked SEND MONEY ... enter the recipient of the donation as indicated above (ann4352@suddenlink.net) in the box marked To: ... I think the next screen will enable you to add a comment and just say it's for Fred & Abbey.

Please help a fellow diabetic ... you don't know how much it will be appreciated

A few people have asked if I have a picture of Abbey ... this one was taken when she was 14 months old

What follows is much of what I sent out as fundraising letters a couple of months ago. It gives a more detailed image of what I face.

Imagine, if you will, going to bed on any given night. You have said good night to any children, said goodnight to your spouse and you drift off to sleep. When we sleep, our bodies d many things for that we are never aware of. Parts of us are repaired, other parts are rested and re-vitalized. We awake in the morning oblivious to the wonders that took place while we slept.

 Now, imagine going to bed as a diabetic. A diabetic who is in the extremely small percentage of those with the disease who suffer from hypoglycemia unawareness. What is hypoglycemia unawareness? Hypoglycemia unawareness is a complication of diabetes in which the patient is unaware of a deep drop in blood sugar because it fails to trigger the secretion of epinephrine which generates the characteristic symptoms of hypoglycemia (such as palpitations, sweating, anxiety, blurry vision trembling and a dozen or more other symptoms)) that serve to warn the patient of the dropping blood glucose. The patient can then take action and eat to help reverse the hypoglycemia. 

Hypoglycemia unawareness can result in prolonged exposure to hypoglycemia, resulting in a seizure, loss of consciousness, or brain damage. The development of hypoglycemia unawareness also makes intensified blood glucose control more difficult and puts the patient at risk for severe hypoglycemia-related complications.

When I was 17 I was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes and at that stage of my life it meant huge changes in everything I did and how I did them. None of those changes were as big as the changes I am facing right now, 40 years later. 

In the past 40 years, I have had hundreds of hypoglycemic episodes. I have recently heard that the medical profession believes that the average diabetic will experience one per week. I generally average 5 or 6 per week. I suffer from hypoglycemia and have never experienced the joy of having symptoms that would warn me of an episode that would allow me to prevent it from either happening at all or at least moderate the effects and length of the episode.

I have been in comas, behaved foolishly, said some hurtful things to people and had a couple of car accidents, all because of diabetes and the fact that I do not get any warning symptoms of low blood sugar until it is too late.

 Over the past few years there has been much advancement in the fields of diabetes treatment and monitoring. From insulin pumps to islet cell transplants, great strides are being taken in the quest to beat this deadly disease.

 Diabetes is the 6th leading cause of death in North America. Some of the consequences of having diabetes are : diabetic retinopathy – a leading cause of blindness; diabetic neuropathy – damage to the nerves and when combined with reduced blood flow leads to foot ulcers and the eventual amputation of limbs; diabetes is the leading cause of kidney failure; increased risk of heart disease and stroke; increased risk of depression. 

 In addition to the health implications, there are huge economic burdens associated with the disease.

 There are roughly 2 million diabetics in Canada and 17 million in the United States (according to 2000 figures). Five to ten percent of all diabetics are classified as Type 1. The total economic cost of diabetes in the United States in 2007 was $174 billion. That figure breaks down to $27 billion for immediate care, $58 billion for complications related issues, $31 billion for general medical costs and $58 billion in lost productivity, absenteeism, etc..

 In addition to diabetes I have a single complication that was brought about in large part by the disease and that is depression. I was diagnosed with severe major depressive disorder 2 ½ years ago. Like the diabetes, it is controlled by medications and therapy.

Innovative – Outside the Box - Thinking

One of the most innovative ways of monitoring and controlling your blood sugar levels is with the use of diabetes alert/response dogs. Just like dogs who support vision or hearing impaired people, dogs are trained to alert their partner to hypo or hyperglycemic reactions before the diabetic is even aware of the condition, thereby preventing or minimizing a possible reaction.

 An acquaintance of mine, Paul Beckwith … roughly the same age and same length of time spent in diabetic prison as myself … passed away in a most tragic way. Paul was the moving force behind the government of Ontario supplying no-charge insulin pumps and their supplies to young diabetics under the age of 18 in the province.

 Paul went to bed one night with a good blood glucose reading and during the night suffered an extremely low hypoglycemic reaction. Even though he was not alone, he slipped into a coma, never regained consciousness and died a couple of days later. If Paul had a diabetes alert/response dog with him, he would probably still be alive this day ... at least I would like to think so.

 What happened to Paul is one of my greatest fears. Even though there are continuous glucose monitors available, they can be prone to inaccuracy at times (they do not take readings from blood but an intersital fluid found between cells) and as with any battery powered device, they can fail at the most inopportune time. These monitors have yet to be proven completely reliable and accurate. I live alone and do not have a close support network so my challenges are manifold.

 With a diabetes alert/response dog and a telephone lifeline I would be well protected at home. I would also be protected while driving, walking, exercising or just sitting at work. To say that I would sleep better with a partner watching over me would be an understatement.

Training Dogs to React to Hypoglycemia

 Unfortunately there are no trainers of these dogs in Canada and only five or six in the United States. One of them is BethEden Kennels in Canyon, Texas. They specialize in training dogs for diabetes alert and response situations. They do not train dogs to assist those with vision or hearing impairments. They do not train dogs to alert epileptics to oncoming seizures. They do not train dogs to offer therapy to the depressed. BethEden Kennels specializes in Diabetic Alert Service Dogs. 

When the body is experiencing a low blood sugar, it emits a particular scent and the dog is trained to react to that scent. It is not something the human nose can detect. It starts emiting this scent long before the blood sugar is actually low and you can take the appropriate measures to fix the problem. 

When the body is experiencing a high blood sugar, it also emits a scent ... an identical one to the low blood sugar except that it is a sweeter scent ... kind of figures, doesn't it?

Their diabetic alert service dogs detect & alert their diabetic partner and support team (parents, spouse, friend, etc) to both low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) & high blood sugar (hyperglycemia) episodes. In so doing, not only are they saving the diabetic from severe medical problems but they allow the diabetic to take proactive measures to better control the disease.

Over the past several years, the work of Diabetes Alert/Response Dogs has been featured on television, in newspapers and magazines.

Costs

 The cost for raising and training a diabetes alert/response dog can range between $16,000 and $25,000 … an enormous sum but well worth every penny as these dogs save lives.

 The amount of money that is required in order to obtain one of these highly specialized animals is $7,500. Relatively inexpensive compared to other training centers that charge $15,000.

 I have been accepted into the BethEden program and I must raise these funds to ensure that I can partner with a life saving dog. I am very fortunate to have been accepted so readily as the waiting period can be as much as several years. The reason behind this is that living alone, I need serious help due to the continued unawareness of low blood glucose.

 An assistance dog will be a great help to me but I need some of your assistance to accomplish my goal. If I can raise the funds I will have my service dog in November or December of this year. She is a beautiful Australian Shepherd.