Jim Pang is fundraising for The Josh Evans Trust Fund

Monday 30th May 2022, the ground fell from beneath my feet.

Ella had been unwell for quite some time and no intervention from the Dr’s was prompting any improvements. On the morning of the 30th I’d made Ella another appointment and she went off to the GP with her Nan.

I didn’t understand the phone call i received, Ella was unwell and was being taken to hospital – at this point I thought they would do some tests, prescribe her some meds and we’d be home that evening.

Ella’s Dad was very calm but clear on the phone, “No, Love, Listen! There is an ambulance on the way, and you need to be here NOW!’

I don’t remember the drive I made from work to the surgery, but I must of had a bit of luck on my side.

Upon reaching the surgery, I found Ella in a private room, unresponsive in my Mother’s arms. All I could hear were too many numbers I didn’t understand and phrases like ketones, glucose, DKA.

Within the following hours I would know only too well what these things meant.

Within the next few minutes, we were in the ambulance being blue lighted to Musgrove – I still didn’t know what was making Ella so ill. I had no idea what a dangerous situation we were in.

*We were initially offered a GP appointment late in the afternoon, had we not pushed for one earlier in the day, Ella would not be here today. *

Even in the ambulance, speeding down the M5, sirens blaring, lights flashing – 1 remember thinking.

‘great, I bet we’re going to be waiting in A&E for hours’ as I was in complete denial that something could be seriously wrong. The shock started to kick in when we arrived at the hospital and we were ushered straight in, I will never forget looking up and realising we were in RESUS. Why the hell were we here? What is happening? What is wrong with my daughter and what the hell is DKA?

Within seconds there were alarms blaring, doctors, nurses, consultants, support staff rushing from every direction – wires, needles, monitors EVERYWHERE!

Someone, I don’t know who, started asking me about Type 1 Diabetes. What on earth were they talking about? They explained that Ella was experiencing a severe case of Diabetic Ketoacidosis. Her blood was turning to acid and it was killing her – her organs could not cope.

Everyone has ketones present at some point, but without insulin they continue to build. Ketones in the blood below 0.6 is normal, ketones of 3.0 is a medical emergency, Ella’s levels were 8.9. Almost fifteen times higher than what is considered ‘normal.

We were admitted to the High Dependency Unit in Musgrove within a couple of hours. Ella was immediately given insulin, glucose and water. Such simple things but my goodness, what a difference they made.

I foolishly assumed that once Ella was feeling better, everything would go back to ‘normal. NORMAL is something we would never experience again; we had our own very different NEW NORMAL.

Over the next 72 hours we were inundated with visits from specialist, consultants, nurses, dieticians… and many other support staff that got lost amongst the faces of people offering information and support. We had so much to learn; carb counting, administering insulin, checking glucose levels, responding to hypos, monitoring ketones, managing sickness… the list is endless.

Over the next few days, Ella began to feel better, got some of her strength back and I had my little girl back.

We were in hospital for five days, four long nights and then suddenly we were home. ALONE!

Everything Ella needed was scary, I didn’t want to stick needles in my child but those needles would keep her alive. We got there, slowly, shakily with the support of the new community I found myself surrounded by.

When Ella wants to eat something, we have to weigh it, calculate the carbs and administer insulin.

EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. She will continue to need to do this for the rest of her life, which will be a long. happy, healthy and fun filled one.

Ella can and will do anything and everything that any other child can do, we just have to take extra steps and precautions for her to do so.

I’ve waffled on for long enough now but I wanted to share Ella’s diagnosis with anyone reading this, to raise awareness of Type 1 and the associated symptoms. Ella’s diagnosis was traumatic for us all as a family, a trauma that Ella still doesn’t want to talk about and a trauma that I still haven’t found the strength to process myself.

A Type 1 diagnosis doesn’t have to be this traumatic because the test to diagnose… a finger prick. A simple test that takes seconds to do, with a single drop of blood.

If you or anyone you know experiences any of the following symptoms, contact your health provider: feeling very thirsty

peeing more than usual, particularly at night

feeling very tired

losing weight without trying thrush that keeps coming back

blurred vision

cuts and grazes that are not healing fruity-smelling breath

Type 1 diabetes symptoms can come on quickly, particularly in children.

The following are the symptoms of Diabetic Ketoacidosis (DKA). If you or someone you know experiences these symptoms contact your health provider IMMEDIATELY, don’t wait, don’t hesitate, reach out for help. feeling thirsty

needing to pee more often

stomach pain, feeling sick or being sick diarrhoea

breathing more deeply than usual

breath that smells fruity (like pear drop sweets or nail polish remover)

feeling tired, sleepy or confused blurred vision

The symptoms usually develop over 24 hours, but it can be faster.