Diabetes in the Adolescent - Essay Example

Running Head: Diabetes in the Adolescent Diabetes in the Adolescent Name Course Tutor Date Introduction The family that the sixteen-year-old Georgina Gibson lives has both social and medical problems. In the past four years for instance, she has been struggling with diabetes type 1 and the social problem that exist in this family is lack of close ties between the parents and the children. From the description given, the family has a social problem in the sense that the parents are too busy due to their busy schedule of working (Rasmussen et al 2008). This results in limited time that the family spends together leading to weakening of ties and little attention given to the ailing Gibson; an adolescent. The purpose of this essay is to analyze how diabetes type 1 affects the life of Gibson and the family, how the family is tackling the disease, and to provide strategies that may help them handle diabetes in a better way. In addition, it will provide recommendations regarding the efforts that have so far been taken by the family in coping up with their diabetic member. Diabetes As indicated above, Gibson is an adolescent is an adolescent girl suffering from diabetes type 1 and this influences her biological, psychological, and social development (Wong et al 2009). This will also affect how the family functions in various ways. Diabetes type 1 develops in children and young adult with the effect of stopping the making of insulin thus resulting in the rise of blood glucose level (Tierney et al 2008). It is an insulin-dependent diabetes that occurs when pancreas is producing little or no insulin and may be contributed by factors like genetics or exposure to certain viruses. This disease is characterized the following symptoms which are as a result of the effects it has on the biological development of an individual (Cleveringa et al 2010). These include uncharacteristic bed wetting, frequent tiredness, excessive thirst and restlessness. In addition, an individual has blurry vision, involuntary weight loss, exceedingly dry mouth, and vomiting and nausea. Other biological effects include skin problems, mouth problems, genito-urinary problems all of which complicates the life and the development of the patient (Stirban & Tschoepe, 2008). Diabetes also has affected the psychological development of an individual and the family she belongs to. Georgina and her family for instance may have undergone a state of denial when she was first diagnosed of the disease (Grey et al 2009). It is devastating for one to learn that she will have to be walking around with insulin shots, pills and the regular blood tests that will have to be carried out. Diabetes can also bring depression since it is always usual to find a diabetic being sad, confused and sometimes helpless. Existence of depression of ant family member has adverse effects on the other family members. Additionally, anger and embarrassment are also the resultant effects of diabetes especially when one may be required to walk around with syringes even at awkward places like the food outlet (Cleveringa et al 2010). One of the social effects of diabetes is the fact that it cause difficulties in one’s ability to work and spend time with friends and family, and the sexual functioning of an individual. This is attested by the fact that Georgina has few friends and had at some point missed a lot of school days. The family ties are also seen to have deteriorated (Rasmussen et al 2008). Despite the suffering form diabetes, the parents of Georgina have done their best to ensure that she lives a life similar to other children with minimal problem. They were able to avail blood glucose monitoring and insulin injections that ensured that she was able to keep the blood sugar level at the required ranges (Distiller et al 2010). Additionally, other measures included helping her to do some physical activities and minimizing the intake of carbohydrates all aimed at sustaining the level of glucose at the required levels. Lately though, the family have been able to identify insulin pump as the alternative method over the current ones in the managing of this disease. The family has also been able to use her friends in helping her do some more physical exercises owing the fact that she is an adolescent and they may not be able to adequately control what she eats (Krause et al 2008). The use of insulin injection has always been viewed as the best method of managing the level of glucose in the blood. This is a synthetic form of insulin similar to the one produce by the body and once diagnosed; an individual is advised and shown by the social care nurse how to use especially through intravenous injections (Vesco et al 2010). Insulin in this case will act by breaking down the excess glucose in the blood and will then be passed out through urine. The main purpose of making Georgina carry out some physical exercises is to ensure that the excess glucose in blood are utilized and this would automatically ensure that they are kept ate the required levels (Krause et al 2008). This also applies to the minimal utilization of carbohydrates. The use of friends to encourage her do some practices must having a wise management strategy by the parent due to the fact that most adolescents follow the advices of the peers (Mohler et al 2009). According to Desmangles, diabetes type 1 is sometimes regarded as an autoimmune disease because it results when the immune system makes antibodies that act certain parts of the body. As initially indicated, the symptoms of diabetes range copious production of urine, frequent feeling of thirst, weight loss, tiredness among other results which may ultimately paralyze the normal functioning and development of an individual (Desmangles, 2008). The number of people being affected by diabetes has been on the rise in the recent past with the painful fact that less than a quarter of patients suffering from the disease may not live for over the age of fifty. This has resulted in the employment of various management and treatment strategies to curb this disease. The recent most efficient ways to mange this disease includes the use of insulin injection drugs, use of insulin pumps and the use of supplementary drugs for hyperglycemia. Additionally, healthy diets and regular physical activity are also efficient way s to manage this disease (Distiller et al 2010). The use of synthetic insulin as asserted by Moghissi in 2008 is the most essential way for the strict control of blood glucose levels in type 1 diabetes. This is because it assists in the alleviation of complication that affects the kidneys, nerve pathways, and blood pathways. When a patient uses this method, he/she can be able to save the remaining insulin secretion for an extended period for another two years. The method is however problematic in the sense that it may results in hypoglycemia and many patients have registered a tremendous weight gain after the use of this synthetic insulin. It is important to note that insulin cannot be orally taken since it is destroyed by the digestive juices of the body (Moghissi, 2008). Insulin can be administered either regularly throughout the day or at meals depending on their mode of actions. Insulin can either be fast-acting, regular, intermediate, long-acting, or a combination (Mohler et al 2009). The use of insulin pumps is also a current method used to manage the blood glucose level and the overall quality of life of hypoglycemic patients. This method as discussed by Sherr and Tamborlan is advantageous since there are minimal injections unlike the first management described. It involves the placing of a catheter with help of a needle underneath the abdominal fat of a diabetic individual and most doses are done in calculated and controlled manner (Sherr & Tamborlan 2008). The nurse must at all times be able to determine the amount of insulin to be used and not arbitrary determination of amount and frequent test have to be carried out especially during the training period . This method is however expensive of all the possible management methods and the administration of shots results in complications like irritation of the skin at the infusion site (Tierney et al 2008). Healthy diet has also been credited as a significant strategy in the management of diabetes. This is because a number of diabetic foods bring about the increase in the level of glucose in the body due to their high fat and calorie content (Rendell, M. S. (2008). Regarding these foods, one should always aim at consumption of low fat, salt, sugar and high fibre foods. One would also consider taking plenty of fruits and vegetables like apples, cinnamon, and citrus fruit which is credited for its low fat content and high fibre content. Hovorka in his journal shows that consumption of the cold-water fish like sardines can help in the reduction in reduction of cholesterol due to their ‘good fat’. Legumes like chickpeas and lentils, green tea, nuts, and vegetables like spinach and kales are also considered good remedies to curb diabetes. Vinegar can also be taken before meals and they help a lot in the reduction of blood sugar level (Hovorka, 2005). Besides the physical activity done by Georgina as an option to the management of diabetes, the family could be recommended to use the insulin pump as the best method in the management of this disease (Wong et al 2009). This is because there are minimal injections and the insulin administered is the exact amount needed in the body. Moreover, there is little embarrassment compared to the needles since the device is placed at hidden places of the body that cannot be easily seen (Rendell, M. S. (2008). Once the patient has learnt to use it, he/she may require little help from the nurse. The family could also be advised to consume the foods mentioned here so that the other two boys may not be affected by the disease. From the recommendations given, a nurse can play a vital role in ensuring that the family can be able to handle diabetes with little obstacles that may be encountered. It can be seen from the case study that this family is able to raise income to help in treating Georgina since both the mother and the father are working. This is the strength that the family will have to exploit because as mentioned initially, the use of insulin pump is efficient but relatively expensive (Sherr & Tamborlan 2008). The nurse may also inform the parents of the minimal side effects of the insulin pump compared to the method that was being used before. As it was mentioned, the patient may not suffer from embarrassment because the device is not publicly exposed like the injection needles. Additionally, the nurse may encourage the parents to use this method because the skin of the patient will suffer less piercing unlike the other method (Bollyky et al 2008). The nurse may also be of encouragement to the family by offering her services and expertise especially in administering the medication on the new method that they have decided to use. She may have to carry out periodic diagnosis to help in the monitoring and evaluating the level of improvement of the patient (Allen et al 2007). In addition to this, the nurse could provide the nutritional advice on the best foods that can be used without altering the goals of handling diabetes. It is apparently clear that the kinds of food used by a household have a net effect of determining the diseases that affect that particular family. The nurse could therefore encourage them to use the foods mentioned like kales, spinach, nuts, apples, and citrus fruits in the management of the disease. Such foods are of great importance especially in ensuring that the other family members do not suffer from diabetes as a result of their feeding habits (Herzer M. $ Hood 2010). Conclusion Diabetes type 1 is a disease that is mostly diagnosed in children and young adults arising due to the destruction of the cells of the pancreas. When the cells are destroyed, there will be limited production of insulin resulting in the rise of glucose level in the blood. Any member of a family suffering from this disease is affected biologically, psychologically, socially due to the depression, of state of denial that may arise (Grey et al 2009). It is however important for one to realize that this disease is manageable and if treated at its early stages, the patient may even be able to live to over fifty years unlike the person who has not been attended to from the early stages of diagnosis. Some of the major methods used to manage the disease include the synthetic insulin injection and the recent insulin pump which has proved to me more efficient. Besides physical activities, individuals can also use a variety of foods like apples, vegetables, and nuts all aimed at managing the blood sugar levels. Presence of a social care nurse can be of great importance to a family especially in the monitoring of a patients improvement (Mohler et al 2009). It is important for a family to work together in ensuring that their member gets adequate help to deal with diabetes. Special consideration should be given to adolescents because their physiological state is undergoing a lot of transformation that requires understanding from both the patient and the parent (Tierney et al 2008). References: Allen, H. F., Yarnie, S., Murray, M. A. & Reiter, E. O. (2007). Personnel costs and perceived benefit of telephone care in the management of children with type 1 diabetes1. Pediatric Diabetes, vol. 3, issue 2, Date: June 2007, Pages: 93-106 Bollyky, J., Sanda, S. & Greenbaum, C. J. (2008). Type 1 diabetes mellitus: primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention. 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E., Lin, J. &Shaw, G. M. (2009). An adaptive clinical Type 1 diabetes control protocol to optimize conventional self- monitoring blood glucose and multiple daily-injection therapy. International Journal of Adaptive Control and Signal Processing, vol. 23, issue 5, Date: May 2009, Pages: 408- 434 Read More