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Peabody family of four with diabetes travels to D.C. to fight for research

By Matthew K. Roy
Staff Writer
Published: April 26, 2008

PEABODY — The dinnertime routine in the Foisy household is a little different.

"We all check our blood and program our (insulin) pumps," Kimberly Foisy said. "Then we eat."

The premeal ritual, carried out by Kimberly, her husband, Mark, and their two children, Megan, 9, and Mark Jr., 5, is their way of managing a disease they share in common. Kimberly and her kids live with type 1 diabetes, also known as juvenile diabetes. Mark Foisy has type 2 diabetes.

They've learned to be keenly aware of their blood sugar levels and conscious of how what they eat affects it.

"It's just a way of life now," Kimberly said "We've just gotten used to it."

Things changed for the family in 2004. Kimberly remembers the night that year when Megan, then 5, was diagnosed.

"It was very traumatic," she said yesterday during an interview in her Peabody home. "I ran out(side) on the deck and screamed my head off so she wouldn't see me."

Kimberly flashed back to her youth, recalling the experience of her brother and sister, each of whom were diagnosed with type 1 diabetes before their 8th birthday.

The Foisys eventually adjusted.

"We managed. We never stopped life," Kimberly said. "We kept going."

They adjusted again almost two years ago, when they discovered Mark Jr. had diabetes.

The family is now committed to raising awareness about the disease. They leave tomorrow for Washington, D.C., to participate in the American Diabetes Association's Call to Congress. Together with people with diabetes throughout the country, the Foisys will ask lawmakers to spend more money on diabetes treatment and prevention.

Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease.

"Your body for some reason fights itself, and the pancreas can no longer produce insulin," said Kimberly, who is a nurse educator at Salem Hospital.

With type 2 diabetes, your body doesn't use the insulin it produces, she said.

Mark Foisy has lived with type 2 for 13 years. Kimberly was initially misdiagnosed with type 2 in 2004. But that changed when doctors rechecked her blood in the wake of her daughter's diagnosis.

Instead of insulin shots, the Foisys each rely on the pump. It continually dispenses insulin through a needle that sits under the skin.

"We're wearing our pancreas on our hip," Kimberly said.

Before every meal, every snack, the kids' blood sugar is tested. Then the pump is appropriately calibrated.

Their diet is an exercise in moderation. Everyone has to be careful not to overload on carbohydrates, which can fluctuate blood sugar, Kimberly said. If the kids go to a birthday party, they can have one slice of pizza and a small piece of cake, she said.

"I don't eliminate anything for them," Kimberly said about food. "I don't withhold it."

Mark Foisy, who works overnight at General Electric, keeps tabs on the kids during the day. Kimberly takes over at night. During the school day, the couple rely on the vigilance of the Brown School nurse and teaching staff to look out for Megan, a third-grader, and Mark Jr., who is in kindergarten.

This is the family's first trip to Congress.

"I feel now is the time to speak up as my daughter gets older," Kimberly said. "So that she knows that she can live life to the fullest, and she doesn't have to be afraid of what she has."

Kimberly doesn't want Megan to worry about getting teased or to be afraid about checking her blood sugar in front of people.

"She doesn't have to hide her disease," Kimberly said.

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