Discrimination or overly sensitive Mom?

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Permalink Reply by Samantha on February 18, 2009 at 6:52am

Mary Beth,

I would write several letters, say 10, throw the first 9 away and send the last one.

I had a situation with my daughter in High School (non-diabetic situation) and decided I would let the school know just how dumb and insensitive their volunteers could be. I wrote and wrote, it was very therapeutic, I finally came to a point that I could get my message across without spewing the venom.

I think you need to take this opportunity to educate the "Athletic Director and the two idiot coaches" so that they do not make this mistake with any other children.

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Permalink Reply by Ray on February 18, 2009 at 6:57am

Idiots! You would think that them being coaches, they'd know a little bit about the human body. They probably assumed your son was Type 2 and judged him based on their preconceived notions of T2.

You are right to write a letter, if you can, get a statement from your endo and his/her recommendation

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Permalink Reply by Sweeter on February 18, 2009 at 6:57am

Well I'm not sure about the wording but I would write to the coaches, Athletic Director and possibly the school board/principal. The coaches' ignorance sounds very dangerous. And I would do everything by certified mail just to have it all documented.

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Permalink Reply by Cody Turner on February 18, 2009 at 6:58am

I would be writing a letter to anyone in the school that would listen. I would also make sure the school board is aware of this.

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Permalink Reply by Scott on February 18, 2009 at 7:14am

Doesn't sound like discrimination as much as it does ignorance. I would write to the athletic director and ask him to call you about the situation and provide a written response, I would also copy the principal, superintendent and your rep on the school board. Also ask that that your letter and the written response be put in your son's permanent school record.

I might also drop in some pamphlets that explain the difference between T1 and T2, then tell them there will be a test on that later! Oh, and tell the one coach maybe that they should have covered all of this at medical school where he learned how to "get rid" of diabetes, he probably shouldn't have slept thru that class!

Make sure they understand that your son, who IS covered by the ADA, is not participating in a school activity because of the remarks made by the coaches. Remarks made about his "physical disability" (not that it really is one, but the ADA says it is), one that does not normally effect his performance of required activities in anyway. You just want "reasonable accommodations" made. Once they realize the potential for litigation in this matter, this type of behavior can be stopped dead most places.

This is a prime example of one of the problems that gets talked about alot. The media tends to group all diabetics together, in the T2 camp. I really wish that T1 and T2 were not all called "diabetics". Lot of the same symptoms and effects, but really two different diseases. Oh well

I hope your son is willing to go back out there if it all works out. I don't blame him for walking off tho, granted he was upset, but these guys could have put him at serious risk. It's great that he knows when to ignore those in authority and do what needs to be done to keep himself well.

Good luck and keep us posted!
Scott

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Permalink Reply by Terry Keelan on February 18, 2009 at 7:22am

I like Samantha's advice to write 9 letters and send the 10th and i agree with Scott that this sounds more like ignorance than discrimination.

It might be a good idea to also ask the football coaches to educate the track coaches, especially if they really want him to be a sprinter. That, of course, depends on whether your son is remotely interested.

One consideration you might have is to educate rather than irritate. If you can find a way to give the track coaches the benefit of the doubt there's more likelihood that they'll understand the situation of the next T1 who tries to train with the team.

Good luck,

Terry

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Permalink Reply by Samantha on February 18, 2009 at 7:37am

Yes, educate not irritate, you have to keep in mind your son will be living his days at this school for 2 more years. And no matter what anyone says, what moms do at school makes a huge difference in how your child is looked upon.

I did get permission from Jo before I sent or said anything about her situation. Not sure what size school your son goes to but I live in a very small town and her school population is the size of one class in most schools around us. Needless to say we live in a very small fishbowl and if I don't use my turn signal in town everyone knows about it!

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Permalink Reply by Christina Luis on February 18, 2009 at 8:29am

Nurse, lead counselor, and include the offending coach/teacher - Does your son have anything in writing about his diabetes? a 504 or just an Individual health plan? IF so it should state in there how your son is to manage his diabetes at school, and or at extra circular activities. I have dealt with similar issues with my DD. We just had an SST / 504 meeting w/all of her teachers, the psychologist, and the lead counselor. WE discussed all worries and concerns and I Feel so much better. DD had a substitute teacher tell her "Oh you are one of "those" kids." I could have blown a gasket. However it didn't seem to bother DD as much as it did me. I personally would write a letter to the people I mentioned about the situation and make them all aware, if you have not had a meeting maybe you need to have one. Any and All teachers dealing with your son should be aware of his condition and know how to tell any and all symptoms. If you like you can email me.

I do also however agree on writing more than one letter (vent on the first few), then send the last one. Just make sure to include everyone who really needs to know. Nurse, teachers, principal.

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Permalink Reply by Christina Luis on February 18, 2009 at 10:31am

Wow some of my post is gone! It doesn't really make sense now.
I guess the main thing is to bring the instance to light. Make sure people know it happened and if you DS is going to do sports the coaches and other staff need to know he is Type 1. It is very improtant, as someone else said, he could have had a Major Medical Emergency had he continued on like the coach suggested. Most of my post is correct. Sorry.

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Permalink Reply by Christina on February 18, 2009 at 8:42am

I would definately write the letter. It's just crazy how they made those comments.

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Permalink Reply by Bek on February 18, 2009 at 8:58am

This defiantely sounds more like ignorance than discrimination. It doesn't make it right, but it's far less severe. I think that you should request to the Athletic Director that all of the coaches become more educated in Type 1 diabetes so that if your son decides to still go for track, the coach will better understand his needs. Unfortunately, people who know someone with Type 2 think they know diabetes through and through. They are similar, but still different. Of course this man sounds like he knows very little of even his sister's diabetes if he thinks a low blood sugar is simply "mind over matter." I would just be careful about how I went about this because if the coach gets angry for getting in trouble over the situation, your son may still have to deal with him. It's a tricky situation, so make sure you get your head and your words clear before you take action and let the director know that you don't want to cause trouble (even if you really do) but help the coach understand your son's health needs so that he can participate in the sports he wants to without putting himself in danger.

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Permalink Reply by sugarrbabie on February 18, 2009 at 10:09am

I don't know how he just walked away! I would be screaming at them, but then again i have been told i have a short temper! i would definitely write a few letters. That's no way to treat anyone...would they rather him keep going and pass out? then what would they do? I would definitely make someone of high power aware of this!

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