When Olivia was first diagnosed, I was told to check her four times a day. That didn't seem very often, but for the first 6 months or so, that's what I did. She was not quite 3 at diagnosis, so she was still going to bed quite early; probably around 7 p.m.. She'd get up at 7 or 8 in the morning. That was 12 hours without a blood sugar check. The thought of doing that now makes my skin crawl.

I started doing overnight checks for two reasons: She'd come to me in the middle of the night, complaining of not feeling well. She was invariably low. Or, when she'd wake up in the morning and would have wet her bed. I knew that she'd been high during the night. I decided to start doing a blood sugar check around midnight. I'd correct if she was over 200 or below 80. Her morning numbers improved immediately.

I spoke to her endocrinologist at the time and he actually discouraged me from doing this. I am sure he said it because he didn't want me to burn out, but I hate it when endos say "Don't check overnight." If you went 8, 10, 12 hours during the day without checking, they'd be all over you like a rash. What's so different about the nighttime? Just because the kid is sleeping doesn't mean that they won't be sky high or bottoming out. How are you supposed to know unless you're checking during the night?

I check Olivia at 11-ish and again around 2-ish. She's usually up around 6:30 during the school year and checks then. During the summer, it's a bit longer - I'm up with the babies around 7:30, so she gets checked then (but she doesn't get up then -she is twelve, after all.)

I know this can be a fairly sensitive subject for some parents - they don't think they need to check overnight. I just can't do it. I can't go to bed without knowing where her blood sugar is and I can't sleep solidly if I haven't checked her in the middle of the night.

Boy, I wish we had a CGMS. It would eliminate all those night wakings.