HOMETOWN LIVING AT I TS BEST 27
to be responsible for.”
A year after his diagnosis, Hudson
received an insulin pump, which
drastically reduced the number of shots
that had to be administered. Then, in
July 2017, three and a half years after
he was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes,
Hudson received his first Dexcom.
“Dexcom is a Continuous Glucose
Monitor that allows us to receive
constant blood sugar readings,” said
Shanna. “The pump is made by Tandem
and works together with Dexcom to
provide a continuous drip determined
by his glucose levels.”
For the first time since his diagnosis,
Hudson could safely spend the night
away from home. “We can look on our
app at any time and see his glucose
levels. If his sugar levels are dropping
low, like it does sometimes in the middle
of the night, the pump will back off and
not give Hudson as much insulin as it
normally would. If his blood sugar levels
are running extremely high, Dexcom is
going to tell that pump to give Hudson
a little bit more than normal.” Most
importantly, “If he gets too low or high,
an alarm will immediately be sent to us.
Dexcom is truly a lifesaver,” said Shanna.
Shanna recently met a woman
in Atlanta who shared a personal
story about her own experience with
Dexcom’s alert system. “When levels
are low, it can be difficult for the
person with Type 1 Diabetes to wake
up. This lady received an alert from
her husband’s Dexcom while he was
six hundred miles away on a business
trip. When she couldn’t reach him by
phone, she called hotel security and
explained that her husband had Type 1
Diabetes and she was receiving an alert.
Paramedics went to his room and gave
her husband a lifesaving shot of insulin
just in time,” said Shanna.
Every night, Hudson also receives a
shot of Tresiba. “The insulin in Hudson’s
pump is short acting. It’s a burst of
insulin. “Tresiba is a long acting insulin
that lasts for at least twenty-four hours,”
explained Shanna.
Hudson’s stepfather David Burkett
said, “I was going through a fire
class at work the other day, and the
instructor asked, ‘What would be the
most important things you would grab
if there was a fire?’ I said, ‘Once I got
LIFESAVING TECHNOLOGY
Hudson's Dexcom pump (ABOVE )
provides a regular flow of insulin based
on what his body needs. Combined with
a phone app, Hudson and his mom can
regularly check his blood sugar levels and
even receive alerts if the levels get too low
or high. RIGHT "The Tower" is filled with
medical supplies and medicine used to
treat Hudson's diabetes. It is a vital part of
Hudson's diabetes management routine.
everybody out, I’d go back in for The
Tower,’” a cabinet that holds baskets
filled with Hudson’s medications and
various medical supplies, “‘and the
refrigerator drawer that holds his other
supplies.’ We can replace the rest of it,
but he can’t live without these things.”
Fortunately, support for people with
the disease is available. Every summer,
Hudson attends a camp with 220 other
kids with Type 1 Diabetes in Rutledge,
Georgia, called Camp Kudzu. “There
are four sessions with 220 kids," said
Shanna. “Each session is five days long.
Hudson’s doctor, Dr. Andrew Muir, is
the Chief of Endocrinology at Emory. He