Just five months later…

By Olivia Hampton

My name is Olivia Hampton. I was diagnosed 5 months ago. Before my diagnosis I was running track and field. I didn’t even feel sick. But I sometimes felt bad and never knew why. My stomach hurt. I was every emotional and sometimes I was dizzy. Since I have my sugar under control I feel a lot better.

When I went to camp I was a little nervous at first, but quickly connected with my cabin. It was a great experience for me. Camp taught me that I wasn’t alone. I learned so much that I would have never learned before.

Thanks Kim for convincing me to go to camp! By Liz Hampton

My daughter Olivia is 11 years old. She was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes on June 12, 2015. We spent 2 days in the hospital and came home scared to death that we were going to do something to hurt our baby girl. The education we received in those first few days was overwhelming. We spent an entire week afraid, waking up every hour all night long to check her blood sugar and watch her breathe.

One week after her diagnosis we met Kim. Our experience with her was life changing. Our fears were soon put to rest and we felt like we could take our daughter home and live a “normal” life. We did not have to be afraid for Olivia and Kim taught her how to own her diagnosis and manage it with confidence.

Olivia went to Camp Endres the following month where she gained more confidence in herself and her ability to manage her diabetes. She met other kids who are dealing with the same things and developed friendships with kids that she still talks to weekly. She has a great support system, one we could never have given her without camp. She came home a new kid who was teaching us new things and was excited to share her experience.

This month, only 5 months after her diagnosis, Olivia shared her story and taught the 3rd grade class at her school about Diabetes. She spent 30 minutes teaching the difference between type 1 and type 2 Diabetes, the pathology, management and research going on now for this disease. She confidently answered questions, showed how her pump worked and did a finger stick, keeping a class of 3rd graders interested in what she is going through.

What an amazing difference in our daughter from day 1 to just 5 months later! We cannot thank Diabetes Solutions, Camp Endres staff and campers, and Kim Boaz-Wilson enough. We are so proud of our daughter and how she has managed her disease, already using it for good things. She will forever have an important story to share and has the confidence to do so. She can’t wait to return to camp next summer!