Ep. 35: The World's Worst Diabetes Mom - Guest Stacey Simms

During this interview, Stacey shares openly about many of the stages in her own journey. These included raising a son with a chronic illness, working her way into her dream career position, and ultimately leaving that role to protect her own health. You can learn about self-care, dealing with the pressure to be perfect, and navigating career change in this informative episode.

I appreciate her candor, her positive outlook, and the twists and turns her journey took!

[Quick Note: If you’re specifically interested in Type 1, Type 2, Type 1.5, or double diabetes (yes, these are all real!), you’ll want to tune in at minute 21 for Stacey’s quick PSA on diabetes diagnosis and types. Crazy interesting!]

Stacey Simms’ new book is called The World’s Worst Diabetes Mom. She has a podcast and blog that inform, educate, and connect families that have children with diabetes. Ultimately, she shares that connections are what she is most passionate about.

Why “world’s worst” as part of her book title?

Stacey has noticed that parenting in general comes with a HUGE amount of pressure — everything from what schools your kids get into, to what you pack in your kid’s lunch (and how it looks, of course). And when your child has a diabetic diagnosis, you’re measuring so many additional variables on a daily basis, which adds a whole other level of striving for perfection.

While in an internet “discussion” with a women who strongly disagreed with parenting choice she had made, Stacey fired back with “Well, I guess I’m the world’s worst diabetes mom!”. After the heat of the moment cooled, she realized there was something in that statement that resonated.

The philosophy she devised? Give up the fight for perfect parenting!

Stacey shares that her son’s diagnosis occurred in 2006. The iPhone didn’t exist, and Facebook was only for college students. There weren’t all these “voices” sharing tips and advice…or condemnation and criticism. Once social media became accessible, she appreciated the opportunities for getting new ideas, helpful tips, and the support of people who were in the journey with her was amazing. On the flip side…getting judged by strangers on the internet who disagreed with her choices and were quick to share all about it was a new struggle.

Stacey realized that pre-internet she didn’t know she was “supposed” to feel guilt about some of her parenting decisions, so she didn’t. She also realized that giving her son independence and some level of “normalcy” was really important to her.

During these early stages of being a parent and having a young child with a diabetes diagnosis, Stacey had her dream job. She absolutely LOVED it. She also realized that it was draining her, and wasn’t going to be sustainable in the long run. The straw that broke the camel’s back was her own diagnosis with ulcerative colitis.

Her solution? Ultimately, she left. Even though it was a hard decision, she absolutely new it was the right thing to do. While talking about the transition from her full time position, I really appreciated that Stacey acknowledges the privilege that allowed her to make these transition choices. Everyone’s journey looks different, and the choices available to every individual are going to be different.

To learn more about how Stacey navigates change and implements self-care, listen in to the full episode.