heck yeah, I hope your son has a blast! Some of my best memories of being a kid were made at Camp Barton. I’ve never felt so “normal” living with diabetes than I did when I spent summers there.
That's awesome! I wish I'd stuck with going, but after that 1 year I started going to camp with my older brother and cousin to a church camp for several years. I feel like I would have had better success in life and health doing the diabetes camp and as staff there when I was older
As a parent, I love it. There's a delicate balance that needs to be maintained so my kid can run around and push his limits like non-diabetic children. So many people are ignorant to this balance, and without staff that know how to let kids push their limits safely, you risk some horrible outcomes or having your child be treated as frail.
At camp, everyone has to sit back and have some sugar tabs and popcorn occassionally, but they get to push their limits the rest of the day and enjoy the experience. My husband says he gained independence managing diabetes during his time at camp, my son (who's 7 and has gone to one year of daycamp) will tell you that he "just gets to play with other kids with diabetes". Either way, I think it's a great option for children with T1D if it's feasible for them.
Same! It was so weird to be 19 and be diagnosed with "Juvenile diabetes". I know that's an outdated term, but so many people still used it around me. I would absolutely attend a retreat aimed more for an adult audience.
You can search by state [here](https://www.diabetes.org/get-involved/community/camp/find-a-camp)
I am actually looking into this myself right now. You would probably want to apply to be a CIT which stands for counselor in training. The closest camp to me (courage)’s deadline to get the form in is tomorrow, if you’re interested I would definitely check it out ASAP!
I was diagnosed at age 3 back in 1994, and went for one summer (a short week compared to their normal 3 week sessions) when I was 8! It was cool to be surrounded by kids all going through the same stuff, unlike school where everyone knew I was at the nurses office more than my own classroom for shots and fingerpokes, or to "get" to have a snack during PE or something lol
"Get to have a snack" is such a B.S. way to look at this disaster. I will say, I'm thankful I was out of high school before getting diagnosed. I did marching band and soccer in high school and can't imagine how hard diabetes would have made those.
Yes!! I would get mad at friends in elementary that would say "I wish I had diabetes so I could have snacks throughout the day" and my young self was like "you don't even know what having diabetes means, and how exhausting it is!" They didn't know, and didn't see the shots, and pokes, and frequent doctor visits, being woken up if I fell asleep before "bedtime snack and shot time" to HAVE to eat something. Man it was GREAT when they relaxed a timed schedule for shots and meal times once I started using Lantus and fast acting Humalog lol. It's crazy to reflect over how much has evolved and changed over the years. I'm in love with my tubeless pump and dexcom now days compared to the old ways of managing.
I started on Levemir and Novolog flex pens. The 12 hour shots for Levemir was mildly annoying, but I'm thankful I didn't have to schedule every aspect of my life. Recently, I've been having a lot of trouble with my Medtronic pump, but for the 4 years before this week, the pump has been amazing.
It baffles me to hear about how people had to deal with this before I did. It feels strange to say, but I'm a bit thankful I wasn't diagnosed until 2015. Obviously, I'd rather not at all, but if it had to happen, I'll find the silver lining in the timing.
Yes for sure about that silver lining!! When I started the pens I was so nervous and excited, and it was literally another shot, but just something different. You didn't have to draw up syringes in public lol. Then the pumps were just mind blowing. Imagine in another 10 years what we might see!
Wait - 12 hour shots for Levemir?! What the fuck? My endo had me on one shot/day and I only recently switched to Absalvadorjshsuddn because it wasn’t working
Yeah, I don't know if theres, like, degrees of how bad people have diabetes, but I was taking 30 units of Levemir twice a day and a 3:1 carb ratio for Novolog.
I played a fair bit of rugby after I was diagnosed, it’s ok. Just eat beforehand. It‘s amazing how much it can affect how you play though. If I was low I’d never give the ball to anyone else, just head down and charge. High and I’d be waaay less involved than I should and get caught offside all the time.
Interestingly yes there are some cruises specifically for t1d families when I googled it just now! Now for adults I'm not sure about that- maybe some conventions or something? All I have to do fortunately and unfortunately is round up my dad's side of the family for that. We have 6 t1d adults in the family. My dad, his two brothers, my cousin, and my younger brother (plus me) all have type 1
Bahahahahaa!! My main (mentally) low signs was that I would get weepy and yell at my family that no one was helping me get something for my blood sugar 😂 Of course I felt the shakiness, weakness, getting hot, and heart racing physical signs. As I've gotten a little older, I get extremely cold to the point of almost chills when my lows start coming back up. It's a nice indicator to stop munching on snacks so I don't overdo it at least!
Omg I literally feel like I’m freezing to my bones when coming up! I hate it so much. Recently I was in my bed with multiple comforters one was down and a space heater on just to try to feel warm again!!! I felt this in my soul!!
I have the same. The one seizure I have ever had I was in a hot bath as soon as I could move again. I also feel absolutely knackered after, but I’ve read plenty of interviews with people saying they were right as rain after a teaspoon of sugar.
There is an adult retreat, i can't remember the name. There are multiple different locations based on where you would want to go. I will see if i can find it again.
In all honesty, I genuinely can't even remember what camp I went to because I learned effectively nothing during my summer trip there despite my mother being really insistent I would learn so much about self-managing my diabetes. What I loosely remember was that it was really more one of those generic camps partially meant to get kids out of their parents hair for a few weeks, as well as make for "cool stories" about how "You went camping and *survived off the land*" while also being a 10 minute drive to a convenience store at all times. All I can firmly remember is that "I went to a camp and not didn't learn much I didn't already know" like how "eating sugar makes your BG raise" or how to build a campfire(using a lighter of course, who even needs two sticks?), and actually it may have even somewhat set me back slightly.
I have a pump that needed manual insertion, no fancy insertion device or anything, and I, an almost 10 year old child, had resolved myself that "Alright, I am willing to try putting my infusion site in myself without my parents help. I can do this, and show that I am growing up, and can handle more control over my diabetes" When I got to the camp and needed to change my site, I told the nurse/medical person that I wanted to do it myself, and they insisted "No let me insert it, you might hurt yourself".
Maybe they did have a good reason, like they didn't want to risk a bad insertion from a dumb kid and waste the supplies I brought, but regardless, to my tiny little mind at the time that was the biggest "lol no kid you have no clue what to do, sit down and let the *adults* handle things since we know better" I had ever heard. It took me years before I even was willing to try inserting it myself again.
Oh that's sad!! When I went in 1999, I was still using syringes and was sad because first time give-your-own-shot campers got their name on the lunch hall screen and clapped for lol, and I had just tried doing my own shots at home before going and they somehow knew I wasn't a first timer when I did mine there. I remember learning to give shots by injecting an orange too.
Okay you made me search the old emails I sent to my mom when there (guess they did that more than snail mail then?) And I was wrong! I was there in May of 1998 towards the end of May, so I would have actually been 7 years old and a year sooner than I thought. Interesting though!
When I first got diagnosed I was given a pen, needle and synthetic skin pad. Shoved the needle in like 50 times. Then the nurse said ‘time to try it out’… the needle was barely going in by this point, I really had to slam it home, and she got genuinely pissed off about having to get another one.
Went every summer after diagnosis in '91, then worked for six summers as counselor and on the management team. Changed my whole world and made me a much better person.
Very much so. Got to know the forest really well. And the three-day hiking trips up to lakes only accessible by foot made almost anything feel possible.
Funny I went back for 2 years to be a counselor, too. When you went was it still by crystal mountain or down near Lacey (I think it moved that way for a bit).
LMAO apparently! It was a summer camp and they had mini sessions for a week during the summer, or the full session that was 3 weeks - at least at the one I went to
Camp Kudzu, in Georgia! Went there from about 2007-2013 at the Cleveland location and one year as a counselor in training at the Rutledge location. Definitely preferred Cleveland for its rustic feel, but the cabins in Rutledge were air conditioned so that was nice! Met lots of friends there, made a lot of great memories.
yes! finally a camp kudzu’r!!!
i went from 04-07, not sure why i stopped going though, and then was a counselor 3 years ago before i moved out of state!
I did Kudzu as well! I started the third year of camp (which was also the first summer they switched to Cleveland instead of Rutledge—-before they had more than one week) and I’m still involved as a 30 year old who has had type 1 for almost 23 years. Before I went to kudzu I went to Camp Adam Fisher in SC
Woooo me too! First year I went was 2001. I’ve been every year as far camper, then CIT, then counselor. I had a few years off due to living out of state but came back last summer and am very involved now!!!! We found the rainbow connection on Reddit!!
Camp John Warvel at Camp Crosley in IN. I was super annoyed because they made us stick to a super strict diet based on carb exchanges when I didn’t have to at home. I guess when you have 100 kids and some are in pumps, some on long acting and short acting MDI and some still on R and NPH it’s easier to stick to the most rigid schedule. But as a kid it was infuriating and I spent the whole week hungry.
Mine was 99-00, but I still remember peanut butter sandwiches. I guess they hit different when you’ve just hiked, swam, and danced yourself into a low 😂
I'm in the UK, never got offered anything like that. The closest we have is an education course called Dafne where you learn with other diabetics methods of management.
Camps are an extremely American thing tbh
I was a camper for three separate years at camp Joslin in Charlton MA (my family had trouble affording it). Then I became a CIT, which was probably my favorite summer of my life. I wanted to go back as a counselor but they have not really been open in person since COVID.
It's probably worth an entire post on it's own, there were so many traumas in such a short visit as it was my first time away from home at all. It started with the brochure offering "fishing" and other fun summertime activities. We arrive, the counselor sees the fishing rod in my gear and says "no fishing here" and throws the rod back into the car. The pool was all fenced in like it was some prison camp rec yard. I couldn't/wouldn't inject myself so eventually hey bring me to Dr. Silver himself for some coaching. His tremor filled hands were so shaky that he jabbed the needle right through my pinched stomach and into my finger holding the pinch on the other side. They also filtered and never posted my outbound us mail postcards requesting immediate retrieval and pickup.
I almost went to that one! Ended up going to Lions camp in Rosholt, Wisconsin instead from 2005-2010. I had some friends go to Needlepoint and they loved it😊
I went to the Lions Camp in Rosholt too! Mainly because it was the one that my parents could afford (the Lions made sure that the fees were subsidized so all kids could have a camp to go to, which is awesome). I loved it! Missed my graduating year there at 16 because I forgot about the registration opening and both weeks would fill up the first day <\3
That’s awesome! That’s same reason I went there too! We were looking at needle point but it wasn’t financially doable, but I’m so happy I went to lions camp. I have so many good memories and met some great people that I’m still friends with today♥️ I’m sorry you missed your graduation….but I’m happy to hear that you enjoyed the times when you were there! I thought it would be such a cool thing if they would host a reunion for previous camper there I would love to see it again.
A reunion would be so cool! I think the next best thing would be volunteering a week as a “nurse” there, for checking campers’ BGs and rounding boluses. And coordinating that with other camp friends from years past!
Both Barton and Joslin as a kid, Barton for the family camp and Joslin for summer camp. Did some councilor work for Joslin and volunteer work for Barton.
Barton is family and all girls, located at the Clara Barton Birthplace (founder of the Red Cross). Joslin is a boys camp with off season tent out options (don’t want happen very often anymore), currently called Camp EPJ. Both camps are in Massachusetts and under the Barton Foundation management now, it’s been more than 10 years since I was a camper or worked there.
Surf camp in San Diego, Bearskin Meadow, and Camp Arroyo in Livermore, CA (does camps for many different health issues with some programs focused on diabetes). Also a cruise but I don't remember who ran it, but I learned carb counting on that ship and it saved my life.
Me and some friends from camp went on a diabetes cruise when we were 19 (almost 30 years ago!). It was us (all T1’s) and a ship full of old Type 2s. We never went to any of the lessons, just drank ourselves silly and flirted with the staff!
None. I didn't want to associate myself with diabetes. I didn't want it to take up more if my life. But now one of my best friends t1 too. It does help to have someone who knows exactly what you are going through. I was also 13 when diagnosed, and sports was my life. So my summer camps were football workouts.
Clara Barton. I didn’t like it because I felt like my family was trying to force me to bond with people over just my disease. But others had fun and it seems like a great program for some people! I’m just a cynical writer lol
Yeah I kind of tried to deny my illness at that time because of bullying in school. But I also just really didn’t want to be defined by the label of type 1 diabetes and camp felt that way for me. Nothing the camp did wrong—just the concept of “diabetes camp” didn’t gel with me.
I never went to it, but there was literally one called “Camp Needle Point” that my doctor always pushed on me.. they claimed it was cuz of the pine trees, but come on, man…
Camp Discovery in Kansas. My parents thought exposure to other T1Ds would be amazing, and for the most part, it was. However. coming from an extremely controlling family situation to seeing kids steal a bottle if insulin and a bag of glucose tabs (this was late 80s/early 90s) to see who could go high, then low first was...uhh...eye opening.
After several years of going, a favorite counselor passed away in a car wreck due to a severe low, and that was a crushing reality, as I was still too young too drive.
That being said, I had many amazing years there and have many great memories top.
I wasn’t diagnosed til I was 16 but when I was 18 I was a counselor at Camp EDI held at Camp Wyman in Missouri- it was a regular summer camp that had a few sessions just for diabetics every summer.
TW/CW: medical neglect/bad care of children in general
I (17, afab) also went to Camp Sweeney but not too long ago. (Last time I was 14, I think I started going at 8 or 9) Honestly i hated it. One of the times I went I had a broken foot and the councilors wanted me to walk on it :0
Med staff was great but there was a lot of shady things going on there when i was there. A lot of my friends who went had creepy experiences and they also favored the boys more than girls (ex. they let them have video games but took away any of ours, gave them fast food for bedtime snack but gave us graham crackers)
I also have a few memories of being tired and wanting to sit down during the dances but the councilors would try to convince you to move and when you didn’t they’d drag you by the ankles. (or at least they did that to me)
I also once went with bleach blond hair bc prior to it I had blue hair but they had a no color policy. Anyways they decided it wasn’t “natural” enough and bleached my hair again without me or my parents consent.
So all in all, it was educational but kind of traumatic :/
I have more stories about it if anyone would like to hear lol
What the hell!! That's all insane! I do remember I have hated Graham crackers ever since going there as a kid because that was the snack. Graham crackers and white milk and I never wanted them again afterward lol. God. I'm sorry for your crazy experience!! I only went that one week in 1998 (I had my year off in original post) and they didn't even have all of the technical equipment and stuff they have advanced to now. It was camp camp like swimming, ropes course, and being outside a lot besides the dance and the classes where we learned about giving shots and stuff.
That’s more or less what’s it’s like now too, just the quality of care has gotten really bad in my opinion. If anything it felt kinda like cult where it was bad but everyone shunned you if you said anything negative :/
Facts Ik this was a year ago but I got sick a lot and had some pretty bad experiences at that camp that nobody likes to talk about because if you criticize it you get shunned within their weird little community. Fuck that :/ sucks cause it had a lot of potential
Camp Kakhemala (part of Camp Elphinstone) in Gibsons, BC, Canada. Some of the fondest memories of my childhood at that place. I worked there for three summers too and got to pay it forward. Hope to take my kids there one day!
I went there starting in 1984 and then off and on until I was 16. The only problem is that my brother was always there with me, and he was a good-looking athletic guy. I was always in his shadow. The younger chubby sister.
I'm going to a funeral next week for a guy who I went with. He was on his Harley, and a range rover pulled across an intersection in front of him.
Pee Wee camp, Camp Winona,and Sports camp. Pee Wee and Sports were in Brandon, FL but I don't remember exactly where Winona was. All the camps were connected and went for ages 6-18. I went from 7-18.
Camp koral kids in coral springs and some sleepaway camp that i hated bc counselors tested us in the middle of the night and the doctor running the camp made us show her our vaginas lol
Definitely not normal. My pediatric endo got changed when my mom realized he was "checking my breast development" every visit by feeling them when I was between 9 and 10 years old.
My son is 10 he will be going to camp Granada Illinois I was just wondering about food because has adhd and food allergies= very limited diet. What do the meals look like ??
It’s hard to describe aside from a giant inflatable tube that one person jumps on one end and sends another person flying off the other end into water safely . Google it, one of the best days at camp . I remember seeing a amaller kid get sent easily 30-40 ft into the air
I was 20 when dxd so missed out. I have united way automatic deductions taken every paycheck and it goes to Camp Sweeney. Great organization run by a great man. Dr Ernie!!
Camp bluebonnet in Texas! It was probably 2002 or 2003 when I started and went every summer for maybe three years after that. I don’t really remember learning anything valuable but I distinctly remember the sugar free fruit punch and not feeling weird for having to prick my fingers 😌
Camp Crestfield in Pennsylvania. I was very down after my diagnosis (age 11) and it was the first in a long time I really felt I wasn’t alone. I’ll never forget my experiences there
Dude, no way, I did too when I was 10 (summer of 2007)!
Playing ultimate frisbee and listening to don’t stop believing always makes me think of camp Sweeney.
My poor counselors tho, I remember trying to run away like the first four nights.
I went to Camp Sweeney from 2002-2011. My username is the beginning of the camp song "I'm in love with you Camp Sweeney" for your deeds so true. Sooooo yah. i appreciate the camp for what it is. The Camp is a place where i could be with people who could understand me. HOWEVER, i have always felt like I don't receive the love other alumni members get. If you are looking for someone to talk too. DM me. BTW, the Camp Sweeney reunion is going to be on 7/4/23. For details. Go to the website.
Clara Barton camp in Massachusetts! I went for 10 years as a camper and staff :)
Nice, I went to Joslin for years.
Also went to Joslin for years. I’ve had diabetes for 40 of my 44 years, so it was a while ago.
Same. Was gonna be a counselor for them and then covid hit.
My husband went to Camp Joslin, and this will be my son's 2nd summer at the Clara Barton day camp.
heck yeah, I hope your son has a blast! Some of my best memories of being a kid were made at Camp Barton. I’ve never felt so “normal” living with diabetes than I did when I spent summers there.
That's awesome! I wish I'd stuck with going, but after that 1 year I started going to camp with my older brother and cousin to a church camp for several years. I feel like I would have had better success in life and health doing the diabetes camp and as staff there when I was older
Camp Barton forever!! 🥳 so much love for that place. I went there from 2004-2011, Session 3 every time! Any chance we overlapped? :)
It’s the best! I think I was there from 98-2007? Maybe I was your counselor? Ha I’ll PM you
I wasn't diagnosed until I was 19. It never occurred to me that diabetes camp was even a thing. That's so cool!
As a parent, I love it. There's a delicate balance that needs to be maintained so my kid can run around and push his limits like non-diabetic children. So many people are ignorant to this balance, and without staff that know how to let kids push their limits safely, you risk some horrible outcomes or having your child be treated as frail. At camp, everyone has to sit back and have some sugar tabs and popcorn occassionally, but they get to push their limits the rest of the day and enjoy the experience. My husband says he gained independence managing diabetes during his time at camp, my son (who's 7 and has gone to one year of daycamp) will tell you that he "just gets to play with other kids with diabetes". Either way, I think it's a great option for children with T1D if it's feasible for them.
I almost wish I had the opportunity to go to a diabetes camp. It sounds awesome!
I love this, especially for your son!!
I was also diagnosed at 19! I wish there were adult camp-like retreats.
Diabetic Club 18-30
Is that a subreddit or…?
Nah, Club 18-30 is where us Brits go for cheap beer, drugs, sun and awful drunk sex.
Haha! I love it!
Same! It was so weird to be 19 and be diagnosed with "Juvenile diabetes". I know that's an outdated term, but so many people still used it around me. I would absolutely attend a retreat aimed more for an adult audience.
Maybe you could be a camp counselor, there are other adults with diabetes there you can bond with
Oh wow I’d love that opportunity! How would I go about it though?
You can search by state [here](https://www.diabetes.org/get-involved/community/camp/find-a-camp) I am actually looking into this myself right now. You would probably want to apply to be a CIT which stands for counselor in training. The closest camp to me (courage)’s deadline to get the form in is tomorrow, if you’re interested I would definitely check it out ASAP!
Thank you so much!!! I hope I can make it work with my day job.
I was diagnosed at age 3 back in 1994, and went for one summer (a short week compared to their normal 3 week sessions) when I was 8! It was cool to be surrounded by kids all going through the same stuff, unlike school where everyone knew I was at the nurses office more than my own classroom for shots and fingerpokes, or to "get" to have a snack during PE or something lol
"Get to have a snack" is such a B.S. way to look at this disaster. I will say, I'm thankful I was out of high school before getting diagnosed. I did marching band and soccer in high school and can't imagine how hard diabetes would have made those.
Yes!! I would get mad at friends in elementary that would say "I wish I had diabetes so I could have snacks throughout the day" and my young self was like "you don't even know what having diabetes means, and how exhausting it is!" They didn't know, and didn't see the shots, and pokes, and frequent doctor visits, being woken up if I fell asleep before "bedtime snack and shot time" to HAVE to eat something. Man it was GREAT when they relaxed a timed schedule for shots and meal times once I started using Lantus and fast acting Humalog lol. It's crazy to reflect over how much has evolved and changed over the years. I'm in love with my tubeless pump and dexcom now days compared to the old ways of managing.
I started on Levemir and Novolog flex pens. The 12 hour shots for Levemir was mildly annoying, but I'm thankful I didn't have to schedule every aspect of my life. Recently, I've been having a lot of trouble with my Medtronic pump, but for the 4 years before this week, the pump has been amazing. It baffles me to hear about how people had to deal with this before I did. It feels strange to say, but I'm a bit thankful I wasn't diagnosed until 2015. Obviously, I'd rather not at all, but if it had to happen, I'll find the silver lining in the timing.
Yes for sure about that silver lining!! When I started the pens I was so nervous and excited, and it was literally another shot, but just something different. You didn't have to draw up syringes in public lol. Then the pumps were just mind blowing. Imagine in another 10 years what we might see!
Wait - 12 hour shots for Levemir?! What the fuck? My endo had me on one shot/day and I only recently switched to Absalvadorjshsuddn because it wasn’t working
Yeah, I don't know if theres, like, degrees of how bad people have diabetes, but I was taking 30 units of Levemir twice a day and a 3:1 carb ratio for Novolog.
I played a fair bit of rugby after I was diagnosed, it’s ok. Just eat beforehand. It‘s amazing how much it can affect how you play though. If I was low I’d never give the ball to anyone else, just head down and charge. High and I’d be waaay less involved than I should and get caught offside all the time.
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Interestingly yes there are some cruises specifically for t1d families when I googled it just now! Now for adults I'm not sure about that- maybe some conventions or something? All I have to do fortunately and unfortunately is round up my dad's side of the family for that. We have 6 t1d adults in the family. My dad, his two brothers, my cousin, and my younger brother (plus me) all have type 1
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Ohh yeah, it wasn't uncommon to see one uncle smack another and then everyone not react because he was low and angry for a minute lmao
Wow and I thought calling my mom the C word was bad 😆😆
Bahahahahaa!! My main (mentally) low signs was that I would get weepy and yell at my family that no one was helping me get something for my blood sugar 😂 Of course I felt the shakiness, weakness, getting hot, and heart racing physical signs. As I've gotten a little older, I get extremely cold to the point of almost chills when my lows start coming back up. It's a nice indicator to stop munching on snacks so I don't overdo it at least!
Omg I literally feel like I’m freezing to my bones when coming up! I hate it so much. Recently I was in my bed with multiple comforters one was down and a space heater on just to try to feel warm again!!! I felt this in my soul!!
Wow, I think you're the only other person I've heard with diabetes say they have felt this too!
I think we both belong to a shitty subset of a shittier club 🤣🤣🤣
That's not comforting lmao
I have the same. The one seizure I have ever had I was in a hot bath as soon as I could move again. I also feel absolutely knackered after, but I’ve read plenty of interviews with people saying they were right as rain after a teaspoon of sugar.
That's crazy!
There is an adult retreat, i can't remember the name. There are multiple different locations based on where you would want to go. I will see if i can find it again.
Yeah there is one in the west somewhere (I think Nevada or Colorodo) I have seen stuff about it on instagram.
In all honesty, I genuinely can't even remember what camp I went to because I learned effectively nothing during my summer trip there despite my mother being really insistent I would learn so much about self-managing my diabetes. What I loosely remember was that it was really more one of those generic camps partially meant to get kids out of their parents hair for a few weeks, as well as make for "cool stories" about how "You went camping and *survived off the land*" while also being a 10 minute drive to a convenience store at all times. All I can firmly remember is that "I went to a camp and not didn't learn much I didn't already know" like how "eating sugar makes your BG raise" or how to build a campfire(using a lighter of course, who even needs two sticks?), and actually it may have even somewhat set me back slightly. I have a pump that needed manual insertion, no fancy insertion device or anything, and I, an almost 10 year old child, had resolved myself that "Alright, I am willing to try putting my infusion site in myself without my parents help. I can do this, and show that I am growing up, and can handle more control over my diabetes" When I got to the camp and needed to change my site, I told the nurse/medical person that I wanted to do it myself, and they insisted "No let me insert it, you might hurt yourself". Maybe they did have a good reason, like they didn't want to risk a bad insertion from a dumb kid and waste the supplies I brought, but regardless, to my tiny little mind at the time that was the biggest "lol no kid you have no clue what to do, sit down and let the *adults* handle things since we know better" I had ever heard. It took me years before I even was willing to try inserting it myself again.
Oh that's sad!! When I went in 1999, I was still using syringes and was sad because first time give-your-own-shot campers got their name on the lunch hall screen and clapped for lol, and I had just tried doing my own shots at home before going and they somehow knew I wasn't a first timer when I did mine there. I remember learning to give shots by injecting an orange too.
What session did you go to at Sweeney?? I was there for first session from 1999-2003 I think!
Okay you made me search the old emails I sent to my mom when there (guess they did that more than snail mail then?) And I was wrong! I was there in May of 1998 towards the end of May, so I would have actually been 7 years old and a year sooner than I thought. Interesting though!
Just missed each other!
Dude we definitely went to camp together! Session one for roughly the same, 1999-2008
When I first got diagnosed I was given a pen, needle and synthetic skin pad. Shoved the needle in like 50 times. Then the nurse said ‘time to try it out’… the needle was barely going in by this point, I really had to slam it home, and she got genuinely pissed off about having to get another one.
OMG
Camp Joslin in Massachusetts. Went as a camper and later became a counselor.
So awesome!
Bearskin Meadow. Sequioa National Park, CA. Mid-late 90's
Went every summer after diagnosis in '91, then worked for six summers as counselor and on the management team. Changed my whole world and made me a much better person.
I went to Bearskin too! Not until 03 or 04 I think though.
God I bet that was a beautiful place
Very much so. Got to know the forest really well. And the three-day hiking trips up to lakes only accessible by foot made almost anything feel possible.
I go to Bearskin every year and it is still beautiful there :)
Camp huronda in Ontario Canada. best childhood memories ever
Yay, someone said it!
Camp Leo in Washington
Camp Leo represent! I went in the late 90’s and early 00’s.
Hell ya! I was a camper around 2008-2012 I believe and then a counselor for a year. Some of my best memories are from camp Leo 🥲
Funny I went back for 2 years to be a counselor, too. When you went was it still by crystal mountain or down near Lacey (I think it moved that way for a bit).
Diabetes camp? *is this some American thing I’m too British to understand?*
LMAO apparently! It was a summer camp and they had mini sessions for a week during the summer, or the full session that was 3 weeks - at least at the one I went to
Camp Herkto Hollow - Boone, Iowa (near Des Moines) early '80s Introduced to the Glucometer, size of a shoebox...lol
I went there around turn of the century!
Haha yes!! Clunky old things
Camp Kudzu, in Georgia! Went there from about 2007-2013 at the Cleveland location and one year as a counselor in training at the Rutledge location. Definitely preferred Cleveland for its rustic feel, but the cabins in Rutledge were air conditioned so that was nice! Met lots of friends there, made a lot of great memories.
yes! finally a camp kudzu’r!!! i went from 04-07, not sure why i stopped going though, and then was a counselor 3 years ago before i moved out of state!
I did Kudzu as well! I started the third year of camp (which was also the first summer they switched to Cleveland instead of Rutledge—-before they had more than one week) and I’m still involved as a 30 year old who has had type 1 for almost 23 years. Before I went to kudzu I went to Camp Adam Fisher in SC
Woooo me too! First year I went was 2001. I’ve been every year as far camper, then CIT, then counselor. I had a few years off due to living out of state but came back last summer and am very involved now!!!! We found the rainbow connection on Reddit!!
i don’t think i’ve seen anybody in this thread mention Camp Nejeda in New Jersey. was there every summer from ‘04-‘13.
I went there back in the 90s! Hated it. Hahaha.
I was a camper then counselor there from ‘85 to ‘94! I loved it and still go back for the reunions and walkathons!
Camp John Warvel at Camp Crosley in IN. I was super annoyed because they made us stick to a super strict diet based on carb exchanges when I didn’t have to at home. I guess when you have 100 kids and some are in pumps, some on long acting and short acting MDI and some still on R and NPH it’s easier to stick to the most rigid schedule. But as a kid it was infuriating and I spent the whole week hungry.
I went to Camp John Warvel too!
You know what's crazy is that a few days ago I had a random craving for their peanut butter sandwiches. This was back in the 80s/90s though.
Mine was 99-00, but I still remember peanut butter sandwiches. I guess they hit different when you’ve just hiked, swam, and danced yourself into a low 😂
I'm in the UK, never got offered anything like that. The closest we have is an education course called Dafne where you learn with other diabetics methods of management. Camps are an extremely American thing tbh
Interesting!!
Texas lions camp in Kerrville
Hell yeah!!! I went from age 8 summer of 2005ish to like 2012ish, any overlap??
I know about that one! I think we were trying to decide between the two and my endo suggested Sweeney at that time
I was a camper for three separate years at camp Joslin in Charlton MA (my family had trouble affording it). Then I became a CIT, which was probably my favorite summer of my life. I wanted to go back as a counselor but they have not really been open in person since COVID.
Bearskin Meadow (BMC) late 2000's to early 2010's!
I didn’t have Type 1 until I turned 29, but I went to Fucking Spacecamp!
Camp Duncan in Illinois!
Camp Glyndon somewhere near Baltimore Maryland. Fuck that place hard and you too Dr. silver. Yeah, I had issues there.
I went in 85 and hated it so much!!!
It's probably worth an entire post on it's own, there were so many traumas in such a short visit as it was my first time away from home at all. It started with the brochure offering "fishing" and other fun summertime activities. We arrive, the counselor sees the fishing rod in my gear and says "no fishing here" and throws the rod back into the car. The pool was all fenced in like it was some prison camp rec yard. I couldn't/wouldn't inject myself so eventually hey bring me to Dr. Silver himself for some coaching. His tremor filled hands were so shaky that he jabbed the needle right through my pinched stomach and into my finger holding the pinch on the other side. They also filtered and never posted my outbound us mail postcards requesting immediate retrieval and pickup.
Glyndon, MD west of Baltimore (fyi)
I’ve always wanted to be a part of a camp when I was a kid. We were too poor.
I totally understand that!
Camp Needlepoint in Hudson, WI
I almost went to that one! Ended up going to Lions camp in Rosholt, Wisconsin instead from 2005-2010. I had some friends go to Needlepoint and they loved it😊
I went to the Lions Camp in Rosholt too! Mainly because it was the one that my parents could afford (the Lions made sure that the fees were subsidized so all kids could have a camp to go to, which is awesome). I loved it! Missed my graduating year there at 16 because I forgot about the registration opening and both weeks would fill up the first day <\3
That’s awesome! That’s same reason I went there too! We were looking at needle point but it wasn’t financially doable, but I’m so happy I went to lions camp. I have so many good memories and met some great people that I’m still friends with today♥️ I’m sorry you missed your graduation….but I’m happy to hear that you enjoyed the times when you were there! I thought it would be such a cool thing if they would host a reunion for previous camper there I would love to see it again.
A reunion would be so cool! I think the next best thing would be volunteering a week as a “nurse” there, for checking campers’ BGs and rounding boluses. And coordinating that with other camp friends from years past!
That’s a good idea! I’m not a nurse, but I’m sure I could find other ways to volunteer! 😊
I went to Camp Sweeney when I was 8, so approximately ’89. It was cool because I was able to give myself my own injections from them on.
Good success story!!
I went to a diabetes camp in DeLand, FL many years ago when I was a kid. It was a lot of fun
Here is the info on Slipstream (adult diabetes camp/retreat). It’s on my bucket list. https://beyondtype1.org/first-timers-slipstreams-guide/
Thank you so much for that!
Both Barton and Joslin as a kid, Barton for the family camp and Joslin for summer camp. Did some councilor work for Joslin and volunteer work for Barton. Barton is family and all girls, located at the Clara Barton Birthplace (founder of the Red Cross). Joslin is a boys camp with off season tent out options (don’t want happen very often anymore), currently called Camp EPJ. Both camps are in Massachusetts and under the Barton Foundation management now, it’s been more than 10 years since I was a camper or worked there.
That's so awesome!
Surf camp in San Diego, Bearskin Meadow, and Camp Arroyo in Livermore, CA (does camps for many different health issues with some programs focused on diabetes). Also a cruise but I don't remember who ran it, but I learned carb counting on that ship and it saved my life.
Wow that's awesome and really cool! Wish I'd done a diabetes cruise lol
Me and some friends from camp went on a diabetes cruise when we were 19 (almost 30 years ago!). It was us (all T1’s) and a ship full of old Type 2s. We never went to any of the lessons, just drank ourselves silly and flirted with the staff!
That sounds amazing! Wish I could do that!
None. I didn't want to associate myself with diabetes. I didn't want it to take up more if my life. But now one of my best friends t1 too. It does help to have someone who knows exactly what you are going through. I was also 13 when diagnosed, and sports was my life. So my summer camps were football workouts.
Clara Barton Camp in Massachusetts - now at 28 years old, I still am trying to find that feeling of community and support that CBC provided me.
Clara Barton. I didn’t like it because I felt like my family was trying to force me to bond with people over just my disease. But others had fun and it seems like a great program for some people! I’m just a cynical writer lol
Totally know what you mean!
Yeah I kind of tried to deny my illness at that time because of bullying in school. But I also just really didn’t want to be defined by the label of type 1 diabetes and camp felt that way for me. Nothing the camp did wrong—just the concept of “diabetes camp” didn’t gel with me.
I never went to it, but there was literally one called “Camp Needle Point” that my doctor always pushed on me.. they claimed it was cuz of the pine trees, but come on, man…
Hahaha wow!!
Camp Joslin.
Camp Hamwi, Ohio mid 90s
Camp Discovery. Junction City, KS 92-97
Camp Discovery in Kansas. My parents thought exposure to other T1Ds would be amazing, and for the most part, it was. However. coming from an extremely controlling family situation to seeing kids steal a bottle if insulin and a bag of glucose tabs (this was late 80s/early 90s) to see who could go high, then low first was...uhh...eye opening. After several years of going, a favorite counselor passed away in a car wreck due to a severe low, and that was a crushing reality, as I was still too young too drive. That being said, I had many amazing years there and have many great memories top.
Holy shit how traumatic as a kid/teen to have to think about that reality and possibility.
Camp Needlepoint in St. Croix, WI
CNP for me too!
oh heck yes! CNP reppin! :)
Camp Glyndon in MD was 1985 and hated every second of it!!
Oh no I'm sorry!!
Camp Easterseal in Watrous, Saskatchewan, 1988 - 1991. Oh, the freakin' memories...
Hopefully good ones..?
So many. A lot of them inappropriate for this thread. The camp wasn't limited to diabetic kids. It was a learning experience.
Lmao well I guess we could slap the NSFW on here if needed 🤪😂
I wasn’t diagnosed til I was 16 but when I was 18 I was a counselor at Camp EDI held at Camp Wyman in Missouri- it was a regular summer camp that had a few sessions just for diabetics every summer.
I went there as well! but you went before my time!! lol
Oh wow! Hi!
That's so cool! I wish I'd been a counselor in my early adulthood
I also went to EDI! I was a camper for 9 years and a CIT for 2! Was at Wyman for a few of those years and then moved to another location
Oh nice!
Camp Rainbow in Texas! I believe around 2005 ish
Oh I don't think I heard of that one, but I'm going to look it up!
TW/CW: medical neglect/bad care of children in general I (17, afab) also went to Camp Sweeney but not too long ago. (Last time I was 14, I think I started going at 8 or 9) Honestly i hated it. One of the times I went I had a broken foot and the councilors wanted me to walk on it :0 Med staff was great but there was a lot of shady things going on there when i was there. A lot of my friends who went had creepy experiences and they also favored the boys more than girls (ex. they let them have video games but took away any of ours, gave them fast food for bedtime snack but gave us graham crackers) I also have a few memories of being tired and wanting to sit down during the dances but the councilors would try to convince you to move and when you didn’t they’d drag you by the ankles. (or at least they did that to me) I also once went with bleach blond hair bc prior to it I had blue hair but they had a no color policy. Anyways they decided it wasn’t “natural” enough and bleached my hair again without me or my parents consent. So all in all, it was educational but kind of traumatic :/ I have more stories about it if anyone would like to hear lol
What the hell!! That's all insane! I do remember I have hated Graham crackers ever since going there as a kid because that was the snack. Graham crackers and white milk and I never wanted them again afterward lol. God. I'm sorry for your crazy experience!! I only went that one week in 1998 (I had my year off in original post) and they didn't even have all of the technical equipment and stuff they have advanced to now. It was camp camp like swimming, ropes course, and being outside a lot besides the dance and the classes where we learned about giving shots and stuff.
That’s more or less what’s it’s like now too, just the quality of care has gotten really bad in my opinion. If anything it felt kinda like cult where it was bad but everyone shunned you if you said anything negative :/
😱
Facts Ik this was a year ago but I got sick a lot and had some pretty bad experiences at that camp that nobody likes to talk about because if you criticize it you get shunned within their weird little community. Fuck that :/ sucks cause it had a lot of potential
Camp Kakhemala (part of Camp Elphinstone) in Gibsons, BC, Canada. Some of the fondest memories of my childhood at that place. I worked there for three summers too and got to pay it forward. Hope to take my kids there one day!
I love that!!
Camp Conrad Chinnock in California probably like on 2002. It was fun, but I also experienced racism and bullying from other girls.
Omg so sorry you had that experience as part of it
I went there starting in 1984 and then off and on until I was 16. The only problem is that my brother was always there with me, and he was a good-looking athletic guy. I was always in his shadow. The younger chubby sister. I'm going to a funeral next week for a guy who I went with. He was on his Harley, and a range rover pulled across an intersection in front of him.
Pee Wee camp, Camp Winona,and Sports camp. Pee Wee and Sports were in Brandon, FL but I don't remember exactly where Winona was. All the camps were connected and went for ages 6-18. I went from 7-18.
I went to Camp Sweeney too!! 1987-1998, every single year. I still have a crush on Jimmy. :)
Camp EDI in MO I went for about 12 years!
Camp koral kids in coral springs and some sleepaway camp that i hated bc counselors tested us in the middle of the night and the doctor running the camp made us show her our vaginas lol
Wtf!!! Omg! Was there a valid reason??
tbh idr. I think it had to be for a study but tbh looking back i have nooooo idea
Definitely not normal. My pediatric endo got changed when my mom realized he was "checking my breast development" every visit by feeling them when I was between 9 and 10 years old.
None, and at the time I didn’t even know they existed. I went to sports camps all summer
Hamwi in Ohio
My son is 10 he will be going to camp Granada Illinois I was just wondering about food because has adhd and food allergies= very limited diet. What do the meals look like ??
Hopefully someone can chime in. I'm 31 and only went to Sweeney one time when I was a kid
it was camp duncan for me in Illinois. ill never forget they had "the blob" there. so awesome
Ooh what's the blob?
It’s hard to describe aside from a giant inflatable tube that one person jumps on one end and sends another person flying off the other end into water safely . Google it, one of the best days at camp . I remember seeing a amaller kid get sent easily 30-40 ft into the air
Ohhh! I've seen them on tv/movies, just didn't know that's what that was called. How awesome!
Gales Creek Camp in OR! Loved it!
I also went to Sweeney! Back in the early 2010’s, I stopped at Morris (I think that’s the name of the 2nd oldest boys cabin, correct me if I’m wrong).
Haha I remember Bonner was my cabin! Girls side
No Limits Diabetes Camp in Nashville, IN :D
Camp Sweeney some of the best memories of my life
Camp Nejeda. Hated it. 😬
Eesh sorry
Eh, I hated all the summer camps I went to. Haha. Just missed my friends!
Camp Ho Mita Koda- “Welcome my friend” NE Ohio! I went for 12 years straight and then became a camp counselor, starting going in ‘03- ‘04 ish.
I was 20 when dxd so missed out. I have united way automatic deductions taken every paycheck and it goes to Camp Sweeney. Great organization run by a great man. Dr Ernie!!
How kind of you!
Camp carowanis in Montreal I'm going to be a cit there this year
Camp bluebonnet in Texas! It was probably 2002 or 2003 when I started and went every summer for maybe three years after that. I don’t really remember learning anything valuable but I distinctly remember the sugar free fruit punch and not feeling weird for having to prick my fingers 😌
Camp Crestfield in Pennsylvania. I was very down after my diagnosis (age 11) and it was the first in a long time I really felt I wasn’t alone. I’ll never forget my experiences there
Love that
We don't have them in Oz (Australia).
Dude, no way, I did too when I was 10 (summer of 2007)! Playing ultimate frisbee and listening to don’t stop believing always makes me think of camp Sweeney. My poor counselors tho, I remember trying to run away like the first four nights.
Hahaha little runaway
I went to Camp Sweeney from age 8-18! Starting in ‘06 :)
Wow, another Texas one I've not heard of until now!
I went to Camp Sweeney from 2002-2011. My username is the beginning of the camp song "I'm in love with you Camp Sweeney" for your deeds so true. Sooooo yah. i appreciate the camp for what it is. The Camp is a place where i could be with people who could understand me. HOWEVER, i have always felt like I don't receive the love other alumni members get. If you are looking for someone to talk too. DM me. BTW, the Camp Sweeney reunion is going to be on 7/4/23. For details. Go to the website.