Depression, check. Weight gain, check. Short-temperedness, check. I'm really hoping the sallow skin thing isn't happening, but maybe. Sleep is good. Lots of good information, thank you. I avoid those articles that talk about what sleep deprivation does to a body. It sucks knowing what I'm doing to myself!

To reply to others... I have wondered about hormone/vitamin levels. I know I should see a doctor, I really do. We have two kids with high medical costs and a third who needs physical therapy for a foot problem. If we have to pick and choose where to spend money on health issues, my husband and I end up not wanting to spend money on ourselves. I asked my husband about switching to a little bit later schedule. If he is home to get my fourth child off to school, then I could sleep in. It might be January before that happens, but it might be possible. I'm not sure why I didn't think about that before! Thanks, ladies! I'm appreciating the help.

Dawn phenomenon... Sometimes it happens, sometimes it doesn't. We have to make daily changes to her pump settings because she's all over the place. Last night it didn't happen and the pump was set for it. If I wasn't awake to watch her numbers, the basal increase at 3:00 would have caused her to drop quickly. If I lower the basal settings and dawn phenomenon happens tonight, she'll be above 300 around 5:00. There's no consistency and no good answer. Sometimes I wish we could go back to no pump and no CGM. We did 2 years without the technology. It didn't catch that quick drop last month and she ended up in the hospital with neurological issues, even after the low was treated.

So many helpful replies, thank you. I'll try to respond in one post. Napping... I involuntarily nap every day :) Sitting still too long = falling asleep. My kids are old enough to do a bit of their work on their own. That's the only reason anything is getting done right now. We are falling behind in math because they need me to do it with them. The suggestion to exercise might be helpful for me and the kids, it's something we can do together that doesn't involve me laying in bed. I don't even have a GP because I haven't been to a regular doctor in many years. The last time I saw a doctor was a couple years ago in the ER, for an ulcer. My T1D child is very unpredictable with blood sugar numbers, especially at night. They are also hypo unaware at night, meaning they can drop really fast and not feel it. We just had a hospital stay last month because of a dangerous low. They are on a Dexcom continuous glucose monitor (CGM), so I watch TV while keeping an eye on the CGM numbers at night. Around 4:00 am, the numbers stabilize and I can go to sleep. It hasn't always been this way - I suspect we are at the beginning of hormones that will wreak havoc on blood sugar for the next several years. Diabetes sucks... I know I mother my husband, I have done it for 17 years. He's the whatever-you-want-dear kind of husband. Letting go and giving him some of the nights... I think my blood pressure just went up a bit just thinking about it. I'll give it a try Saturday night, see how we all survive.

I am in my second year of homeschooling and I feel like I am failing my kids. I know I am capable and I have all of the curriculum we need. It's more like I'm failing them with no energy, no motivation. I went pretty deep into depression this summer - I have abandonment issues and someone very important in my life moved away. I was able to pull out of the deepest part of it when I found my daughter lying in her bed crying. She's only 8, so she couldn't articulate why she was sad other than to say she missed me. It was like a punch in the gut. At that point, I looked into counseling. Due to other medical costs, we can't afford it. The money is not there. I'm not crying all the time anymore. I still spend most of my time in my room watching TV because anything else is too much to deal with. My darling husband tries his best to pick up the slack around the house, but he doesn't know how to help. I am up every night monitoring the blood sugar of my child with Type 1 diabetes, getting barely 3 hours sleep most nights. This has been going on for months, I'm sure it's part of the problem. I can't expect my husband to do that because he has to be at work at 7:00. He's completely willing, and he has taken over on some nights when my body just gives up. I need him to be able to go to work and function - basically, I need him to feel better than I do. I know putting the kids back in school would help, but there are reasons that's not the best thing for two of the three homeschooled kids. One has Type 1 diabetes (blood sugar was uncontrollable while at school), one has emotional issues from bullying while in public school (very sensitive, I worry about depression if sent back). I feel so crappy because I have the best kids and husband a woman could ask for. I'm exhausted, emotionally worn out, and I can't see a way out of this hole I'm in. Maybe strangers on the internet can see something in this that I can't...

Our kids (one teen, the rest are younger) couldn't think of anything that they really wanted for Christmas. I think they know we are in purge mode right now, trying to get as close to minimalist as we can get with 4 kids (most minimalists would laugh at our attempt). We decided last night to take our first family vacation as everyone's Christmas present. We're going to see grandparents in Arizona, then going to San Diego for a couple of days. It's not much, but they are happy to be going somewhere.

I agree! As a parent of a diabetic child, I know you can learn anything to help your child. If someone had asked me two years ago if I could stick a needle in my child, I would have looked at them like they were nuts. There is something about your child being in a crisis that erases all doubt and fear about jabbing a needle deep into their thigh! We have to buy Glucagon kits in case of a severe low. They cost a little over $300 each. We have to put saline into a vial with powdered solution, mix it up, then draw a certain amount into the syringe and jab the needle into the muscle of her thigh. We have to do this while our child is unconscious/unresponsive and while we are very likely panicking. I think parents of kids with allergies are not being given enough credit by saying they need a pen that does it all for them. I can understand having a pen on hand for someone other than a parent who may not have been trained, but parents are very capable when they know their child's life is on the line.

I wanted another after our last one. For about two years, I was so angry that I had my tubes tied during the c-section. Now, we know our third has a disability and our fourth has type 1 diabetes, both autoimmune diseases. We are holding our breath, hoping that none of the other kids gets type 1 diabetes. The thought of having any more scares me. We are only given as much as we can handle... I think we are there!

I have 4 kids and have been thinking about homeschooling for awhile. We just took the plunge this year. Looking forward to getting to know everyone on here!

We always say to the kids, "Do what you have to before you do what you want to." They have one main chore that must be done during the day (dishes, trash, living room, etc). Our kids have pretty unlimited access to their tablets, Xbox, and TV after that, but only 1 hour on the computer (the computer is the only place they have access to the internet, we locked them out on their tablets). They can earn more time on the computer by doing extra chores. During the school year, they can't play anything until school work is done. They also get outside to play or take walks as a family every day. I haven't been great about limiting screen time (something about avoiding the noise and mess created by them if they aren't on their tablets), but I think we've done okay with making sure they get moving most days. I think to create the balance you are looking for, you need to decide what is important for you. Chores before computer? Then you don't have to fight him to get moving. Outside activity before computer? He can't be on the computer unless he gives you a couple hours of exercise first. Use his love of the computer to your advantage :)