sweats, belly fat, lethargy and diabetes

I've a son by proxy who suffers many symptons with his Type I diabetes.  Chief among them in last five years:  depression.  Most recently I've become worried about his heart.  I'm probably a terrible parent in assuming so much of his responsibility to manage his life.  At 27, his couch and television are his only true friends.  Am I about to watch his many symptoms converge to bring about heart disease?  Who can help an emotionally and physically exhausted father by proxy since the young man's alcoholic biological parents won't or can't?

[JDRF-Team-gg]

Hi tvincent!  I am not a medical professional, just a volunteer with a 19 year old daughter who was diagnosed at the age of 21 months.  Thankfully, we have not dealt with depression up to this point but depression is not uncommon when dealing with diabetes.  Your son should be seeing a medical professional for both his diabetes and his emotional needs.  You are not a terrible parent.  I am sure that it pains you to see him be inactive.  At 27, your son is an adult and if he isn't taking proper care of himself, perhaps his depression is stopping him from doing what he needs to be doing for himself to be healthy.

I hope that you can find support through Medhelp and the many volunteers it takes to run it and the terrific people who share their life experiences with us also.  You know there might be someone out there who is dealing with similar circumstances that you are and can suggest ways to help you deal with this situation.  I also want to steer you to The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF).  You can reach them on their website at www.jdrf.org.  They are a terrific source of support for the whole family.  I hope you'll consider checking out their website and reaching out to them.  Please let us know how everyone is doing & good luck to you.

[JDRF-Team-LRS]

TVincent,
When you visit the JDRF website, look for the link to the Online Diabetes Support Team (ODST).  There's you'll be able to connect more personally with folks in your area who have gone thru (or are going thru) similar situations.  As GG pointed out, the folks there are very supportive & knowledgeable.

Good luck.  Your son is lucky to have you in his life.  With the chaos that two alcoholic parents can bring to a child, it's not surprising that this fellow lacks the confidence or competence to face life's challenges and to enjoy it.  With help & support, like what you're offering, he has chance to be and to feel better.