Kayla's Cool Medical ID Bracelet

When my sister Beth called to tell me the news, I was shocked. No one in our family had ever been diagnosed with diabetes. How could it be that her 12-year-old daughter Kayla has diabetes? “Isn’t that a disease for old folks?” I thought.

If you are like me, you don’t pay much attention to something until it hits close to home, so I have to admit I really did not understand what it all meant. We are a pretty close-knit family, so the whole clan went through a kind of crash course in juvenile diabetes so that we could support Kayla and her family.

While Beth and family bears the brunt of the responsibility for her care, as her loving aunt, I want to do all I can to help her lead as normal and happy a life as possible. One thing I know is that Kayla already feels awkward when she is at the center of attention for this, at home and at school. She’d rather people paid attention to her for her other qualities, such as her extraordinary friendliness and budding artistic abilities.

So when she told me she hated how other kids were always asking her about the rather institutional-looking metal medical ID bracelet that she now must wear, I sympathized immediately. She was toying with the idea of leaving it at home on school days.

But as I had learned, all diabetics must wear a medical ID bracelet or necklace. In an emergency situation, 95% of medical personnel check for these IDs. It can save their lives. Like a lot of adolescents, she’s a whiz at the computer, so we sat down together to discover what the options are for medical alert jewelry.

We were delighted to find a wide variety of choices. Kayla immediately took to the ones I’ll call “designer’s choice” for their use of color, materials and design. She picked out two fashionable mesh versions, in turquoise and violet. I also bought two necklaces with juvenile diabetes awareness pendants, one for me and one for Beth.

When the package with the medical bracelet arrived, I invited Beth and Kayla for a special “Girls Only” lunch date for the debut. It was a truly special moment that I will never forget. Seeing Kayla smile as she let me fasten the medical bracelet on her wrist touched me to the core, even more than the hug and thanks.

The really cool thing? Kayla tells me that the other girls did indeed start asking her about her stylish medical ID bracelet—and this time because they wanted one for themselves! And I feel great knowing that I was able to help my precious niece in a small but important way.