To passers-by, she probably looked like a bored or pouting child, sitting there staring straight ahead and clutching a giant bottle of soda. To me, she looked like a sick kid fighting back tears and fighting to stay focused on the moment.
We were in the store about an hour when it hit: a bad low. The kind that comes out of nowhere and causes Rosie's eyes to be "fuzzy" in a matter of seconds. She went from chatting and laughing to the verge of tears in about 30 seconds. Her Dex showed her in the 70's and dropping, but she told me she knew she was already lower than that. I normally have glucose in my purse, but I was out-- in fact, there was a bottle at the bottom of our cart waiting to be purchased. The lines at the check-outs were insanely long.
I decided to buy Rosie a soda through the self-check lanes (which had the shortest lines) and have her sit by the nail salon until I could join her. I abandoned my cart, rushed through the self-check line, and settled Rosie in with her bottle of soda. She took several big swigs and sat, staring blankly ahead. I asked her if she'd be ok if I went and got in line, and she said yes. I could see her from my place in line, but she wasn't seeing me-- she had that "zombie stare" that she gets when she's really out of it. I don't think a wait in line has ever seemed so long to me.
I finally get through the line, rush over to Rosie, and sit down next to her. She immediately tries to crawl in my lap- a sure sign that she's feeling rotten. We sit together and watch the crowd for a while, until she feels strong enough to walk to the car. We make the ten minute drive home and within half an hour she's ready to go play outside with her friends, like nothing ever happened.
There's nothing I hate more than these crazy, out-of-nowhere lows. She feels rotten, and I feel so helpless. What would have been a routine shopping trip for anyone else was turned into a near-emergency situation, and I doubt that most people around us had any clue that anything was wrong.
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Next to the doctor's office, I think some of the best diabetes tips I've ever gotten have come from discussions in the comment sections of diabetes blogs. :)