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By Paul Lecker
MarshfieldAreaSports.com
MARSHFIELD – “It could be worse.”
That is quite a statement from a 17-year-old high school junior who has had to deal with Type 1 diabetes every day for the past 8½ years.
Marshfield girls soccer standout Alison Gruen was a nine-year-old third-grader at Lincoln Elementary School when her sister, Emily, found out she had diabetes. Nine months later, Alison said she was always thirsty and didn’t have a lot of energy. Her family feared she may have the disease as well, so she took her sister’s blood glucose monitor and gave herself a test. It showed a 300 reading (70 to 100 is normal), so she knew something was wrong.
Now, Gruen wears an insulin pump all of the time, except for when she is playing sports, and has to check her blood sugar six to eight times a day.
“You get kind of used to it,” Gruen said. “It’s an everyday thing. I kind of remember what it was like before. I can eat sweets – that is something that people always think you can’t do. You just have to watch how much. I love chocolate, so it’s hard. I have to count my carbs and I am kind of used to it now where I don’t have to measure out my cereal or anything anymore.”
When her two daughters were diagnosed with diabetes, Alison’s mother Catherine started riding in Junior Diabetes Research Foundation bike rides around the country. When Alison turned 13, she could join her and they have taken part in fundraiser bike rides in Death Valley, Calif., and in La Crosse in recent years.
On Friday, the Marshfield girls soccer team will do its part to raise money for JDRF. During the game against Chippewa Falls, which starts at 5 p.m. at Griese Park, gift baskets donated from area businesses will be up for silent auction, and a raffle will be held for an iPod Shuffle – organized by Alison’s mom Catherine.
“A lot of teams do fundraisers for breast cancer research, but we wanted to do something more connected to our team,” said Alison, a first-team all-Wisconsin Valley Conference selection last year after scoring four goals for the Tigers.
Gruen said it has been difficult playing soccer. Stress from school, being nervous, having a lot of adrenaline can all force her blood sugar levels to spike.
“If it’s high, I have to take insulin,” she said. “If it’s above 300, I am supposed to sit out of games, but I never do. Last year we went to double overtime in one of our playoff games and my level of ketones was really high. That causes dehydration and after I got really sick. It’s a constant battle, but I can’t complain. There is a lot of good technology out there so it’s not horrible. It’s easy enough to live with.”