My Struggle with DKA (Diabetic Ketoacidosis) and Alcohol

Diabetic Ketoacidosis is a life threatening condition that diabetics get when they don't get enough insulin. It is most common in Type 1 diabetics but occasionally happens in Type 2 diabetics. Severe cases of DKA, can result in death. Below is a link from wikipedia. It explains DKA better than I can!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diabetic_Ketoacidosis

As a diabetic, I have been told to not drink alcohol at all. I was told, "You will die if you drink alcohol." I am very stubborn, so of course I did not listen. I saw other people with diabetes drink and they never got sick or anything. So, through high school, I would drink a beer here and there. I never got drunk, just had an occasional beer with friends. Nothing happened to me. I never got sick or anything. My blood sugar went up a little bit but nothing a little insulin couldn't fix.
I think I was a junior in high school. A friend and I were invited to a party. I had never been to an actual party, so I was excited and of course I went. I hate the taste of beer. I guess that's why I never drank much of it. So, that night, I was drinking Mountain Dew and Malibu. Each one of those drinks, was loaded with sugar! I did my best to bolus (give myself insulin through my insulin pump) and check my sugar frequently. Well, after a couple of those drinks, I was completely trashed. After awhile, I was not in my right mind to check my blood sugar or give myself insulin. I ended up throwing up that night, and passing out on someone's couch. (not one of my proudest moments)
The next morning when I woke up, I didn't feel terrible but of course I didn't feel great either. My friend and I ended up going back to her house and falling asleep. Before I even fell asleep, I was throwing up. I thought to myself, "I will go to sleep and wake up feeling better. I'm just hung over." I threw up about once every 30 minutes for about 2 hours. Then, it got to the point where I couldn't even keep gatorade or water down. The minute anything got in my stomach, I was throwing up. On top of that, my blood was almost 500. My gut feeling was telling me something was wrong.
Before I tell the rest of the story, let me just say me and my Mom had an arguement the night before about what time I was to be home that night, and about how I was not staying the night anywhere that night. Of course, the hard headed person I am, argued with her and eventually she let me stay at my friends house that night...but we never made it to my friends house that night because we were both drunk. So, before I go any further, my mom knew what was going to happen that night and she wanted me to be home at a certain time. But like most parents of teenagers, she gave in and let me do what I want.
Anyway, when my gut feeling was telling me something was wrong, I knew I had to call my mom. I was so scared she was going to be mad but I knew I was really sick. Surprisingly, she wasn't mad when I called her. She was concerned but not mad. She immediately told me to get to the hospital. My friend took me to the ER and my Mom met us there. I couldn't even go the 10 minute drive without throwing up. By the time I got to the hospital, I was so sick. Every inch of my body was in pain. The doctor gave me some medicine for the nausea and that pain. At first, the medicine wasn't enough to keep me from throwing up so I was given more. I threw up so much that morning, that I was just gagging. Nothing was coming out of my stomach anymore.
I was admitted to the Critical Care Unit. I'm not sure if I was drugged up, sick or both, but I couldn't stay awake long enough to have a conversation with anyone. I was in the hospital for a night before they released me. The doctor wanted me to stay in there longer because my pulse was still high but I refused.
Thinking back on those few days, I feel so incredibly guilty. I almost died. I put my parents and myself through a lot of pain that was not nececssary. I should have listened to my Mom when she told me to come home that night but I didn't. I still drink occasionally (yes, even though I'm not 21. But that's not the point). When I do drink, I check my blood sugar OFTEN. I give myslef extra insulin just to be on the safe side. Since then, I have not gotten trashed. Even drinking just one drink now, scares me. If my blood sugar reaches 300 or even 250 while I am drinking, I immediatley stop. I don't care if I just poured a drink. Someone else can drink it or I will pour out.
Going through that experience made me realize how serious DKA really is. Since then, when I get ketones or my blood sugar is high, I take care of it immediately or try to anyway. Sometimes, I still end up in the ER. But since that day, I have never been that sick again. I'm not saying that it won't happen again, but I know that if there is a next time, it will not be my fault.