A Comeback

I was diagnosed type 1 diabetic at age 11. I had nothing but good intentions and truly wanted to take care of my health-especially since I played lots of sports year round and wanted to continue to do so. The problem was that my diabetes wasn't managed very well. I was a stubborn and rebellious child and hid my real glucose numbers from my parents who constantly tried to intervene. Before I knew it I was depressed with diabetes and tried to hide the fact from everyone. I was open about my diabetes but not how I felt about it. My teenage years were especially tough. My A1c was often over 9 and 10% and I couldn't get my blood sugars below 200 most days. I even lost a university soccer scholarship.

Three close friends died my senior year of High School which sent me into an emotional whirlwind aggravated by my unmanaged diabetes.


It wasn't until years later I began changing my thoughts and turning them into positive ones. This didn't happen over night but I got better and better at it over time. I also began changing my eating and exercise habits. I ate healthier and exercised more and along with my new attitude I began to morph into another person.

My doctors were shocked by my blood tests. My cholesterol and entire lipid profile normalized, my blood pressure went down to normal, and my A1c dropped to a 6%.

Since, I've worked harder and harder at tweaking my management and now maintain an A1c of around 5%.

Honestly, the biggest influence for my health "turnaround" was my change in attitude. I finally learned to accept my diabetes and accept that I had to live a little differently from others. Accepting what had to be done for my health enabled me to do what I needed to do.

In 2009 I gave birth to healthy twin babies and it hit me: diabetes doesn't have to stop me from doing what I want. It makes things more challenging that's for certain, but it doesn't make things impossible.

In fact, using diabetes as motivation is what I live by now. I use it to motivate me to try hard at everything I do. Diabetes is a major pain in the rear so I've got to make it be an advantage to me somehow ;)