Meet Michelle

Hello, my name is Michelle. I was first diagnosed with diabetes in April 2000. It was the most horrifying moment of my life. My thoughts were about how I am going to manage as I was a big-time junk food eater, and most of the time, I still am.

I have the food police on my trail 24 hours a day. Boy, do they irritate me. I try so hard to maintain. I am a teacher of 39 years teaching preschool. Diabetes is so deep in my family (grandmother, mother, and aunt who is deceased, two aunts, two uncles, two sisters, one cousin, my daughter, and myself are living with diabetes).

It is a struggle. I tend to get stressed over it, being tired of the medication, the needles, and everything else that comes with diabetes. Still have some reservations about it. My life has not been the same since I became diabetic. I've had trauma to my eyes but that's all better now. I was hospitalized in October 2010 due to an infection in my toe that was about to be amputated but that was resolved.

No amputations; prayer is what is keeping me strong. It's by God's grace all thanks to Christ Jesus. When I moved from Philadelphia, PA, to York, PA, my A1C was at 16% and is now at 7.5% and I am working on lowering it more.

I wish there were programs like Step Out^® in all cities. And hopefully, I will be able to attend Step Out this year, start programs in York, PA, and other states, and advocate for diabetes.

I am in the process of opening a community center to help individuals work on taking control of their lives and opening up my own Head Start program. Thank you for allowing me to share my story.