It started out as a great summer, but by the end of July, Alyssa, just 13, was having headaches and her mouth was really sore. We went to a dr who diagnosed her with thrush. I questioned it but he was confident and gave us a prescription. 10 days later the prescription was gone and the thrush came back so back to the dr we went. Another bottle of the same stuff. The hot summer and the thrush made Alyssa very thirsty, therefore she was using the bathroom a lot. And she was in a growth spurt too, apparently, as she seemed to be getting skinnier and was a bit clumsy. She's going to be tall and skinny like her mom, is what everyone said. The second prescription ran out and Alyssa really wasn't feeling well. Back to the drs, This doctor sent us for bloodwork and then we went to the mall to buy new clothes for Alyssa. All of her pants were literally falling off of her. The girl who could usually out lap me at the mall couldn't even do one wing.

Shortly after the mall, the dr called us to come back to his office ASAP. Her blood glucose was very high and she had lost 20 lbs in 2 weeks. He sent us directly to the kid's ward at the hospital. I was not expecting what I heard. All I remember hearing was "critical condition" "no cure" "for the rest of her life". She was in the hospital for 10 days. I cried a lot. A lot. All those signs that were blamed on other things! I didn't see my 2.5 yr old who had to stay home with dad much those 10 days. But 4 years later Alyssa is ok. We volunteer with JDRF and she has raised almost $4000 for it. She is active with her friends and little sister. It's a struggle at times and it's not the life I imagined for my girl, but she's winning this battle. And I thank God every day to still have her with us.

Trixie Sylvester
Kelowna, Canada