I was 13 years old when I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. I didn't know what the word diabetes meant, I didn't have a care in the world besides being a kid! I went for a physical and they found sugar in my urine and told my parents that they needed to run some test just in case. The next day I was pulled out of lunch and told that I had diabetes. I didn't understand what was going on but I cried anyways while my parents argued on where to take me to be treated. When I arrived a the hospital by blood sugar was 667. I'm now 22 years old and it hasn't always been easy. I went through the stage that I believe every teenager goes through. The "I'm not really sick, and I don't care stage" I went a whole year without checking my blood sugar because I thought I was invincible and that I would be fine. I definitely was not with an A1C of 12, but since then I've realized that I want to live my life to the fullest and have learned to control my diabetes. Like my mom always told all of her friend and family members "my daughter really grabbed the bull by the horns when she found out she had diabetes". And she's right, it's not always easy, but this is my life and I wanna live it to the fullest. Diabetes doesn't have to stop you from doing what you love, it's just a bump in the road, take it one day at a time. And one day we will have a cure! I know it! :)

Danielle McCoy
Peoria, AZ