It was 12 days prior to my 21st birthday in 1994. I went to the doctor because I had lost so much weight and was so tired all of the time. I had gotten down to 102 lbs. at 5'3" tall. I had been living 2000 miles away from my family. I was very lost and confused about life all together. I had been working many overtime hours to support and to get the "things" that I wanted out of life. I was drinking cokes all the time, waking up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom, could barely make it up one flight of stairs breathing heavily and calling into work for reasons that I could not explain.The doctor took my blood and a urinalysis and told me it was probably because I had been working too much and to get some rest. I felt that it was more than that. I got a call the next day to come back into the office. The doctor proceeded to tell me that my blood sugar was 418. He told me I had diabetes. I then spent the rest of the day with a diabetes educator learning how to take insulin shots and a little bit about nutrition. That night I cried many tears. I remember thinking that I had a chocolate cake every year for my birthday for as long as I could remember and that I would not be able to have it that year. I grieved for many reasons including that one. I have since made many positive changes in my life, including becoming a nurse and helping many other diabetics. I am now getting ready to turn 40 and anxiously awaiting the cure that will be here in the very near future. :)

Heather Hans
Louisville, KY