I was diagnosed with T1D in 1986 at age 9. I had never heard of diabetes, so my family and I were on a very rapid, unexpected, crash course. They did everything they could to help – bought me an endless supply of dill pickles, sugar-free jello, diet 7up, as I was told to get used to having little to no sugar. They enthusiastically showed me every issue of “Diabetes Forecast” magazine when it arrived in the mail monthly. I couldn’t relate to any of the stories in it until my mother anxiously showed me the 1987 issue with Bret Michaels on the cover (then considered controversial, haha). But at the time, it meant the world to me. I was a big fan of Poison from my constant listening to the radio back in the day (what else was there to do?!). Finally, I could relate to a distant “someone” I knew of, going through the same daily, mundane routine. Meeting Bret has been on my bucket list for many years, and I finally had the random opportunity back in 2018. He took the time to talk to me about T1, as well as the Poison shows where I’d been in attendance. I look forward to many more shows in the future. Thank you for being such an inspiration to me and others. You are the picture of resilience, self-awareness, and compassion I try to replicate daily for myself and for my family. You are a true T1D hero. All the love, thank you with all my heart. <3

Submitted by Angie

We are continuing to share stories of people living with diabetes as part of our #KnowSurviveThrive campaign. Diabetes awareness is more than just one month, it’s every day. To submit your #KnowSurviveThrive story, visit our Submit Your Story page.