We met Virelle through her son (shoutouts to all the kids out there, looking out for their parents!), who was on the hunt for something to help out his mom when she was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.
When Virelle's son, David, introduced her to One Drop, everything changed.
"I never knew something like One Drop existed. It’s a miracle combination of friends, experts, practical tools, and community. Now, I could track my eating habits (honestly, that was a real eye-opener) and see how I’d gained all this weight. It took nearly six months to lose 13 pounds and my A1C had barely budged. I signed up for test strips and a clinical health coach, Dr. Mark, who was simply excellent. He was honest and kind, extremely helpful and knowledgeable. No one else had as many practical answers.”
And since then, Virelle has been on a roll. She started this journey at a 6.9% A1C at diagnosis; she was exhausted, felt lousy, and assumed her problem was age, weight, and depression.
But after she was given the proper tools and knowledge she needed to better understand and manage her diabetes, Virelle shed 25 pounds in six months, and dropped her A1C down to a healthy 5.9%.
ROCKSTAR STATUS.
It's the Little Things
Beyond the scope of lowering A1C and seeing better numbers, what's all this greatness taught Virelle?
"Little things matter. Little bites, little efforts in the right direction, little words of encouragement from others.”
It really is the little things. And for Virelle, learning that sentiment is worth the journey.
Currently, Virelle is loving retirement!
Now that she's got her blood sugars where she wants them, she's able to take time for herself and her husband of 52 years (!), and travel to see her four grown kids and 11 grandchildren.
With seven published books under her belt, Virelle is finally able to focus on painting. She's loving learning all the new strokes tremendously!
Would she undo her diabetes, given all the obstacles it's caused her?
"I would not undo the challenge, the need to finally discipline my body.”
How cool is that? And true! Because if we're really, truly are attempting to take care of ourselves and better manage our diabetes, we probably are living way better than we ever would be without it.
You can thank Virelle for that positive spin.
