SPR I NG 2019 / DI A BETIC LI V ING 51
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nowing what to do for your diabetes care and
doing it are sometimes two very different things.
Just ask Stephanie Brown, PWD type 2, from
Suffolk, Virginia. Two years ago, Brown was
overwhelmed with her day-to-day diabetes care tasks: she
frequently forgot to take her evening medications, ate large
portions, and had trouble planning her meals.
At the suggestion of her diabetes educator, Brown created
a personal wellness vision to help her find her motivation.
“I painted a vivid picture of how I wanted to show up in the
world,” she says. To create her vision, Brown tapped into
what matters most to her. She realized she wanted to live with
self-awareness and take pride in living a healthful life. She val-
ued being a role model to her children and grandchildren and
spending active time with them. Here is the vision she created:
I enjoy eating healthfully and exercising. I’m
comfortable in my clothes and enjoy spending time
outside. I’m confident that I’m taking care of myself,
and I look good. I have energy. I spin on my heels and
feel like a million bucks. My diabetes is in good control
because I’m actively engaged in my health care.
Writing out her personal wellness vision gave her a clear
and motivating picture of being healthy, feeling energized, and
living a healthful life. “It was the first time that I was clear on
what I wanted,” Brown says. She now understands that staying
on track with her health goals isn’t a simple matter of having
a good plan and doubling down on willpower—it’s having an
established vision of what she wants.
“A wellness vision allows you to focus on you,” she says. “It
becomes easier to say no to things that creep into your life and
have the power to derail you from your goals.” Brown’s vision
guides her decisions about taking medications, fitting in exer-
cise, planning meals, packing snacks, and more. “Today, every-
thing still centers around that vision,” says Brown.
Brown’s personal wellness vision still hangs on her refrig-
erator nearly two years after she first created it. “It keeps me
motivated to continue my health journey without getting frus-
trated and quitting, which had been my prior behavior,” she
explains. And there’s proof in the numbers. The goals and be-
havior changes born of Brown’s wellness vision have brought
her A1C down from 8 percent to 6.2 percent. Ready to try it
yourself? Turn the page to create your own.
What does it feel like to be the
healthiest version of yourself?
Putting together a personal
wellness vision can help you
find out.
BY JILL WEISENBERGER, M.S., RDN, CDE, CHWC, FAND
ILLUSTRATIONS BY BONNIE DAIN
