Meg

Meg’s story

“Dancing helps me manage my type 2 diabetes.”

When Meg left the hospital after her diagnosis with type 2 diabetes she struggled with her mental health, but found that her faith and friends helped her move forward and accept her condition.

With the help of her daughter, and her previous training as a nurse, she learnt how to administer her insulin injections and began building more physical activity into her daily life to lift her mood.

Video transcript

I'm Meg. I'm 73 years old and I have type 2 diabetes. I refuse to allow it to dominate me. I refuse to allow it to spoil my life, to take the joy out of my life. Exercise is very important. Family is very important. They insist I come with them to go out for a walk and all these things combined make you a happier person.' 

I dance to exercise. I put on my music and go with the rhythm and wiggling my body. Stretching your muscles motivates you, brings the energy out of you. I don't want to feel self-pity. Otherwise I would have been sitting on this couch feeling sorry for myself. But now I know I am responsible for my own health. And I want the rest of my life to be the best of my life.

How Meg gets moving

Following her diagnosis, Meg began paying more attention to her diet and getting active to keep her diabetes under control. She has since taken up walking with her daughter, meditation, and loves to dance around the kitchen to “anything with a beat” as part of her morning routine.

In the past year, Meg has found that consistent activity has improved her mobility to the point where she is able to regularly babysit her granddaughter, including taking her to dance classes!