{"id":70827,"date":"2026-04-15T13:45:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-15T20:45:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/?p=70827"},"modified":"2026-04-13T13:42:32","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T20:42:32","slug":"sweet-home-woman-transforms-her-health-while-managing-diabetes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/news\/sweet-home-woman-transforms-her-health-while-managing-diabetes\/","title":{"rendered":"Sweet Home Woman Transforms Her Health While Managing Diabetes"},"content":{"rendered":"<article class=\"article\">\n\t<header class=\"header\">\n\t\t<span class=\"type\"><\/span>\t\t<h1>Sweet Home Woman Transforms Her Health While Managing Diabetes<\/h1>\t\t<time>April 15, 2026<\/time>\n\t<\/header>\n\t<div id=\"block_8b84fa8b69e0dfd0e9f6b8c4e1fe4429\" class=\"shs-block block-news-article entry-content\">\n\t\t<div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"acf-innerblocks-container\">\n\n<p>When Shelli Baxter was first diagnosed with diabetes at age 54, she was devastated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt runs in my family \u2014 but hearing it from my doctor in Brownsville hit hard,\u201d she recalled. \u201cI was upset. But I told myself, \u2018I got this. I can do this. I\u2019m a human being. I can do things that are good for me.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Taking Control of Diabetes<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>When Baxter first met with Heidi Womack, RN, a certified diabetes care and education specialist with <a href=\"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/find-a-location\/samaritan-lebanon-community-hospital-diabetes-education\/\">Samaritan Lebanon Community Hospital &#8211; Diabetes Education<\/a>, her A1C was 11.2. Just two months later, it had jumped to over 14. Diet and exercise weren\u2019t enough and oral medications made her sick. She started insulin therapy and used a continuous glucose monitor to see how food and activity affected her blood sugar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cOnce my blood sugars came down, I could exercise more and make dietary changes to lower them even further,\u201d Baxter said. \u201cI\u2019ve learned to control stress which helps keep my blood pressure down too.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cShelli has worked extremely hard and has a great attitude,\u201d Womack said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Now, at age 57, Baxter is at the cusp of her A1C being below 7, in the normal range.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Maintaining a Healthy A1C<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve lost weight, feel good and am exercising more,\u201d she said. \u201cI watch what I eat. Whether diabetic or not, it\u2019s good for you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI work with great folks at Safeway who are part of my support system,\u201d she said. Her husband Denis embraces her healthy eating which includes lots of salads and veggies. \u201cI could eat other things, but I know myself. If I start on bread, I\u2019ll want more,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI drink lots of water, but I do like my Diet Pepsi and coffee now and then,\u201d Baxter added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>According to Womack, it is easy to feel overwhelmed when you have a chronic condition. \u201cShelli focuses on what she does each day and that adds up to great outcomes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re a team,\u201d Baxter said of Womack. \u201cShe tells me, \u2018You\u2019re doing great, Shelli. You got this.\u2019 We laugh and talk at every visit.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Baxter doesn\u2019t drive, but she makes sure to keep all her appointments. She goes to the gym, uses the treadmill and bike, and listens to music while she works out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Baxter\u2019s health is stable \u2014 her kidneys and feet are in good shape. She gets her eyes checked annually, takes a statin to manage cholesterol, and keeps up with blood pressure and lab tests. She\u2019s reduced her insulin dose and may be able to stop taking it soon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Her advice: \u201cIf you or a family member has diabetes, stand by them. Think positive. It\u2019s a struggle, but we\u2019re all in this together. You got this.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Recommended Diabetes Health Checks<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Diabetes occurs when your blood sugar is too high \u2014 a result of pancreas dysfunction. To monitor your health, stay on top of these tests:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>A1C: Blood test for blood sugar (every three or six months).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>ACR (albumin to creatinine ratio): Urine test for kidney function (yearly).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Dilated eye exam: (every year or two).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>eGFR (estimated glomerular filtration rate): Blood test for kidney function (yearly).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Lipid panel: Blood test for cholesterol (frequency varies).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Other tests your provider may recommend may include ankle\u2011brachial index (checks blood flow to legs\/feet), blood pressure, bone density scan and body mass index.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Learn more about these health checks at <a href=\"https:\/\/diabetes.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">diabetes.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<aside>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"360\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/309-H2H-Diabetes-Shelli-Baxter-patient-story-0925_0260.jpg\" class=\"attachment-cta size-cta wp-post-image\" alt=\"Shelli Baxter of Sweet Home sitting sideways on a bench smiling for photo shoot to highlight her diabetes journey.\" srcset=\"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/309-H2H-Diabetes-Shelli-Baxter-patient-story-0925_0260.jpg 360w, https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/309-H2H-Diabetes-Shelli-Baxter-patient-story-0925_0260-300x250.jpg 300w, https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/309-H2H-Diabetes-Shelli-Baxter-patient-story-0925_0260-120x100.jpg 120w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 360px) 100vw, 360px\" \/><\/figure>\t\t<\/aside>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Diagnosed with diabetes at 54, Shelli Baxter took control of her health with support from a dedicated care team. Through diabetes education, lifestyle changes and consistent care, she significantly lowered her A1C and improved her overall well\u2011being.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":70831,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_searchwp_excluded":"","_shs_workflow_notes":"","_shs_exclude_from_navigation":false,"_shs_promote_article_on_blogs":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"news-topics":[285],"news-types":[270],"services":[233],"specialty":[],"class_list":["post-70827","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","news-topics-patient-story","news-types-feature-article","services-diabetes"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70827","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/17"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=70827"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70827\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":70833,"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70827\/revisions\/70833"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/70831"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=70827"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=70827"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=70827"},{"taxonomy":"news-topics","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-topics?post=70827"},{"taxonomy":"news-types","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-types?post=70827"},{"taxonomy":"services","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/services?post=70827"},{"taxonomy":"specialty","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/specialty?post=70827"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}