About

Hello, thank you for stopping by! I’m Ariel and I’ve lived with type 1 diabetes for 12 years. I’m also a native New Yorker, born and raised in a Southern and West-Indian influenced household. I am passionate about resolving issues of educational inequality, deepening my spiritual walk and I have an insane obsession with Broadway shows, concerts and dance. Of course, diabetes is important to me as well.

Five years ago following the passing of my beloved grandmother (a type 2 diabetic), I was desperate to find a compassionate community of diabetics who could empathize with my grief and encourage me to take better care of myself. I also began to critically reflect on my condition and how factors such as race, culture, family and education impacted my perception of diabetes.

In my pursuit of a diabetes tribe and as a black woman, I seldom found individuals who looked like me (And no, I’m not referring to the dexcom-wearing, pump-bearing, meter-toting folk. I found plenty of them/ plenty of us—yayy, Type 1s.) On platforms whose goal it was to raise diabetes awareness, and to educate and support those with this disease, I never understood why the voices of people of color were few and far between. We too, are the face of diabetes. And as statistics reveal, we are also in dire need of support, access, and education.

My hope is that Just A Little Suga’  will begin to address that. By sharing my story, and highlighting other folks of color coping with and tackling diabetes, I hope to establish a community focused on living well. Ultimately, my goal is twofold:

• Motivate myself and others to be resilient in the face of diabetes
• Enlighten the friends/families of diabetics so they’ll be encouraged to better support them

I hope you’ll join me on this journey and understand that life with diabetes is more than Just a Little Suga’.

To learn more about the name, click here.

To check out more posts, click here.