When Inez Ribera was diagnosed with diabetes in 1995, she didn’t know much about the disease or how to manage it. The doctor she was seeing at the time would monitor her diabetes and offered little information on what she could do to control it.
Ribera and her family moved to Corvallis from Colorado in 1989 and she later became a patient of Dr. Mark Rampton at Corvallis Family Medicine. In 2009 Ribera had a retina scare caused by her diabetes, which motivated her to take control of her disease.
She joined several classes and support groups offered by Samaritan Health Services, including the Living Well with Chronic Conditions workshop and Diabetes Support Group at Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center. Through these events, Ribera learned techniques to manage her diabetes and built a network of others with diabetes. Ribera has learned to read food labels, create an action plan and keep a journal to track her progress.
“Journaling helps me think about things differently,” shared Ribera. “I am able to understand my triggers and set goals.”
Ribera has attended these events several times and has formed friendships with other participants.
“We form walking groups, which motivates us and hold us accountable by each other,” stated Ribera.
The Diabetes Support Group meets monthly at Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center and offers discussions on different topics with providers. To learn more about the Diabetes Support Group, or to attend the next meeting, visit samhealth.org/Diabetes.