Supreme Court Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor discusses her diabetes in new memoir

As a young child with a diabetes diagnosis, Sonia Sotomayor knew that she would have an uphill battle--but she was prepared to face it on her own.

In My Beloved World, Sotomayor's personal memoir that is set to be published Tuesday, she details the struggles of growing up as a diabetic with an alcoholic father and a distant mother. At seven years old, she would give herself daily insulin injections before heading off to school, prepared to tackle her problems all by herself.

Sharing a collective struggle

The book doesn't involve content about her time on the Supreme Court. Instead, it reveals personal stories about how battling diabetes almost took her life--more than once.

“There are so many people with pieces of my story that they identify with and give them hope," Sotomayor said about why she wrote the book. “I needed to honor that expectation in some way, and (show) it was a role that could be important for a Supreme Court justice.”

Sotomayor reveals that she never had children for fear that she wouldn't be around long enough to raise them, and she also notes instances when she blacked out due to blood sugar imbalances. One situation found her unconscious in a hotel room, where friends discovered her.

Changes for the better

Sotomayor says that monitoring her health has become more routine for her now that she's older. She's also no longer concerned about dying prematurely.

“When I reached 50, I was able to let go of that demon,” Sotomayor said in an interview in her court chambers. “But not without recognizing its benefits. It drove me in a way that perhaps nothing else might have to accomplish as much as I could as early as possible.”

Source: Charlotte Observer