Jennifer Stone is forever beloved for her role as Alex Russo's BFF Harper on Wizards of Waverly Place and it's no secret the cast really became such a family off-screen too. Our hearts all melted when they all reunited at David Henrie's wedding and now, Jennifer is speaking about how her friendship with Selena Gomez has inspired her to be more open and honest about a deeply personal issue in her own life.
Talking to International Business Times, Jennifer explained why she felt it was time for her to discuss the fact that she has Type 1 Diabetes, something she announced to fans on her Instagram account in the beginning on November. She 100% felt inspired by her longtime friend Selena's bravery to be so open about her lupus diagnosis and kidney transplant, so that's why the actress is ready to share her health journey now too.
"It always inspires me the way people are transparent about the challenges and the things they face in their life. I feel with social media, and the digital age we live in, I feel like everyone is used to sharing their highlight reel rather than the difficult things we go through," Jennifer said about how proud she was of Selena. "I was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes at 20 and it was really rough at first. I thought that my life was going to change drastically. I met a lot of doctors who told me, 'You’re going to have to quit acting, you can’t act. You’re going to have to move back to Texas.' I was devastated and then I reached the point where I was like, 'Screw that, that’s not the life I want for myself and I don’t accept that, and I’m not going to let this disease tell me what I can and can’t do with my life.' If I don’t want to be an actor anymore, I’m going to decide that. I’m not going to let this decide for me."
Now that is the right attitude to have! Jennifer wasn't going to let anything get in the way of her dreams and while diabetes is something she will have for the rest of her life, that doesn't mean she needs to stop doing what it is she loves most.
"I worked hard with my doctors, and I still work hard every day, the disease never goes away. And that’s why I wanted to come forward with this. I know that there’s a lot of people that suffer from Type 1 and Type 2, but I know with Type 1 there’s still a lot of research that needs to be done," she said.
So she's using her platform to clearly raise awareness and let people know you she's not only doing so well but provide hope for others out there who might just be getting diagnosed themselves. It's great to see how Selena's positive outlook on her health journey truly influences so many people and knowing these two still have such a close bond is the sweetest.
They're making Alex and Harper oh so proud.
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