SAN ANTONIO – Amputation is just one of the serious results of diabetes. According to Metro Health, nearly 2,000 people in Bexar County had an amputation due to diabetes in 2014.
Mary Agnes Rodriguez, a prominent West Side artist and community activist, was one of those people.
Rodriguez said drawing, music and painting has always been a part of her life. Over the past 20 years, she has painted more than a dozen murals around San Antonio. Most of her work documents social justice issues.
As a clarinet player, she used to be active in the San Antonio Community Marching Band.
In 2005, a lot changed for Rodriguez after she discovered a blister on her foot. When it didn’t heal, she went to the doctor and was told she had diabetes.
Throughout the years, Rodriguez dealt with the disease and tried her best to manage it.
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It was years later that diabetes would affect Rodriguez again. In 2014, she found out she had Charcot bone disease. Also known as diabetic foot, the disease caused the bones in her foot to fracture due to nerve damage. Charcot bone disease later led to an amputation from the knee down for Rodriguez.
While in the hospital, she said art and music kept her going and inspired her to continue to her work.
“It really did help, and it still helps,” Rodriguez said. “It keeps you going.”
After getting out of the hospital, Rodriguez continued her mural work and community activism. She is now advocating for others battling diabetes and encourages them to be healthy.
“I do tell people, ‘I’m not preaching on you, but take care of yourself,'” Rodriguez said.