This story was originally published in the 2022 Midland Magazine.

The spirit of helping others was instilled in Sharlay Michel (Butler) at a young age. It was instilled by a single mother, trying to raise a young family in the most difficult situation.

A 2010 Midland University graduate, Michel grew up with adversity that strengthened her resolve to one day help people on her own. As an OB-GYN Doctor at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and instructor at Harvard Medical School in Boston, Massachusetts, Michel is working hard to ensure a healthy and safe environment for others. It was a luxury she didn't often have while growing up.

“I grew up on the Coeur d’ Alene Indian Reservation in Idaho, caring for my siblings while my mom worked and attended night school,” Michel said. “We lived in subsidized housing and ate government foods like powdered eggs, milk, and multifunctional tomato substances. I learned early on what it meant to live on variable and limited resources as we relied on food banks, second-hand stores, and church potlucks to get by.”

Her family's struggles took an even worse turn when Michel entered high school as her mother became ill and was unable to work. “I came to understand how illness could devastate a family, especially one already living on the margins,” she said. “We lost everything and spent the year transitioning between temporary housing options, everything from a camper to a highway motel.”

Two things kept Michel focused during these difficult times - her education and basketball. It was her talents on the basketball court that would eventually land her a scholarship to Midland, and a chance to make an impact for herself and others. “My education provided me the tools to begin to understand the complex continuum of illness and disease,” Michel said. “Basketball taught me patience, perseverance, humility, and the confidence to bounce back after failure. A scholarship reinforced my faith that hard work could be the key to transcending any circumstance.”

She arrived at Midland because of basketball, but left with so much more. “I came to Midland to play basketball, but it was the people that made Midland feel like home,” she said. “Whether it was on the court, in the classroom, or through student organizations, I made lifelong friends who have become like family. I still keep in touch with some of my professors as well as many classmates and teammates, some of whom came to my wedding!”

After graduating from Midland Summa Cum Laude with a degree in Biology, Michel attended the University of Washington School of Medicine, becoming a Doctor of Medicine in 2015. She completed her residency at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. In September of 2021, she began her work at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, as well as starting her teaching career at Harvard.

As someone who grew up not always knowing where her next meal would come from, Michel has worked hard to emphasize the importance of nutrition. “I was old enough to see my mom rationing food or foregoing meals so that my siblings had more to eat,” she said. “Nutrition is a form of medicine, and I think it’s crucial to consider the roles that diet plays as a modifier of health issues we’re trying to address. Eating healthy can seem daunting on a budget, or if you don’t have access to regular meals. I try hard to educate patients about how to select healthy foods, the importance of good nutrition, and how to do that within the context of their social and cultural circumstances.”

During her first year of medical school, Michel organized a field trip to a food bank for first-year medical students, hoping to have them gain a better understanding of the food insecurity that so many people in America face. Michel and her classmates then developed a free nutrition seminar for patients at a local clinic and would eventually distribute a cookbook called “Delicious and Nutritious” that included easy recipes for low income families and would feature items that could be obtained at local food banks.

“I think it’s very important to not only treat an illness, but to help patients stay well,” she said. “Our cookbook included information on how to read nutrition labels, recognize hidden harms in food, and include a list of healthy ingredients to substitute into recipes to make them healthier. By learning about food banks and creating recipes from ingredients there, it helped others to think about what they donate to food banks, and how that might make sense for a meal.”

Michel is embracing the mix of medicine and education and is excited for the prospect of continuing to serve others in a variety of ways moving forward. “Medical education is one of my distinct interests, and I am committed to teaching students in the Massachusetts General Hospital-Brigham and Women’s Hospital program,” she said. “As an Academic OB-GYN and reproductive disease specialist, I’d like to maintain a blended academic and community-based clinical practice. “My research focus will continue to center on how to bridge the gaps between research, policy, and clinical practice to improve reproductive health outcomes.”

Michel has been married to Dr. Eriberto Michel since 2017, and the couple has one young daughter. She is grateful for the opportunity to impact people's lives in many meaningful ways. “I’ve always had a desire to help people, and when I first came to Midland, I thought I would be helping people in the capacity of law as a pre-law major,” she said. “However, my interests in biological sciences, social justice, and helping people ideally suited me for a career in medicine. I love that my specialty allows me to engage in all of those things through surgery, advocacy, and general obstetrics and gynecology care.”

Michel was recognized by Midland with the Outstanding Young Alumni Award in 2017. She is grateful not only for the opportunity Midland presented her, but the influence it continues to make in her personal and professional life. “Some of my happiest memories are from my time at Midland,” she said. “I would not be the physician, educator, and researcher that I am now without those formative experiences and relationships at Midland.”