The mother of a 10-year-old high school student from Heaton has shown what life has been like since she was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes last year.
Malachy Hatton was diagnosed with the disease last January, and his mother, Tracy Hatton, said it was “a bit of a whirlwind” for twelve months.
She said, “At the beginning of last year we found that Malachy was very thirsty all along and had lost weight. I suspected type 1 diabetes as my sister Carmel lives with the disease, but I’ll be honest, I was really hoping it wasn’t. I am aware of the condition from them, so I know what Malachy is going through.
“He’s had good days and bad. We do our best, but it’s not an exact science when it comes to his condition. He injected up to seven times a day and was afraid of needles, so we had to go through this.
“He handled it pretty well and is pretty resilient and becomes a lot more independent with everything.”
To raise awareness, the St. Bernard’s RC Elementary School student passed his age in January in January and raised £ 2,000 for Diabetes UK in the process.
Malachy had never actually run before, but accepted the challenge when he completed the 10-mile route in January.
He said, “I hope the money raised will help find a cure for type 1 diabetes. Diabetes is a pain and I would like it if other people didn’t have to go through what I have to do. I am very happy with the amount and thankful for the people who sponsored me. I thought we were going to collect about 200 pounds, but wow, it really is a lot more. I’ve never run a lot and hope I can continue like this. ”
Clare Howarth of Diabetes UK said, “We have seen demand for our services reach record levels while our own funding has been significantly affected. People with diabetes need us more than ever, but we need your support to keep fighting their corner.
“We want to thank Malachy and Tracy. Without the help of generous supporters like you, we simply wouldn’t be able to support the thousands of people with diabetes who call our hotline, advocate for the safety of people with diabetes in the workplace, or invest in important research – To take us One step closer to our vision of a world where diabetes cannot do harm. ”
