A Cairns woman who was diagnosed with diabetes more than 60 years ago will be honoured on a new Honour Wall to celebrate those living with the disease long term.
Pamela McKay, 66, was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes when she was just five years old.
Back then, far less was known about treating the disease and she recalled spending months in hospital every year, falling into multiple diabetic comas and facing mental health struggles.
The disability pensioner said she wanted to share her story, as part of National Diabetes Week which runs from 12-18 July, to highlight the significant challenges of living with the disease but also show that you can live a full life.
Ms McKay’s colourful career included stints working in the diving industry, as an early childhood teacher, a chef and running a successful small sandwich business in the Cairns CBD.
‘I had to prove to myself that I could do anything and that diabetes wouldn’t stop me,’ she said.
This year’s theme Living Out Loud encourages those with diabetes to speak out about the impacts of their diagnoses.
As part of that theme Cairns Diabetes Centre is calling for local recipients of the Kellion Victory Medal which recognises those who have lived with type 1 or type 2 diabetes for 50 years or more, to form part of the Kellion Honour Wall being launched later this year.
‘It is a lonely, isolating illness,’ Ms McKay said.
‘It is so complicated and very difficult for a person to get it into their head that they’ve got to do all these things to manage the disease, and it’s 24/7.
‘It’s like a gorilla on my back every day and nobody understands that.’
Ms McKay said there was no history of diabetes in her family, although her son had subsequently been diagnosed with Type 1 when he was in his late 20s.
‘I don’t know how I’m still here and I’ve still got my legs and feet,’ she said.
‘I do have bad eyesight and neuropathy disease though.’
She travelled to Brisbane last year to receive her 60-year Kellion Victory Medal which she said was a proud moment, and said she was excited the Cairns centre was introducing its own way to honour locals.
‘I was completely overwhelmed that I was being acknowledged,’ she said.
‘For years I thought I was the only one with Type 1 diabetes because it just wasn’t spoken about.’
Cairns Diabetes Centre Nurse Practitioner Veronica Mills said Type 1 diabetes is a lifelong autoimmune disease which can be diagnosed at any age but commonly develops in people under 30, whereas Type 2 is when the body becomes resistant to the normal effects of insulin.
‘Both can lead to serious health complications, including heart disease, stroke, kidney disease, blindness and lower limb amputation, and are frequently associated with other chronic health conditions, such as cardiovascular disease and chronic kidney disease,’ she said.
‘Receiving a diabetes diagnosis is life-changing for patients and affects every part of their lives, down to the most simple decision making most of us take for granted.
‘This new Kellion Honour Wall is just a small way to acknowledge those who have reached that 50-year milestone and we encourage those people to contact the Cairns Diabetes Centre and let us know.’