Meet Midhuhath, an Addu Woman Diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes Despite No Family History

“This illness is not present in either of my parents. I was the only one of my 14 siblings to receive a diagnosis when I was still very small,” says Midhuha Luthufee, a 30-year-old Addu woman with Type 1 diabetes.

She explained that her sister received her diagnosis much later in life.

She started having odd symptoms when she was 9 years old. She lost a lot of weight, was frequently dehydrated, and her scars appeared to heal more slowly.

She replies, “For me, it’s healing the scars,” when asked what the most challenging part of having diabetes is. It takes many days. A minor cut may occasionally recover after four or five months. Additionally, there are skin issues.

“I couldn’t consume any sugary foods. I get cranky, tired, and lethargic whenever my blood sugar levels go up. This made studying harder.

She has to administer insulin every day, according to Midhuha. Before breakfast and dinner, she started administering injections twice a day. She had to increase her dosage to four doses every day starting at 19.

“Sometimes I forget to inject insulin.”

Midhuha describes how her body feels like it is burning when she misses a dose, along with an intense thirst that eventually goes away and difficulty staying awake.

“I gave birth a year after being married. Fortunately, my daughter doesn’t appear to be impacted by this.”

“I currently use an insulin pump. My blood sugar levels have improved significantly since I started using the pump in January 2022. I obtained it from the Diabetes Society of Maldives.”

The body cannot produce the hormone insulin in people with type 1 diabetes, a serious and lifelong illness. To survive, we all require insulin. Insulin enables blood sugar to enter our cells and provides energy for our bodies.