Haydee Dubberley is a happy, smiling six-year-old. But for four years she has been living with an autoimmune disease that she will need to cope with for the rest of her life.
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With her dad living with Type 1 Diabetes since he was a young child and other family members also living with the condition, Haydee's parents knew what signs to look out for in their eldest child.
Haydee's parents enrolled her in a trial when she was a baby and were informed their little girl had the antibodies for Type 1 Diabetes. Within a year the then two-year-old was diagnosed with the condition, in which the pancreas stops producing insulin.
Haydee's mum, Amy, believes her family was lucky that they had the awareness of the symptoms so Haydee didn't wind up extremely unwell before a diagnosis.
There is no known cause and there is no cure, but treatment is available.
But while her husband is able to look after himself, she said having a young child with diabetes took a lot of work.
"When you have a child and you have to be their pancreas it is a 24/7 job," Ms Dubberley said. "It was quite daunting at first. It took about 12 months to settle into the new normal."
When you have a child and you have to be their pancreas it is a 24/7 job
- Amy Dubberley
She must watch everything Haydee eats and then administer the equivalent amount of insulin required.
"I've lost a lot of sleep during the past four years," she said. "I have alarms going off all day and night to help me make sure her levels don't go too high or low."
While Haydee has started school, her mum still constantly monitors her daughter's blood sugar levels through an app on her phone.
"I'm still constantly watching what's happening with her, even when she's not around me."
Ms Dubberley is in constant contact with the school and conceded it was a big job for staff with a handful of attending pupils living with diabetes.
Both Haydee and her dad now have insulin pumps, meaning they no longer need to take injections throughout the day.
Haydee's parents frequently talk to her about her diabetes so she understands what she should and shouldn't do.
And with their youngest daughter having a triple chance of developing diabetes, they are keeping a keen eye out for any symptoms.
While Haydee was diagnosed early, the common warning signs are often missed or overlooked.
Founder of the Type 1 Foundation, Ange Liston-McCaughley, said that early diagnosis and treatment were vital.
"Whilst Type 1 Diabetes is not preventable, it is important to diagnose and treat it early to prevent the potentially fatal complication of diabetic ketacidosis (DKA)."
She is passionate about spreading this message, given her personal experience.
When her then nine-year-old daughter, Lila, was "generally unwell" she never suspected diabetes to be the cause.
She took her daughter to see a GP three times, with the third visit just before a family holiday to Queensland.
Telling the doctor about her daughter's lethargy and weight loss, the doctor advised the family to take the trip. But within a day of arriving, Lila was rushed to the emergency room in a pram as she did not have the strength to walk.
It was there Ms Liston-McCaughley was told her daughter had Type 1 diabetes but that she was in DKA and that she would fall into a coma without urgent treatment. Lila was admitted to the intensive care unit, where she "fought to survive" DKA for 10 days.
Ms Liston-McCaughley said DKA prevention required greater awareness among the community and medical professionals.
"If I had seen a sign outlining the symptoms on the walls in the GP's clinic, as a parent I would have looked and asked my GP [about it]," she said.
A simple finger prick only takes seconds and can save someone's life.
- Ange Liston-McCaughley
"We need to embed in medical teams' decision making processes for patients attending with symptoms to do a finger prick test for Type 1 Diabetes. A simple finger prick only takes seconds and can save someone's life."
She wants to see a time where the symptoms are not missed, leading to earlier diagnoses so DKA can be avoided.
With World Diabetes Day on November 14, the foundation is raising awareness in health care services, schools and the community not to ignore the four signs of diabetes - thirst, increased urination, weight loss and fatigue.
To help the cause, purchase one of the foundation's water bottles. A portion of the funds will be donated towards 'Type 1 Screen' who help identify people at risk of developing Type 1 Diabetes.
- Visit www.type1foundation.com.au to purchase a bottle, learn more about the foundation and to tap into support