Meet the Team

"Hi my name is Edelle, and I am one of the founders of the T1 Club. My son Shane who is 16 now was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes when he was 7 years old. When Shane was first diagnosed we struggled so much with the relentless nature of Type One Diabetes. This is what pushed me to take action and do something to help as I didn't want other families to struggle like we did in the beginning.

I have a background with youth work and the community sector. I realised the value of our young people making friendships and creating their own support network. It is important for them to be around others who understood what it was like being a child living with Type 1 Diabetes and so the T1 Club was born! I hope our community can help as many young people and families as possible, and am so proud of our work so far filling a need for peer support and ways to meet up and help each other on our journeys. "

"Hello Everyone. My name is Gayle and my daughter’s name is Lilly. Lilly was diagnosed with Type1 Diabetes in January 2016 at the age of 6. It was a complete shock to the system. Nobody in our family had Type1 Diabetes.

Overnight I became a mathematician, dietician, night nurse as well as working full time. Diabetes has its challenges which I have found are mostly caused by an individual’s lack of knowledge and understanding of it.

I have been involved with the T1 Club right from the start. It is a safe space where I can share both frustration and opportunities Type1 Diabetes brings. My daughter has benefited greatly from being around other children with Type1 Diabetes as well. There is always a friendly face at the end of a WhatsApp conversation or at one of our meet-ups to help with the questions like what are the carbs in a Mcdonald's cheeseburger or finding a copy of the sick day rules.

The T1 Club is such a supportive group and everybody is at different stages of their journey and I find this support and understanding wonderful."

“ Hey my name is Noleen & my little girl Clòdagh was diagnosed Type1 21st February 2022, 3 weeks after her 2nd birthday. This was a massive shock, but in some ways a relief as Clòdagh was so ill, we were beginning to imagine the worst. Life changed dramatically when we came home, I gave up my job and became a full-time carer overnight. The first few weeks were very lonely. We didn't know what we were doing and had a lot to learn. Thankfully, another mum on the type 1 group reached out to us, and from that, the support has been amazing. Some days are still incredibly tough as no two days are the same with Type1 but I have made some life long friends from it, as has Clòdagh, & knowing i can reach out and get support at anytime is invaluable. “

“ Hi my name is sinead, my daughter cara was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes last August when she was 3 and a half. As you can imagine it meant our lives completely changed our new daily routines revolved around finger pricks to check blood glucose, carbohydrate ratios for food and insulin injections for every meal. We knew from the start that we wanted to make sure that cara was able to have as normal a life as possible and to make sure that she is able to be a happy active kid like all her friends. The T1 club was a lifeline to myself and my husband at a time when we really needed people to talk to and tell us that it does get easier, there is always someone there to ask for advice or even just to rant to when it feels overwhelming. Cara loves meeting up with everyone at the events and has made some great friends that have shown her its normal to have a libre and get an injection before a meal which is what we wanted most.“