'He's so resilient': Leeds mum's pride as son, seven, raises thousands while suffering from Type 1 Diabetes

A Leeds mum has spoken of her bursting pride after her seven-year-old son, who has Type 1 diabetes, inspired his classmates to raise thousands of pounds for charity.
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Ryly Dabil-Haigh was diagnosed with the condition - a life-long chronic illness that requires daily injections to keep blood sugar levels under control - in December, 2019.

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“He was only five when he was diagnosed, and being such an active seven-year-old it is almost impossible to keep his levels stable so it’s continuous, 24/7,” she told the YEP.

Ryly Dabil-Haigh was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes in December 2019, aged just five. Picture: Tony Johnson.Ryly Dabil-Haigh was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes in December 2019, aged just five. Picture: Tony Johnson.
Ryly Dabil-Haigh was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes in December 2019, aged just five. Picture: Tony Johnson.
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“If he’s high we have to inject him to bring him down, low and we’ve got to give glucose treatment. Last night we had to wake him up a couple of times to inject him.”

Some patients suffering from Type 1 diabetes can have a sensor attached to their arm. Ryly’s sensor sends alerts to mum Lynsey and dad Ryan’s phones of his levels.

To mark 100 years since insulin was discovered, the youngster inspired his classmates at Sharp Lane Primary School in Middleton to join him in raising £2,750 for Diabetes UK.

Lynsey said: “Ryly and his teachers decided how great it would be if he did a presentation to his year to raise awareness and then they joined him in doing laps of the playground to raise money.

Since being diagnosed, aged just five, Ryly has continued to enjoy his life, including playing for his local football team. Picture: Tony Johnson.Since being diagnosed, aged just five, Ryly has continued to enjoy his life, including playing for his local football team. Picture: Tony Johnson.
Since being diagnosed, aged just five, Ryly has continued to enjoy his life, including playing for his local football team. Picture: Tony Johnson.
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“Together that's a 100-mile run; that’s what they did – in the pouring rain.”

And Ryly’s charity work has not stopped with his school, as he recently donated a large amount of insulin and many other medical supplies to Type 1 diabetic Ukrainian refugees fleeing their homeland following the Russian invasion.

Describing her pride at how the youngster has managed his condition and aimed to help others, mum Lynsey said: “I can’t even put that into words, how proud I am. Immensely proud, I can’t believe I’ve not burst.

“He’s so resilient. He never moans and to try to turn all this into a positive and do so much to raise awareness and money, I couldn’t be any prouder.

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“It’s more of a stress for us than for him, but that is exactly how we want it.”

Since being diagnosed aged just five, Ryly has continued to enjoy his life, including playing for his local football team and playing with younger brother Freddy.

For Lynsey and Ryan it is vitally important that Ryly lives as normal a childhood as possible.

“It’s our top priority,” Lynsey said.

“We said the day he was diagnosed, ‘right this will not stop you from doing anything, it will never stop you’ and it hasn’t. We’ve stuck by that.”

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Despite only having to complete five laps of his school playground to complete his mile, the youngster didn’t stop and ended up doing 52 laps.

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