Type 1 in year 1: turning the page on an unexpected diagnosis at university
Meet Aryssah, an incredibly resilient adult living with type 1 diabetes (T1D). She is a committed $100M Campaign to Accelerate volunteer and champion of diabetes and mental health support. She devotes her time to appreciating the incredible philanthropic donors who help fuel Breakthrough T1D’s Mental Health Strategy for Type 1 Diabetes. She also generously funds a scholarship for students with T1D attending their first year of university.
This Mental Health Awareness Month, Aryssah candidly shares her T1D journey to spread awareness of the daily burdens endured by those living with this autoimmune disease. Her story paints a stark picture of the gaps in diabetes care and support in Canada, particularly for newly diagnosed adults—gaps we are working to address with donor support.
Nearly 300,000 Canadians live with T1D today, with approximately 12,200 diagnoses anticipated in 2025 alone. $100M Campaign to Accelerate donors play a significant role in speeding up a future where everyone with T1D has access to the care, tools, and resources they need to thrive.
Had Aryssah received comprehensive support at diagnosis—addressing not only the physical demands of T1D but its mental tolls, too—her early years with T1D may have looked different. But like many impacted by T1D, Aryssah does not let her diagnosis, or this disease, stop her from courageously pursuing a hopeful and fulfilling life. Aryssah shares her story with candour and the utmost care for the T1D community, hoping to garner even more support to improve lives and accelerate cures.
When Aryssah was 19, she became lethargic and would get foot cramps after sports, which was unusual for a young varsity athlete. With additional symptoms like increased thirst and significant weight loss, she was diagnosed with T1D shortly after a visit to her family doctor.
Had she been diagnosed just one year prior, she would have gotten support and resources through the pediatric diabetes clinic. Instead, she was treated like an adult and had to figure out how to manage this autoimmune disease on her own. She remembers going to the diabetic nurse’s office only to be given a couple of insulin pens and have them prick her finger. “It felt very independent,” she says, “in reflection now, part of me is a little sad for myself at that time, because if I was diagnosed a couple of months earlier, I would have been set up at SickKids and would have been walked through the whole process with my mom.”
Initially, Aryssah didn’t feel that T1D was too severe. As an active young adult, she felt invincible. She even ran a marathon just a mere three months after being diagnosed. But for the first few years living with T1D, she struggled to navigate her new reality. She found it challenging to balance such a complex disease while attending classes, competing as an athlete, and wanting to participate in the entire university experience.
Ill-equipped to properly manage her blood glucose levels, she was in and out of the hospital throughout school and, as a result, unable to finish her fourth year. These hospitalizations were very traumatic for her, and overall, she didn’t feel like herself.
“I did not take care of myself in the way that I should have. And it’s probably because I didn’t have that support in the beginning to set me up for success down the road,” she says.
In her mid-twenties, she sought out a psychotherapist to figure out how to deal with these traumas and the mental health aspects of living with T1D. Therapy allowed her to process and accept her diagnosis and has been integral to her health journey ever since. Perseverance and optimism are in her nature, and she has always used her diagnosis as fuel to combat adversity.
Later in life, when Aryssah could better manage her blood sugars, she returned to school and completed her university degree with Honours. For all those living with T1D or newly diagnosed, she advises, “This is one instance of your health where you have to relinquish control almost automatically because you can do everything right (you can track your carbs and can inject what you need to), and your blood sugar’s still going to muck up; it’s not a science…We are all trying our best and are so much larger than our actual diagnosis or disease.”
Through Breakthrough T1D, Aryssah also developed meaningful connections with the T1D community. Having support from those who understand the disease firsthand has been invaluable to her. As a form of giving back, Aryssah established the Torchbearer Scholarship for Type Ones to help support others navigating the highs and lows of T1D while attending university. All students who live with T1D entering their first year of university are invited to apply for this $1,000 scholarship opportunity. The application deadline is July 31, 2025, at 11:59 p.m. EST.
“You cannot see the destruction that diabetes does to your brain as a young adult or even as you continue to grow,” Aryssah says, “and that is sometimes even more important than blood sugar management because it goes hand-in-hand. Mental health is something that we need to take into consideration. It never really comes up with diabetes.”
$100M Campaign to Accelerate donors are speeding up progress to ensure that no one is left to manage this disease alone, as Aryssah and countless others have had to.
Outstanding philanthropists are advancing our Mental Health Strategy, supporting vital initiatives like the Mental Health + Diabetes Training Program and Directory, community mental health grants, research interventions, and peer-support programs. These leadership gifts ($5,000 or more) help fill critical gaps in T1D care, improve health outcomes, and combat stigma.
To make a meaningful investment through the $100M Campaign to Accelerate and become part of our exceptional major gift community, please contact:
Kim Lacombe
Vice President, Philanthropy
klacombe@breakthroughT1D.ca
438-814-1668
