LISTEN: Holly Rey opens up as SA marks World Diabetes Day

Durban-born musician Holly Rey says she chooses to be open about her diabetes journey to prevent young people from going through similar challenges.

"Control your diabetes and don't let your diabetes control you.  That's a lot easier said than done. Diabetes is very scary. You are not that thing; you just have that thing. It's a piece of you, it's not who you are completely."

The World Health Organisation says every person living with diabetes should have access to integrated care and supportive environments.

It believes this year's themes are a call for policies that promote health, dignity, and self-management.

ALSO READ: ‘Start the conversation’ as world marks Diabetes Day

Speaking to Newswatch, Holly Rey has shared how being diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at the age of 11 shaped her life.

"I remember turning to my mum and saying, Can you please just take me home. We are going to pretend we never came here, and this did not happen. Everything can just go back to normal. It was traumatic having to fight almost for my right to healthcare and fight for my voice to be heard.

“I just knew there was something wrong; my mum knew it, too. It is just like a whole new level of trauma to experience being diagnosed with a chronic illness. It's a level of trauma that should not really be there, and I hope we can mitigate that in the future for children."

Holly's also been named the new face of Diabetes Alliance.

She attended the diabetes summit in Johannesburg this week, where she shared more about her advocacy work.

"And we actually handed over a petition to the Department of Health for all children in South Africa to go on CGM,Continuous Glucose Monitoring, because it really does change the game. It prevents risks and things like amputations, blindness, and it really helps children to manage diabetes better."