ABU DHABI // It is undoubtedly challenging to be diagnosed with a chronic disease but it is far more challenging when you are allergic to the cure.
Khulood Al Zaabi was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at the age of 20 and was put on insulin injections. Soon after, she developed an allergic reaction to the insulin.
“As soon as I started the injections, I started feeling itchy and that I couldn’t breathe. I would go to the emergency and they would change the brand of insulin injections,” she said.
Normal blood sugar level an hour or two after a meal should be less than 180 milligrammes per decilitre (mg/dl). If you are taking insulin then it should be at least 100 mg/dl.
Ms Al Zaabi’s reaches up to 600 mg/dl and because of her body’s reaction to the insulin, there is only so much she can take to manage her sugar level.
Her high glucose level has caused complications. She has suffered great pain because of the allergic reaction and is losing her eyesight.
“Doctors have told me that there is a strong possibility that I am losing my eyesight but I have already prepared myself for the worst. I just won’t get over missing the faces of my family.”
Describing her life she says it is marked by “Pain. I’m always in pain”.
Her diabetes has destroyed the nerves in her extremities and she often goes into diabetic comas.
Despite all the setbacks, the 38-year-old has persevered and decided to continue her education in spite of doctors’ warnings.
Her inspiration, she said, is Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak.
“Sheikha Fatima is the foremost and main supporter of Emirati women. She provided us with the support and encouragement to work hard and contribute to society.”
Ms Al Zaabi’s high blood sugar level, which would peak at 700 mg/dl, lead to ketoacidosis, which caused her comas.
Again she pushed herself. “The pain made me stronger. Perseverance and a strong desire to learn defeats everything. I have to achieve my dream of completing my education and contributing to my country by supporting women and people with special needs,” she said.
“My doctor told me I would be committing suicide if I decided to go back to university. I didn’t like what she said and I went ahead and applied for my high school exams.
“I knew I was taking them with my sugar level peaking to 700 mg/dl but all thanks to God, I got 84.4 in my exams,” she said with pride.
“I took my degree and showed it to the doctor.”
She applied to Zayed University in 2011 and is studying international affairs. Ms Al Zaabi maintains a GPA of more than 3.0.
“Doctors are surprised that I have managed to survive for so long with my high blood sugar and ketone level but it’s because I want to show the world that people with disabilities can contribute to society even more than normal people.”
Ms Al Zaabi is also head of the Qudurat club at Zayed University. The club provides assistance to students with special needs and spreads awareness of people with disabilities.
“Khulood gives us great joy because of her willingness to learn and perseverance. She is a beacon of hope and persistence. I admire how quickly she has adapted to assistive technology to fulfil her dream of completing her education, “ said Fatma Al Qassimi, who supervises the club.
salnowais@thenational.ae
FROM%20THE%20ASHES
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Lampedusa: Gateway to Europe
Pietro Bartolo and Lidia Tilotta
Quercus
Results
5pm Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,400m
Winner No Riesgo Al Maury, Szczepan Mazur (jockey), Ibrahim Al Hadhrami (trainer)
5.30pm Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 1,600m
Winner Marwa W’Rsan, Sam Hitchcott, Jaci Wickham.
6pm Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 1,600m
Winner Dahess D’Arabie, Al Moatasem Al Balushi, Helal Al Alawi.
6.30pm Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 2,200m
Winner Safin Al Reef, Connor Beasley, Abdallah Al Hammadi.
7pm Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 2,200m
Winner Thulbaseera Al Jasra, Shakir Al Balushi, Ibrahim Al Hadhrami.
7.30pm Maiden (TB) Dh 80,000 2,200m
Winner Autumn Pride, Szczepan Mazur, Helal Al Alawi.
Frida%20
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Family reunited
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe was born and raised in Tehran and studied English literature before working as a translator in the relief effort for the Japanese International Co-operation Agency in 2003.
She moved to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies before moving to the World Health Organisation as a communications officer.
She came to the UK in 2007 after securing a scholarship at London Metropolitan University to study a master's in communication management and met her future husband through mutual friends a month later.
The couple were married in August 2009 in Winchester and their daughter was born in June 2014.
She was held in her native country a year later.
Most wanted allegations
- Benjamin Macann, 32: involvement in cocaine smuggling gang.
- Jack Mayle, 30: sold drugs from a phone line called the Flavour Quest.
- Callum Halpin, 27: over the 2018 murder of a rival drug dealer.
- Asim Naveed, 29: accused of being the leader of a gang that imported cocaine.
- Calvin Parris, 32: accused of buying cocaine from Naveed and selling it on.
- John James Jones, 31: allegedly stabbed two people causing serious injuries.
- Callum Michael Allan, 23: alleged drug dealing and assaulting an emergency worker.
- Dean Garforth, 29: part of a crime gang that sold drugs and guns.
- Joshua Dillon Hendry, 30: accused of trafficking heroin and crack cocain.
- Mark Francis Roberts, 28: grievous bodily harm after a bungled attempt to steal a £60,000 watch.
- James ‘Jamie’ Stevenson, 56: for arson and over the seizure of a tonne of cocaine.
- Nana Oppong, 41: shot a man eight times in a suspected gangland reprisal attack.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The specs
Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh192,500
On sale: Now
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylturbo
Transmission: seven-speed DSG automatic
Power: 242bhp
Torque: 370Nm
Price: Dh136,814
Know your cyber adversaries
Cryptojacking: Compromises a device or network to mine cryptocurrencies without an organisation's knowledge.
Distributed denial-of-service: Floods systems, servers or networks with information, effectively blocking them.
Man-in-the-middle attack: Intercepts two-way communication to obtain information, spy on participants or alter the outcome.
Malware: Installs itself in a network when a user clicks on a compromised link or email attachment.
Phishing: Aims to secure personal information, such as passwords and credit card numbers.
Ransomware: Encrypts user data, denying access and demands a payment to decrypt it.
Spyware: Collects information without the user's knowledge, which is then passed on to bad actors.
Trojans: Create a backdoor into systems, which becomes a point of entry for an attack.
Viruses: Infect applications in a system and replicate themselves as they go, just like their biological counterparts.
Worms: Send copies of themselves to other users or contacts. They don't attack the system, but they overload it.
Zero-day exploit: Exploits a vulnerability in software before a fix is found.
Company%20profile
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Schedule for Asia Cup
Sept 15: Bangladesh v Sri Lanka (Dubai)
Sept 16: Pakistan v Qualifier (Dubai)
Sept 17: Sri Lanka v Afghanistan (Abu Dhabi)
Sept 18: India v Qualifier (Dubai)
Sept 19: India v Pakistan (Dubai)
Sept 20: Bangladesh v Afghanistan (Abu Dhabi) Super Four
Sept 21: Group A Winner v Group B Runner-up (Dubai)
Sept 21: Group B Winner v Group A Runner-up (Abu Dhabi)
Sept 23: Group A Winner v Group A Runner-up (Dubai)
Sept 23: Group B Winner v Group B Runner-up (Abu Dhabi)
Sept 25: Group A Winner v Group B Winner (Dubai)
Sept 26: Group A Runner-up v Group B Runner-up (Abu Dhabi)
Sept 28: Final (Dubai)
The%20trailblazers
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Company%20Profile
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Company%20Profile
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Everton%20Fixtures
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Company%20Profile
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BABYLON
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Abu Dhabi race card
5pm Abu Dhabi Fillies Classic Prestige | Dh110,000 | 1,400m
5.30pm Abu Dhabi Colts Classic Prestige | Dh110,000 | 1,400m
6pm Abu Dhabi Championship Listed | Dh180,000 | 1,600m
6.30pm Maiden | Dh80,000 | 1,600m
7pm Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap | Dh80,000 | 1,400m
7.30pm Handicap (TB) |Dh100,000 | 2,400m
The five new places of worship
Church of South Indian Parish
St Andrew's Church Mussaffah branch
St Andrew's Church Al Ain branch
St John's Baptist Church, Ruwais
Church of the Virgin Mary and St Paul the Apostle, Ruwais
Essentials
The flights
Emirates flies direct from Dubai to Seattle from Dh6,755 return in economy and Dh24,775 in business class.
The cruise
UnCruise Adventures offers a variety of small-ship cruises in Alaska and around the world. A 14-day Alaska’s Inside Passage and San Juans Cruise from Seattle to Juneau or reverse costs from $4,695 (Dh17,246), including accommodation, food and most activities. Trips in 2019 start in April and run until September.