Tragic death of teenage diabetic X-Factor hope from hypo

Singing hopen, Bethany Durose, was days away from showcasing her talent on The X-Factor when she died overnight from hypoglycemia.
17 year old Bethany was a classically trained singer who was working towards a grade eight singing qualificatio, the highest grade offered by the Associated Board of the Royal School of Music. In addition to her singing, Bethany had also passed several musical grades for the clarinet and piano.
Bethany lost her life last year but the inquest was held this week. She had been planning to sing Eva Cassidy’s Somewhere Over The Rainbow for the judges. Bethany hadn’t accepted her diabetes, and her parents noted that Bethany ‘hated’ having type 1 diabetes and wasn’t as disciplined with testing and injections as she should have been.
On the weekend that Bethany died, she was found unconscious with low blood glucose at her home and was taken to West Cumberland Hospital as an emergency. The hypo Bethany suffered caused brain damage which led to her death just two days later.
Teenagers often struggle with managing blood sugar levels at a time when other parts of their life may feel more important. Bethany’s death is an extremely tragic story but one which could highlight the importance of keeping on top of diabetes management to other teenagers with type 1 diabetes.