Faroese woman breaks silence on type 2 diabetes stigma in European Parliament speech

A Faroese woman has spoken publicly for the first time about her struggle with the stigma of type 2 diabetes after delivering a speech at the European Parliament in Brussels, Kringvarp Føroya reports.

Linda Kølleskov, who was invited to Brussels in January to discuss living with type 2 diabetes, said she had long kept her diagnosis private due to widespread misconceptions about the condition.

“I thought to myself that maybe it was time to break the silence on this issue,” Kølleskov told KVF. She described how people often associate the disease with unhealthy lifestyles, assuming those diagnosed “don’t eat right and exercise too little.”

“They think you have type 2 diabetes because you did this or that. But that’s not my case. That’s not the cause of my illness,” she said, calling the assumptions a personal blow that made her feel her own efforts were being dismissed.

Kølleskov, who lives with multiple chronic conditions, said receiving the diabetes diagnosis was particularly difficult to accept. It wasn’t until she was asked to speak in Brussels that she decided to share her experience—initially unsure if anyone would even listen. Her speech, however, resonated strongly and has since been partially published in a parliamentary newsletter.