Love Island star Simba Kudyiwa has revealed that his mother has Motor Neurone Disease (MND) and that he has been her carer since the age of 10. The 25-year-old from North London, who finished third on the dating show this summer alongside NHS nurse Angelista Gunda, spoke about his experiences on Good Morning Britain.
Simba's early confusion over his mum's illness
Simba admitted that as a child he did not fully understand the "gravity of the situation" when his mother was diagnosed. He said his parents tried to protect him and his younger brother, who was about six at the time, from the reality of the condition.
"Looking back no, I didn't, in terms of actually understanding the gravity of the situation," he said. "I feel like my parents did their best in terms of wanting to protect me and my younger brother aswell, he was probably only about six years old at the time."
Although they did not fully grasp what was happening, Simba and his brother "definitely picked up on a few things".
A pivotal memory of his mum's declining strength
Simba recalled a moment when he was about 11 years old and his mother began to lose strength in her hands. He described how she struggled to put the handbrake up in her car and called him to help.
"She parked up and she was struggling to put the handbrake up and I remember she called me to the front [seat] and she was like 'I need you to lift up the handbrake.' So I think little things like that started to make me question a little bit, like 'Okay, what's going on with mum right now?'"
He also noted that his mother began working less and stopped picking her children up from school, and that the family's existence was "changed" due to the worsening symptoms.
Pride in the man he has become
Despite the "massive responsibility" of caring for his mother and looking after his younger brother, Simba feels the experience shaped him. He said: "Looking back, I'm definitely proud of myself. I feel like it's made me the man that I am now. It's given me so many skills, so many credentials."
His mother can no longer speak verbally and now uses eye gaze technology to communicate. She can construct sentences using her eyes via a keyboard linked to a mounted tablet, which also allows her to keep in contact through apps like WhatsApp. Love Island Season 13 is streaming on ITVX.
