As a hearing parent, giving birth to a deaf child was truly traumatic. Would I ever be able to communicate with my own daughter? Her deafness was diagnosed as profound - would that mean she may never hear my voice? Questions, questions, I was at sea and knew absolutely nothing.

Nine years on and my beautiful daughter speaks as well as I, and with the help of a hearing aid and a cochlear implant attends mainstream school and is even starting to learn latin! Her progress is beyond my wildest dreams from those dark early days post diagnosis.

With knowledge, professional help and support deafness doesn't have to be a barrier to life. I'm running the London Marathon to spread the word and support the fantastic work of the NDCS.

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity. So it’s the most efficient way to donate – saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

So please dig deep and donate now.