Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

Crohn's & Colitis UK is a charity very close to my heart as my partner, Hannah is a Crohn's disease sufferer. Knowing what Hannah goes through on a daily basis it means a great deal to be given the opportunity to raise money for such a worthwhile charity.

As many of you know 2011 wasn't the best year for Hannah. She was diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis more than 10 years ago but took a turn for the worse at the end of 2010. Having battled courageously through a number of very tough months, in and out of hospital, she was finally diagnosed with Crohn's Disease (a not so glamorous step up from UC!) Consequently Hannah is now on a drug called 'infliximab', which is an intravenous drug taken every 8 weeks and has been nothing short of a miracle for her. The drug has brought her condition under control and from a position of not being able to leave the house to being able to lead a relatively normal life again.

To put it into perspective the amount of money I am looking to raise (£2,500) is the cost of just one dose (bag) of the drug that Hannah has to take every 8 weeks, which you can see in the photo of Hannah at the hospital (below).

Some of you may have noticed Crohn's & Colitis getting a bit of recent press with some high profile individuals such as Darren Fletcher (Man Utd footballer) and Russell Martin (Norwich footballer) revealing that they suffer from IBD and how that has impacted their lives as professional sportsmen.

A bit about the condition and the charity....

The National Association for Colitis and Crohn's Disease (NACC) exists to improve life for people affected by these conditions. Colitis and Crohn's are together known as inflammatory bowel disease or IBD. Around 240,000 people in the UK have IBD (1 in 250). IBD tends to flare up and down unpredictably, causing inflammation and ulceration in the colon (Colitis) or anywhere in the digestive tract (Crohn's). IBD can strike at any age but children and young people are most at risk. Symptoms can include urgent diarrhoea; bleeding; incontinence; severe pain; exhaustion; eye, skin and joint problems and - in the case of children, impaired growth. Medication may help but may cause side effects, and surgery may be needed, often more than once. The impact on education, work, social and family life can be devastating.