Hi all, thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

Running a marathon is one of 3 lifetime ambitions I carelessly nominated while travelling on my gap year: to do a skydive, to run a marathon and to write a novel!  The first was unexpectedly covered off on that trip to Australia, the last I acknowledge probably won’t happen before retirement (if at all!) but the marathon has continued to be an aspiration.

I’ve watched the London marathon several times on TV or at the event and always been inspired by the people running what seems like such an inconceivable distance, but triumphing by their perseverance to raise money for a good cause and to achieve a personal goal. 

I never used to be able to run for more than 5 solid minutes but I started doing British Military Fitness training in the park about 4 years ago, which I’ve really enjoyed (much more satisfying being outside than in the gym!), and was encouraged to take part in a sprint distance triathlon last summer.  Running a marathon still felt like a tall order, given that at Christmas the furthest I had ever run was still only about 8km (and a marathon is 42km), however I was keen to set myself a challenge and, after persuading my friend Caroline to join me, we signed up.  I wanted to run Paris because I lived there for a year in 2004-2005 as part of my degree and I thought seeing the sights as I run around the course would help keep me going!

Training started at Christmas, although I unfortunately injured myself 3 weeks in and was unable to run for a further 5, so it has only really begun in earnest in the last couple of weeks.  Running the marathon is going to be tough but I am determined to do to raise money for the charity Shift.ms.

Shift.ms aims to raise awareness and improve understanding of Multiple Sclerosis (MS) among young people.  They are a relatively small charity that act as a community and provide an invaluable support network for young people diagnosed with MS and I know that all money raised will go a long way to helping them continue their work. 

I’d be very grateful if you could sponsor me whatever you can in aid of this excellent cause.

 

About MS

We don't all need to be experts on MS, but it will make the lives of those with MS that little bit easier, if you know the top line info.

MS is a disease of the central nervous system: the brain, spinal cord and nerves.  It affects the way messages are sent around the body. It is unpredictable and affects everyone differently.

People are most often diagnosed with MS in their 20s and 30s. There are 2.5 million MS'ers in the world.

It's thought that MS is caused by your immune system malfunctioning, but no one knows why! The immune system usually protects your body, however in MS it turns on itself and starts to attack the central nervous system, in particular the covering that protects the nerves.

What happens?  Think of your brain as a hi-fi, your hands as speakers and the nerves as speaker wire. If the speaker wire has a damaged protective covering, sound quality may become crackly and unreliable.

Multiple Sclerosis literally means 'many scars'... these scars can form anywhere on nerves in the spine and in the brain.  Depending where the scars form, different symptoms can be experienced in different parts of the body.

For many, MS comes and goes, for others it's more progressive.  Some common symptoms are: extreme tiredness (fatigue), impaired vision, loss of balance and muscle coordination, stiffness and difficulty walking.  Many of the symptoms are invisible making it difficult to understand how an MS'er is feeling.

There are a range of drugs available to limit the effects of MS, reduce attacks and help people manage their lifestyle and new drugs are continually being developed with very exciting prospects for the future.

To find out more about MS and the charity, please visit their website at www.shift.ms