If you saw my story last year it hasn’t changed I have just increased my challenge in aid of what I believe to be a truly worthwhile cause and one that I couldn’t ask you all to support again without upping my game!

This year I am hoping to run 2 marathons in 3 weeks!! Manchester 7/4 and London 28/4.  Now you may be thinking 'Jo runs all the time, she can do that easily now', yes I do run alot and I do enjoy it but training for a marathon is a very different beast to 5km/10km and even a 1/2 marathon. When you are out running for 4-5 hours its a mental battle not just a physical one and that's when your reason why really kicks in. 

There is barely a day when Isabella isn’t in my thoughts and anything that could possibly stop another person feeling this loss has to be worth it. 

For those that weren’t on my journey last year, let me tell you about Isabella. It took me a long time last year to be able to write about this and I still find it just as hard writing this page today.

November 2015 I went out to Ireland to visit one of my best friends Jazmine, who I have known since we were 5 years old. That night over dinner I got the best news that they were expecting a baby in June and I was asked the great honour of being godparent, which I of course said yes to. The next few months passed and I got to hear baby’s heartbeat by video and see scan pictures, little one was doing great. Late April came and that was baby shower time, which was a lovely weekend and I got to hear baby’s heartbeat in person at a routine check-up. Jazmine was having regular scans as her pregnancy was high risk due to her waters breaking 8 weeks early with her son Keelan 7 years earlier. In early May I found out baby was going to be a girl, which of course Jazmine and I were both very excited about! I was straight out buying outfits for her. Sunday 22^nd May I was out for dinner and I got a message from Jazmine to say her waters had broken, 4 weeks early but still in the safe zone and this was kind of expected due to the prior pregnancy. I was so excited, checking my phone all through the night for an update and Monday morning I got the amazing news that our beautiful Isabella was here. She was going to need a bit of support for a couple of weeks but was strong and healthy. 

Later that day a scan picked up a murmur in Isabella’s heart and that one part hadn’t formed as it should which meant she needed to be transferred up to Dublin immediately. The next few days were like a whirlwind of information and consultations on potential operations for Jazmine and Kevin. I wished there was something I could do to help. Isabella was diagnosed with a condition called Hypoplastic left heart syndrome. On the Thursday it was understood that an operation wouldn’t be suitable for Isabella and on Saturday 28^th May 2017 we lost our beautiful little girl. 

Jazmine and Kevin are two of the strongest people I know and Jazmine’s plight over in Ireland to change legislation's on scanning has been so inspiring. HLHS is something that can be picked up during pregnancy with the right type of scan which unfortunately isn’t routine, knowing about the condition may not have changed Isabella’s fate but it could have been prepared for.

Thanks for visiting my page. I'm raising money for the British Heart Foundation's research and I'd be so grateful for your support. The BHF has helped halve the number of people dying from heart and circulatory disease in the UK but sadly every day hundreds of people lose their lives. It's only thanks to support from people like us that the BHF can create new treatments and discover new cures. £24 could pay for two hours of research by an early career scientist, but every pound helps so please give what you can to help me hit my target. Thanks!