Hi everyone 👋 

I am running the London Marathon on 2nd October 2022.

I secured my place via the ballot and not a charity place so i am not obliged to raise money for anyone. But as a small charity Tourettes action does not qualify for a marathon charity place so we have chosen to raise funds for them to help support and spread awareness for over 300,000 UK sufferers.

Having said that we are raising funds, WE feel it is vital to use this platform of the London marathon to raise much needed 'AWARENESS AND ACCEPTANCE' for this complex and much missunderstood disorder Tourettes syndrome.

So as much as the donations we raise would mean so much, spreading awareness would be EVEN BETTER!! So please maximum donations £10 as all monies are equally important and we understand how the current climate is affecting us all.

As some of you are aware my wife Rio and our Daugter Scarlett have TS and the stigma that STILL surrounds it is not fair for anyone with TS and needs to end. So please do read on as it would mean so much xx

It's not what you think! So here is a little bit about Tourettes that Rio has written for you to read.

Its not swearing (which affects only 10% of Ts sufferers) and to this day I have yet to meet one person like this in person.

It's not just tics: it's more complex and can affect people's mental and physical health immensly.  Tourettes can be massively draining both mentally: OCD such as obsessive thoughts, intrusive thoughts, repetative mental and physical rituals, counting steps, washing hands excessivly, thoughts of contamination on surfaces and food, touching things a certain amount of times they sound so simple but can literally take over your trail of thought All day. An example, imagine a voice in your head telling you to check you turned the light switch off or something bad will happen and this goes on through your whole day over differnt things

Physically: involuntary movements which cannot be controlled or stopped if tried, the sensation is often described as a burning or intense itch until you tic. These can include eye movements, head jerking, leg movements, whole body stillness, arm movements, ahoulder shrugging to name a few. The exhaustion and pain which can be unbearable but you cannot just STOP to ease the pain you HAVE to keep going all day!!

Vocal tics including coughing, grunting, sniffing, repetitive words and phrases (even under your breath) to name a few instances: sometimes saying things so much you lose your voice or throat is so sore but you cannot simply STOP to ease the pain you just HAVE to keep going)

It's not contagious: it is a neurological hereditary condition (Probably the best one I've heard so far!!)

You cannot just recover over night: you have TS for LIFE.

Tourettes syndrome can come with many other comorbid diagnosis including ADHD, OCD, ASD, ANXIETY to name a few.

Medical help and support is so few and far between that private diagnosis is sought for most due to the lack of knowledge on medical professions. This needs to change.

The list of tics are literally endless and Many will experience a few of these and many will experience them all but just so you know they cannot be helped and if we could we probably wouldn't want to do them.

We want to use this time to raise 'AWARENESS' and seek a kinder more understanding world For sufferers.

So please educate yourself and others and know "itsnotwhatyouthink Please share this post and keep raising awareness.

Thanks everyone ✌️💚