I hope I’m going to run 10k this month. I can’t say for sure that I will run it because I’ve never in my life before run further than the space from my front door to Oddbins. I may simply collapse into a floppy splat on the road shortly after the starting post with the real runners streaming over me like gazelles over a speed bump. On the other hand, I might just find the strength of character to keep one foot going in front of the other, with only one of them on the ground at any one time so as to be sure it counts as running, over each and every one of those awe inspiring ten kilometres.

So why am I doing it? Because my daughter is doing the same run. She wants to raise money for Refuge because she understands how different her life might have been if she'd known how to get help when she was living through the dark and troubled years of her childhood and adolescence. Her courage in confronting her demons as openly and publicly as she has leaves me little choice but to get up and run for her chosen cause and in so doing join her on her path to discovering a hopeful and exciting future.

Refuge do enormously important work with people in all sorts of horrifying domestic situations. Please do donate if you can, and if you'd like to read Anna's own story visit www.justgiving.com/anna-teresa.