As many of you know our gorgeous boy Charlie, AKA Chops, was born 3rd of October 2021. 6 weeks later I noticed he had been very sleepy, hardly waking for feeds and had a temperature. I went to collect Archie from nursery and on returning I really wasn’t happy with Charlie, who by now had a temp of 39+.   I called our local GP surgery who saw us straight away. On examination they noticed Chop’s mottled skin and high temperature and phoned our local hospital,RUH Bath, who told us to get there asap. 

On arriving at the paediatric ward Chops (Charlie) was whisked away for a full examination.   Full bloods, a cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) culture (a laboratory test to look for bacteria, fungi, and viruses in the fluid that moves in the space around the spinal cord) were taken via Lumbar Puncture. All absolutely terrifying especially receiving this news alone, as Josh couldn’t be with me due to hospital covid restrictions still in place.  I was told he was going to be put on IV antibiotics immediately to treat an infection. 48 hours later the cultures from the CSF came back and it was confirmed he had meningitis. A world totally unknown to us. 7 days in hospital, with our 6 week old Charlie Chops on antibiotics every 6 hours, but in true Chops style he was fighter and was soon allowed home.  However 2 weeks later, when we thought we were out the other side, we had to return Charlie Chops to hospital when another health issue arose.   I was told that due to his young age, and being on such harsh antibiotics to fight off  meningitis, had now caused an issue with Chop’s gut lining. So after a year of gut rehabilitation and a dairy free diet, we were back to a healthy Chops. 

Meningitis is one of the leading causes of acquired deafness and approximately 8% of survivors will experience some degree of hearing loss. Chops had hearing tests every 2 months until April 2023 and we can now happily say we have finally been DISCHARGED.   It truly was one of the best days of our lives, putting that all behind us. 

So that brings me to this fundraising page. I decided, after watching the London Marathon this year, that it would be absolutely incredible to be able to accomplish that. I’m not built for running and the furthest I’ve ever run is 10k. I have a half marathon in October and another in March 2024, and then I have signed up to my biggest physical challenge to date, the London Marathon in April 2024. I thought the only way I’m going to get round is doing it for something that has affected us as a family. I’m therefore running for Meningitis Research Foundation, the money that I raise will help to fund their support services, fund research and help them towards their goal of a world free from meningitis by 2030.

Please share my page to help raise awareness of Meningitis, any sponsorship, no matter how big or small, will help towards my fundraising target and will be greatly appreciated. 

Thanks you all so much

Hannah

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