Completing the Great North Run is important to me for 2 reasons.
First and foremost to raise funds for a cause close to my heart.
Secondly,after years of battles with various joint problems, it will give me a massive sense of personal achievement.
For those of you who don't know, I lost my Nana Mary in 2006. For the last 10 years of her life she was tormented by the gradually progressing manifestations of Alzheimers Disease.  It still saddens me now to think that in her last years, she generally lived in persecution due to the paranoid thoughts that she had developed as a consequence of this awful condition.  At the time all of my family felt unsupported by the health service, and my parents had to see her GP repeatedly about their concerns. He insisted that my Nana was ok - because she said she was despite the fact we all knew something was seriously wromg.  I wish now, that we'd have contacted the Alzheimer's Society for help and advice.  If by raising some money by conquering my personal demon - running, I manage to make just one person suffering with Alzheimer's life a little more bearable, then I will be delighted. 
As many of you will also know, I am, thanks to my parents genetic gift, biomechanically flawed - with knees that provide a wonderful party trick.  Some of you may remember me having a walking stick at the age of 11years, crutches, plaster casts, and more recently seen me incapable of getting down stairs.  The training for this half marathon has already resulted in me having an MRI scan and seeing my physio for regular torture.  So for me, running has always been something I couldn't do - but now I want to conquer that, and fully intend to run every step of the Great North Run.
Please dig deep, I'm sure all of you have relatives or friends who are affected by dementia, and know just how devastating it can be for the person and the people who care for them.