Welcome to my Great North Run 2023 profile page as I raise money for the Diabetes UK charity and raise awareness of Type 1 diabetes. 

My 14 year old daughter (Flora) was born 5 weeks premature in Feb 2009, after which doctors spent 13 minutes resuscitating her. She was diagnosed with spastic diplegia cerebral palsy 5 weeks later, wears orthotic splints, developed further learning delay through early schooling years, depends on her walker/wheelchair as she tires easily, endured successful lengthy spinal surgery in Bristol in Oct 2016 and has a stammer. 

Despite these challenges in her life and ours, life was relatively simple before the sudden diagnosis of type 1 diabetes on the 28th of June 2021. This changed her life and ours more than we could have ever appreciated. 

Carbohydrate counting, blood glucose checks, ketones checks, insulin calculations, the daily highs and lows, anxiety and fear dominate our lives now, as we navigate a complex life of diabetes management on top of everything else Flora has to contend with. Insulin is her lifeline now and careful management of her diet, insulin and activity levels  is our responsibility. 

Recent technological advances funded and supported by diabetic research institutions, generous private donors and charities such as Diabetes UK are making profound differences to diabetes management and quality of life and I am running this half marathon to raise awareness and money in support of diabetes research and technological breakthroughs. 

Did you know someone is diagnosed with diabetes every two minutes? And as many as 4.9 million people are living with diabetes in the UK right now

Please support my challenge by generously donating towards Diabetes UK on my profile page and I will train as hard as I can and then represent the charity as well as I can at the Great North Run in September 2023. 

FYI - 40 days into my training 12th April 2023, I learned that my 81 year dad has been diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. Once I know more about how he will cope and what differences living with Type 2 over Type 1 are, I will share these with others to increase the awareness of both. 

Since then and on 19th April 2023, my dad was admitted to hospital in Aberdeen with acute confusion and a urine infection. This then led to 4 weeks in hospital with critical care as he fought against 3 blood infections, endured the 3 frightening stages of sepsis, supported by oxygen and then tested positive for covid. He has survived and we are eternally grateful to the staff there who saved his life. As a result of this we are now fully aware that Type 2 diabetes, has weakened his immune system and therefore he has become increasingly susceptible to infection.