Hi All

So, here's my 'story' which I hope will entice you all to donate to this great charity. 

At the end of 2015 I took a little tumble in a netball match and tore my cruciate ligament and ruptured the cartilage in my knee.  Following an op a few months later I was in for a long recovery, 9 months in fact.  By the end of it however, my physio had me try running as part of the recovery.. honestly, I couldn't think of anything worse, I've hated (I mean really hated) running all my life so didn't really jump for joy when he said it would help.  But i'm very stubborn and was determined to get my knee/fitness back to what it was so if running was going to help, then running I would do.  I mean how hard could it be?  As it turns out.... hard! 

First few weeks were like a form of torture on the treadmill and I felt like I was going to pass out after 30 seconds of running, but I persisted and gradually I could run for longer each time.  I also gradually realised that I quite enjoyed running and loved the feeling it gave me after i'd finished.  Jump forward a year and I absolutely love running, have lost almost 5 stone in the process and am the fittest I've been since my teenage years!  I love a challenge too and what better challenge then the London Marathon, whilst also raising money for a great charity.  I've just run my first half marathon (Sept 2017) and am signed up for lots more half marathons and other runs, all working towards the BIG one being the London Marathon in April 2018.  I still can't quite believe I have a place to run this and am sometimes quite amazed at how far I have come in only a year...I can absolutely guarantee I will be in floods of tears when I cross that finish line!

So, why raise money for Mind.  Well, whilst I did have some pretty low moments at the start of the op recovery period, I've never suffered from a mental illness myself.  I do however have personal experience of it within the family and understand what a continual battle it is.  There's no quick fix to mental illness, no cure.. it's just about learning to manage and live with it and so charities like Mind need constant support to continue the work and providing the support that they do.  It frustrates me so much that it can still seem such a taboo subject.  Last year's Heads Together Campaign raised so much awareness of mental illness, so running for Mind and raising money for them, is just my little way of trying to help and keep that going. 

So, there we go.  Thanks so much in advance for any donation you can make, I really appreciate it.

Thanks, Lucie x

(Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.  Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.)