Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

I am aiming to raise £500 for Crohns & Colitis UK, a charity that is very close to my heart.

In March 2009 I was diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis. I had just turned 19. I was on medication for a few months but stopped taking it as I went into remission. I became unwell again in September 2012. It got to the point where I needed the toilet 25 times a day and lost complete control of my bowels. I tried every possible type of medication available to me, mercaptopurine, asacol, azathioprine, infliximab etc. 

To cut a long story short, I ended up having an emergency ileostomy after being given one week to live. My colon was so inflamed, it was sticking into my heart. The surgeon decided to take the whole of my large intestine out. When I eventually came around after surgery, I felt instantly relieved. It was the strangest yet most amazing feeling. I suddenly didn't have to run to the toilet! Having the bag is definitely a relief, but it is only a short term fix, not a cure.

I need to raise money for CCUK so that they can find a cure for Crohns & Colitis. It affects more than 260,000 in the UK in ways that I can't even begin to describe. 

Running 10k is going to be a massive deal for me! I can just about run for a bus at the moment and have only just started training again since my operation in May last year. So please dig deep and know that your donation and support means the world to me! 

Thank you for reading :) 

Love Rachael x