Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

This year marks my 40th Diaversary! 40 years since I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes age 12 and told I would need to follow a diet and inject insulin for the rest of my life.

My 12 year old self couldn't even begin to take that in, especially as I was seriously ill at the time.

The advances I've seen in the technology available to treat diabetes in those 40 years is incredible.

From glass syringes and urine tests to monitor sugar levels, I now have an insulin pump, a flash glucose monitor that I wear to monitor glucose levels, and a sophisticate, patient developed technology, that runs a closed loop system for me.

This all makes it so much easier to stay healthy.

But still I walk a tightrope every hour of every day to keep good glucose levels.

Still I experience low glucose levels that can stop me in my tracks, and often occur for no obvious reason.

The wording on the Diabetes U.K. vest I will wear as I train for and run these events reads:

Diabetes is relentless, but so are we.

Diabetes is relentless, and it can be completely mentally and physically exhausting to manage.

Approx 400 thousand people live with type 1 diabetes in the UK; 29 thousand of them children.

The incidence is increasing by about 4% each year, and around 50% of diagnoses are now in adults.

Technology and insulin really has come a very long way, but we desperately need to ensure more people access that and know how to use it. We need something even better to further reduce the incidence of secondary complications. We need research to better understand the mental burden of living with diabetes so we can ensure everyone gets the supports they need, when they need it, to live as normal a life as possible.

Diabetes U.K. helps with all of this. 

If you have a few pennies to spare at this very difficult time, I would be extremely grateful for your support.

It will definitely help me get up and out for a run on the cold dark mornings I'll be training in!!

Thank you so much, Sarah xx

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