I am on track to swim the English Channel three times (that's 66 miles) in a series of shorter swims in the sea, lakes and at my local pool.

My personal history of chronic pain caused by CDH (Congenital Dislocation of the Hip) and a whole raft of operations to deal with that – culminating in a hip replacement in February this year – has given me a particular affinity for anyone struggling with pain and disability. 

So I am keen to raise funds for Aspire, the charity that, in its own words, “provides practical help to people who have been paralysed by Spinal Cord Injury, supporting them from injury to independence.”

Please sponsor me!