Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

#2 Rolfelet was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes on 23rd December. This means that - through no fault of her own - her pancreas no longer produces insulin, and every meal has to be planned, weighed, tested for and the appropriate amount of insulin administered with an injection. Whilst the condition can be managed, if her blood sugar is too high she can have side effects and longer term issues such as stroke, amputation and blindness are a risk. If her blood sugar is too low, drowsiness, seizure and uncosciousness can occur.

On Christmas Day, #2 said she would gladly swap all her presents to not be diabetic. For her parents, this was understandably gut wrenching. Not only were we dealing with the ramifications of managing diabetes in one of our kids, but we were also trying to deal with the emotional side of things too. 

We were diagnosed in the UK, and because of the way the system works, our first appointment with someone that knew what they were doing in the French system was 12th February. For the better part of 2 months we were flying solo, and Diabetes UK have been there for us every step of the way. They have provided support, knowledge, education, wisdom and on one or two occasions just someone to listen. 

I was always registered for the new Cro Magnon on 21 and 22 June - having been involved in the organisation of the Cro in a small way since the relaunch was announced, I wanted to race the new - harder - course. However, given what we have been through, just having the challenge of the race itself did not seem enough (135km, 7800 of positive altitude change and 8800m of negative altitude change, non stop), so I decided that I would run to the start of the course as well. In effect, running 2 laps of the Cro. 

I am hoping that the scale of the challenge will at the very least help to raise awareness of Type 1 Diabetes. I would like to reduce or even eradicate the misconception that Type 1 Diabetes is caused by diet or lack of exercise. In the first few days back at school one of #2's teachers asked her, in all seriousness, whether her condition was because she had had too much sugar? Despite the fact that this was an erroneous assumption, the teacher in question also completely failed to grasp the emotional ramifications of a T1 diagnosis. 

In the last few years, medical research has come forward in leaps and bounds looking for ways to make the treatment of T1 Diabetes easier. There is also the outside chance that there will be acure of sorts - at the very least some sort of artifical pancreas that negates the need for the finger prick test to monitor blood sugar, and the multiple daily injections or having to have a pump attached to you permanently. Diabetes UK help fund and support some of the many medical research projects ongoing throughout the world, at any one time, and every penny I can raise will go some way to helping medicine to find a cure for T1 Diabetes, hopefully within #2's lifetime. 

Your support is very gratefully received.