Progressive. Degenerative. Incurable.

Three words I heard together for the first time on 4 December 2023. A couple of brain scans and a few weeks later, the neurologist's initial diagnosis of Parkinson's Disease was confirmed.

That was a low moment, for sure.

Having always been a very active person - and still marginally the right side of 50 - knowing I had a condition which, over time, could restrict the things I love doing and make living life increasingly difficult, was hard to take.

But then I learned that those very things I love - running; walking; cycling; swimming; etc - were exactly the things that could help slow progression and mitigate the severity of the symptoms.

I have also learned there are some wonderful organisations out there doing wonderful things to help people like me, and Cure Parkinson's is one of them.

So, why not bring it all together - hit the exercise hard, fulfil my ambition to run the London Marathon, and raise some much-needed funds to help the quest to find a cure for this debilitating condition?

The first two are down to me.

Where I need your help is with the funds. Anything you can throw into the hat will be gratefully received, both by me personally and the incredible folk at Cure Parkinson's.

I need to get to £12.5k. I'd like to get a lot more.

Thank you for reading, and thank you in advance for digging deep to help.

Ed

Parkinson's is a progressive neurological condition, whereby people don't have enough of the chemical dopamine in their brain. Dopamine helps control movement so a deficit often manifests in symptoms like tremors, rigidity, and slow movement. In fact, there are over 40 symptoms, including depression and anxiety, excessive fatigue and pain.

In short, to adopt some medical terminology, it's not a lot of fun.