Hi there!

My name is Nicola and I’m running my very first half marathon in April 2025.

Between 2020 and early 2021 I had 3 A&E admissions due to asthma. So after the last one, I decided to start running. Make sense? Of course not. But asthma in my late 20s/early 30s is entirely off brand. So I thought, let’s stretch my lungs as far as they can go and see what will happen. Someone has to lose, and it will not be me.

We started with park runs. Every Saturday morning it was girl vs asthma for a cheeky 5k. What started off feeling like hell incarnate became a much welcomed opportunity to clear my mind and feel a sense of achievement once a week.

So I’ve been running on and off since then. Every time I get a cold/flu it brings my lung capacity right back down to 0 again, so I’ve had many breaks (I know this isn’t true medically… but this is how it feels). I’m also a bit clumsy, so I’ve had a few injuries so was “on the bench” from August - December 2024. (Totally incorrect sportsman/woman reference, but I feel like an athlete and I love that for me).

So here we are, 2025 - new year, new me and a new challenge. Do I still have asthma, yes. Do I still run with my inhaler, yes. But Philippians 4:13 - “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”.

So we are running to finish.

When I got the opportunity to run for Alzheimer’s UK, it was an instant yes. Knowing what running has done for my mental health only increases my admiration for the human mind.

Every 3 minutes dementia steals a happily ever after. Research is our only chance of changing the ending for people affected by dementia.

ARUK are the UK's leading dementia research charity. It exists for a cure.

Your donation helps ARUK scientists and researchers find new ways to diagnose dementia, develop new treatments and find a cure for dementia.

Would greatly appreciate donations (both big and small, don’t be shy x) to support.

Thanks so much!

Nic x