The Versus Arthritis
5k along the bay
**For All Abilities**
Raising for Versus Arthritis - The Reason this race was set up
About my mother's Arthritis:
​
​The Real Story behind why I'm raising money for Versus Arthritis:
My mother Kathie discovered she had Rheumatoid Arthritis just after I was born 29 Years ago. She would notice flare ups in her hands, elbows, shoulders, hips, knees, ankles & her feet. This was not all happening at once but was causing a lot of discomfort and through the aid of prescription medication that helped to control the pain for several years. In 2007 my mother had to have a right shoulder replacement due to the Arthritis and then had a left elbow replacement in 2011, again down to the Arthritis.
​
In 2013 the doctors realised that due to her bones not being able to fight the arthritis as well, her Left knee was beginning to crumble away and because of other operations that have happened since this still is waiting to be replaced. Her body has been suffering badly and also due to this recovery is not as easy, in early 2014 my mother broke one of her Big Toe's and it has still not completely healed over 4 years later.
​
In October 2014 she fell whilst crossing the road in Town in Swansea and broke her left arm. They operated to repair the arm however because of the previous operation this caused complications and meant that she was in and out of hospital and had her arm in plaster for the majority of the next 3 years. There have been several operations to try and correct this and the end result was a specialised complete shoulder & elbow reconstruction made out of Titanium which was made in the USA was to be fitted. This itself has had several complications and my mother has been back in hospital for multiple smaller operations over the past 18 months. She is now waiting to have her right shoulder re-done as it has collapsed following the original surgery in 2007.
​
To make matters even more complicated, in the past few years my mother has also discovered she is suffering with a form of Heart Failure which makes every operation she undergoes that much more of a risk, and also has been diagnosed with Osteoporosis. Despite all of this my mother continues to battle on always with a brave smile on her face!
A special mother's day story:
For mother's day 2019, Versus Arthritis asked if they could cover a story on what I am doing this year on behalf of my mother. If you'd like to read this lovely article please click on the link below.
Fundraising Targets:
The target that I have set himself for 2019 was to raise £10,000 for the Versus Arthritis charity.
I am already 50% of the way there having raised over £5,000 and this was before completing the 2019 London Marathon.
With over half of the year left to still raise money and plenty of charity events still planned there is no doubt in reaching that magic target. To find out more about what challenges i am taking part in or if you'd like to donate please click on the image below.
Learn more about Arthritis:
Arthritis is not something that is talked about enough and a lot of people may not even know they are suffering with it. We all know somebody who has had it or still suffers with it today. If you'd like to learn more about Arthritis, the amazing charity or anything else please click on the link below.
