Catherine (right) Superstar Mum of ME sufferer Jessica (left) and brother (middle)
Catherine's Tri-Event.
1. Catherine will be swimming 100 lengths of the 25m pool at Full Well Cross leisure centre on Monday 13th May. That's 2.5 kilometres over 1 1/2 miles.To see her Just Giving page click here
UPDATE 29/05/2013 Catherine has raised £2116.88 including gift aid
2. Coffee/tea /cake sale on 25th May 11-1pm 32 Auckland Rd Ilford (if you live local!!)
3. Attending Invest in ME's - 8th International ME Conference at the end of May
Catherine writes -
''I am totally unfit and this will kill me! however I need to do something in order to raise funds and awareness for ME/CFS. My daughter Jessica has had this awful illness for 5 years and up until now I suppose you could say I have had my head in the sand. Hoping that things will sort themselves out and she'll just miraculiously recover. This last year has been her worst and so I am changing tack and getting active in every way.
My daughter Jessica who will be 21 this year has now had it for over 5 years. It is a soul destroying illness to have because everyone knows someone who has had it and has something to say about it. It is so hard to describe to people when they already have their own impression of what it is. People can't understand how someone can actually do nothing, they always say well she must watch telly, or I bet she's on the computer all day.
Can you ever remember a time in your life when you were dog tired, so tired you couldn't talk, think, (foggy brain) couldn't even sleep you had gone past that point. You got giddy and achy (no coordination), cranky and emotional. Well, Jessica is like that all the time. But worse: If she does more activities than her body can cope with, she also gets flu like symptoms.
Recently she has been going to sessions for Cognitive Behavioral Therapy(CBT) every couple of weeks. These extra activities (coming down stairs, getting in a taxi to the hospital in Great Ormond Street, walking into the hospital, the session and then returning home) have had a knock on accumulative effect on her and for the last month she has had flu like symptoms. The average person when they get flu feels bad for a week or so (and wouldn't wish it on their worst enemy). If they were ill for a month they would be really depressed. Jessica is depressed of course but not because she's ill, but because she can't see when she is going to ever be well.
I really want to support her but until we find out what causes Myalgic Encephalopathy in the first place, there is no cure. I am doing various things this May to raise funds -
Invest in ME are trying to raise £100,000 for research this year and I would really really appreciate it if you could click on my justgiving page and donate something. Thank you so much for reading to the end.''
Catherine is one of the many folks who are supporting funding for biomedical research in May and later this year to read more super hero stories see the full list of Just Giving pages here Let's do it for ME / Invest in ME
Also see the Let's do it for ME website for more details of event in May (ME Awareness Month)
