Tag Archives: alzheimer’s

19/08/2019
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About Me

Two weeks to go!

Since April I have been raising money for Alzheimer’s Research UK. They fund vital research into the nature, causes and treatments for dementia. This is a cause very close to my heart as my mum is living with Alzheimer’s.

The Running Down Dementia Challenge is organised every year by Alzheimer’s Research UK. It’s a great challenge that anyone can do. Last year I signed up and managed to complete 250km over the five months (April-August) which was quite an achievement for me as I hadn’t ran for years before. This year I decided that I would push myself by doubling my target distance.

It certainly hasn’t been easy and I’ve learned a lot along the way. With only two weeks to go until then end of the challenge I thought I would share some of the key lessons that I have picked up from this year’s challenge.

Seeking help early

Midway through my challenge I got very sore and stiff Achilles and found it hard even walking down stairs. It was much worse than the normal aches I could get after a long run and was worried that it could be the start of a much bigger problem. My GP recommended that I go to a physio – I’m very glad that I heeded their advice.

Breaking it down into smaller chunks

The key piece of advice that the physio gave me was to run shorter distances but more often. They also suggested I try to slow down and maybe even go back to run-walk-run. Previously I had been trying to cover the distance over a maximum of 3 runs per week. This wasn’t a good strategy. So I changed my approach and ran 4 or 5 times per week but over shorter distances.

Finding time

Time seems to be an increasingly rare commodity. Juggling family life, commuting and work plus running 4 to 5 times a week has been challenging. But I had to find new ways to fit in mid-week runs. Running to and from work has been a big help in getting my mileage up – and it’s had the added bonus of giving me more energy and helping me focus throughout the day.

Having support

Along the way I have had a few set-backs but have managed to stick to my plan. This would’ve been much harder without the support of family and friends. My weekly Sunday run with a group of friends has been a real motivator to keep going. But more than that I’ve been motivated by the importance of raising funds to help tackle this terrible disease. Every time someone has donated it has spurred me on to run a little more.

On a run near Kinloch Rannoch

Over the last year quite a lot has changed but running has been a constant part of my weekly routine. It has made me healthier, happier and much more resilient. With this year’s challenge nearly over I plan to keep going and am already looking forward to the challenge next year. In the meantime I’m delighted to have raised over £300 and ran over 460km.

There is still time to donate. Any amounts are greatly appreciated. You can see my full progress and donate here: https://runningdowndementia2019.everydayhero.com/uk/ian-1

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24/08/2018
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About Me

One Week To Go

It’s been a tough summer. Lots of ups and downs. A fair amount of pain. At last there’s only one week to go. I really couldn’t have got through this without a lot of support from family and friends. But finally it’s almost over.

Since April I’ve been taking part in the Running Down Dementia Challenge for Alzheimer’s Research UK. The challenge was to run 100km and raise £100 by 31 August. Having done no running in four years I figured it would be a big challenge but that I might be able to do it.

Please give here: https://runningdowndementia2018.everydayhero.com/uk/ian-4#

Initially I started run-walk-run and the first few weeks were really tough. A group of friends started a Sunday morning run and this really helped keep my motivation up. What also helped was the huge amount of generosity from friends and family in donating to my fundraising page. With every pound donated I ran a little further and tried a little harder. Soon I was able to run my first 10k in quite a few years. It wasn’t easy – but I did it.

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My fundraising total kept going up and local press were very kind in raising the profile of my challenge. Thanks to the Edinburgh Evening News and the Ballymoney Times in particular for featuring my story. I’ve also received very generous support from Newbridge Financial Planning and even my aunts have helped in the fundraising efforts in my hometown of Ballymoney. It’s been a big team effort!

Help fund research into prevention, treatment and cures for the diseases that cause dementia here: https://runningdowndementia2018.everydayhero.com/uk/ian-4#

All the time I’ve been thinking about my mum and others in her position who are living with dementia. While she is happy I know that there is so much more she would want to do. Living with dementia has really restricted what she can do in her retirement years and it has been difficult for all the family. Right now there are 850,000 families in the UK facing similar challenges. Alzheimer’s Research UK fund research into treatments, prevention and cures for the diseases that cause dementia. Every pound donated will support this effort.

At the start of this journey I was hoping to run 100km and raise £100. With one week to go I’ve ran 227km and raised £2134.80. I am hugely grateful to all my 87 donors and with every step I run I can feel 87 people cheering me on. It’s an incredible feeling.

It has been a tough summer. There has been a fair amount of pain, blisters and sore legs! But I’ve loved it. And it’s not over yet. So please, if you can give anything to help fund the amazing work of Alzheimer’s Research UK click on the link below and give what you can.

Thank you!

https://runningdowndementia2018.everydayhero.com/uk/ian-4#

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14/05/2018
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About Me

My mum

My mum and dad married in 1965. Soon after they bought a small cottage just outside the town of Ballymoney. My dad has often recalled the time my mum first saw their new home – she cried. It was, by all accounts, a complete ramshackle with lots of damp and wallpaper peeling off the walls. They had bought two cottages that sat side by side with the goal of putting them together into one modern bungalow. In the meantime they lived in a cold and damp 1960’s caravan in the garden.

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My mum worked in the NHS. She attended training in Belfast. She was respected and liked by all staff in the Robinson Memorial Hospital in Ballymoney. By all accounts she was on the fast track to a senior administration post in the health service. During the day she would work in the hospital and at night would help my dad, uncles and friends to convert the two old cottages into a modern 1970’s bungalow.

In 1973 my brother came along. There was no maternity leave entitlement back then – which meant she had to leave her job in the NHS. Instead she took up a part-time position in the nearby rural sub-post office.

My brother started primary school and then I came along. My mum was by now sub-post mistress and looked after us during the day alongside running a very busy sub-post office and shop.

I remember people queuing outside the post office early in the mornings. It would often be opened before 8am and seemed to never shut. When it was shut people would ring the doorbell. Day and night mum would always answer – always putting her customers and the community before all else, fuelled by a bottomless tea cup.

Holidays were restricted by the needs of the post office. So Bank Holidays would be used in order to get a long weekend. Every now and again there would be a trip to Scotland or to different parts of Northern Ireland. But we’d always have to be back in time for opening the post office. Sick days were even rarer. The post office really never shut.

Any money that was saved went to furthering mine and my brothers education. Piano lessons, singing lessons, private tuition, Encyclopedia Britannia (Google it). Anything that would help us succeed in life.

As if all of this wasn’t enough public service my mum also gave blood. She donated blood for many years and received a Gold Badge for donating over 50 times.

In the late 1990’s the post office was robbed. Masked men entered the house. My mum was tied up with cables pulled from the back of our old TV set. A gun held at her head. But she wouldn’t give away the keys to the safe and instead tricked the masked gunmen into sounding the alarm. They were caught. The gang leader was son of a lottery winner. He got five years in prison – out in three.

My mum continued to serve the community. A new alarm system and safe were installed at personal expense. We got a dog.

My mum continued to run the post office for many years while both me and my brother moved out, went to university, got jobs, families. Over time her memory started to fade. Then her mood changed. Then things that she’d always done, like washing the kitchen floor every night, stopped being done. I didn’t notice at first. Then it became hard to ignore. Running the post office eventually became impossible. After forty years of continuous service it closed.

Later, even living at home became impossible. Too dangerous, and too onerous on my dad, who had his own health problems to manage. She now lives happily in an amazing care home (paid for by her pension and life savings). It’s not a life she choose. It’s a life dictated by Alzheimer’s Disease.

My mum doesn’t have the retirement she deserves after more than 50 years of working life. She hasn’t got to know the grandchildren she always wanted. She doesn’t get to play and look after them as she would like. The crippling nature of dementia has stripped all that away. She is happy, happiest in the company of visitors, and there are still wonderful moments of clarity and lucidity. But so much has been lost.

Looking back now I can’t help think of the endless sacrifices she made but at the same time I know that to her it wasn’t sacrifice – it was love. This is why I am raising money for Alzheimer’s Research. For every £1 donated 84p goes towards research to fight dementia. It may be too late for my mum but hopefully the work of Alzheimer’s Research UK will help millions of people in the future.

Please donate to my fundraising page listed below. Every pound helps. Thank you.

https://runningdowndementia2018.everydayhero.com/uk/ian-4

**UPDATE**

Thanks to all my amazing friends and family I raised over £2,800 in 2018. I have decided to keep running and to continue to raise money for Alzheimer’s Research UK. My latest fundraising page can be found here: https://runningdowndementia2019.everydayhero.com/uk/ian-1 

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