MARLENE RUSLING
Deirdre's fundraising page for the Cardiomopathy Association
Fundraising for Cardiomyopathy UK
Story
Thanks to everyone who has generously supported me in taking part in the Big Fun Run in Glasgow on 24 July! Not only did you smash my original target of £200, but you also beat my next target of £300. Thanks to you all, you have raised £310 for the Cardiomyopathy Association!
If you want all the info on why I was raising money for the Cardiomyopathy Association and why it's such a great cause, read on.
Some of you may know that my partner John has dilated cardiomyopathy. This is a heart condition which causes the heart to enlarge and pump less strongly. Experts estimate that around 1 in 500 people are affected by some form of cardiomyopathy. It’s an auto-immune disease with complex causes - genetics, viruses and infection may all play a part. Cardiomyopathy and other familial heart conditions cause up to eight sudden deaths a week in the UK in the under 35s. But if it’s diagnosed it can be treated with drugs and surgery, and many people with cardiomyopathy go on to lead long and full lives.
When I first started going out with John I contacted the Cardiomyopathy Association, and their information and support was invaluable. They were also there for us when John was rushed to hospital with a life-threatening irregular heart rhythm, and when he was fitted with an internal defribrillator, which will jump-start his heart if it ever develops a dangerous rhythm again. They helped us understand the differences between the different kinds of implantable heart devices, why John might have been given that particular type of device, and they helped us work out what questions we wanted to ask the consultant.
More recently we’ve just attended an information day run by The Cardiomyopathy Association which is helping us make sense of John’s experiences so far, and the treatment and prognosis for his condition.
The Cardiomypathy Association do a lot more than provide information. They also fund free educational opportunities for medical professionals all over the UK, they fund specialist nurse posts in London, Glasgow and Belfast (and successfully persuaded the NHS to take over funding of the Glasgow and Belfast nurses), a specialist cardiologist at the Heart Hospital in London, and a pioneering telemedicine project which allows people in Scotland to receive consultations from specialists in London.
So, we’ve got all this support from the Cardiomyopathy Association, and hopefully you can see the difference that has made to us, and to the 120,000 other families affected by this condition. I think it’s now about time I did something in return.
That's why I did the 5K Big Fun Run in Glasgow on 24 July 2010.
Although the run is now complete, you can still donate online any time through this JustGiving page. Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the Cardiomyopathy Association and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.
So please dig deep and donate now.
If you want all the info on why I was raising money for the Cardiomyopathy Association and why it's such a great cause, read on.
Some of you may know that my partner John has dilated cardiomyopathy. This is a heart condition which causes the heart to enlarge and pump less strongly. Experts estimate that around 1 in 500 people are affected by some form of cardiomyopathy. It’s an auto-immune disease with complex causes - genetics, viruses and infection may all play a part. Cardiomyopathy and other familial heart conditions cause up to eight sudden deaths a week in the UK in the under 35s. But if it’s diagnosed it can be treated with drugs and surgery, and many people with cardiomyopathy go on to lead long and full lives.
When I first started going out with John I contacted the Cardiomyopathy Association, and their information and support was invaluable. They were also there for us when John was rushed to hospital with a life-threatening irregular heart rhythm, and when he was fitted with an internal defribrillator, which will jump-start his heart if it ever develops a dangerous rhythm again. They helped us understand the differences between the different kinds of implantable heart devices, why John might have been given that particular type of device, and they helped us work out what questions we wanted to ask the consultant.
More recently we’ve just attended an information day run by The Cardiomyopathy Association which is helping us make sense of John’s experiences so far, and the treatment and prognosis for his condition.
The Cardiomypathy Association do a lot more than provide information. They also fund free educational opportunities for medical professionals all over the UK, they fund specialist nurse posts in London, Glasgow and Belfast (and successfully persuaded the NHS to take over funding of the Glasgow and Belfast nurses), a specialist cardiologist at the Heart Hospital in London, and a pioneering telemedicine project which allows people in Scotland to receive consultations from specialists in London.
So, we’ve got all this support from the Cardiomyopathy Association, and hopefully you can see the difference that has made to us, and to the 120,000 other families affected by this condition. I think it’s now about time I did something in return.
That's why I did the 5K Big Fun Run in Glasgow on 24 July 2010.
Although the run is now complete, you can still donate online any time through this JustGiving page. Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the Cardiomyopathy Association and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.
So please dig deep and donate now.