Climbing Ben Nevis

 

On September 17 I will be climbing Ben Nevis in Scotland for the Alzhemer's Society. I was going to Nepal in November but due to a slipped disc in my neck I am no longer able to make the trip.  I will however be able to complete the Ben Nevis climb, and Iain is coming with me to support me and do the climb as well, so thank you for your support and we hope you will continue to support us. The reason we are doing this is detailed below.  Thank you all for supporting .us

In November 2010 I wasl going to walk around the Annapurna Mountain Range – mad you may say and why you may ask but please read on.

I was taking part in a sponsored walk for the Alzheimer’s Society. Due to fly out on the 20^th November for the start of my challenge and would have been away for a total of 11 days.

 I am doing this in honour of Mum whose 86^th birthday is November 20^th so a very apt time to start.   Mum is doing OK, she has now been in the nursing home for 5 years, and it really is her home.  We no longer bring her up to the house, as each trip out was getting harder and harder. Last time it took us 15 minutes just to get her over the front door step. The different levels of doorstep, front door mat, carpet and rug really threw her and it comes to a point where you have to think who I am doing this for her or me. We know she is happy and content where she is.  She is kept warm, dry and fed by staff that are very fond of her as her core personality remains intact – a loving and warm natured lady.

It’s a real S**T of a disease.  It still breaks my heart when I do things like this ‘writing about her’, most of the time I get on with it and keep my emotions locked safely away and have grown to love this odd little old lady who long ago refused to wear her dentures or her glasses and I now love very much, as my little Gummy Bear.

It is only since deciding to take on the challenge earlier this month and raise as much money as I can for the Alzheimer’s Society (who were wonderfully supportive when we still had Mum living in her flat and were a real life line at the time and a crucial part of Mum’s support network) have  I realised the impact it would have on me.

 I now find myself being put in a position of talking about it in depth.  A lovely couple I told about the trek when out shopping for walking gear, wanted to talk about his Grandpa, who died from Alzheimers and asked me about  Mum, and now I am sitting writing this to you. You see I never thought that bit through before and only now do I fully realise that this is going to be my biggest challenge of all i.e. opening the lid off the box that I have so carefully manage to keep so firmly shut on my emotions as I can’t avoid it if I am to effectively fund raise. I can honestly say I don’t know if I would have decided to do it if I’d realised just how much ‘this’ was going to hurt !

Challenging yes, but compared to missing ‘my Mum’ a walk in the park.

So there we have it. I do hope you will support me on my challenge both emotional and physical.  

It is a S**T of a disease and if my fund raising can make the difference to someone else’s Mum, or someone who loves them, it will all be worth it as it really is true and I know from writing this.

How can you be allowed to grieve properly for someone who has died, when they are still living?

 Love

Jo x

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