On the 1st March 2015, we will be running the Bath Half Marathon to raise money for the ME Association, and we would both be hugely grateful if you would take the time to read our reasons why - and even more so if you decide to donate!

A little about ME/CFS

Since ME/CFS is a relatively little-known, often misunderstood condition, here are three important facts for you to know:

1. "ME" stands for Myalgic Encephalopothy, and "CFS" for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. Current estimates suggest that around 250,000 people in Britain suffer from this condition.
   
2. As both names suggest, sufferers of ME most commonly experience debilitating fatigue and painful joints and muscles. However, other lesser-known symptoms include (but are not, unfortunately, limited to): anxiety; disordered, unrefreshing sleep; flulike symptoms following mental or physical exertion; and concentration and memory difficulties.
   
3. There is currently no accepted cure and no universally effective treatment for ME/CFS.
   

A little about the ME Association

The ME Association is the UK's longest-established national ME/CFS charity. It provides much-needed information and support for sufferers, including local support groups and helplines, as well as providing educational materials for health professionals; it campaigns for better NHS service provisions and access to benefits for sufferers; and, perhaps most importantly, it funds and carries out ongoing research into the causes and treatment for ME/CFS.

Why fundraising for the ME Association matters to us

Ellie: My sister Jess has suffered from ME since she was 12 - but because it was and continues to be a very poorly understood condition, she was not properly diagnosed for many months, and was even told her symptoms were all in her head. Sadly, this is not an uncommon response to ME, perhaps because we still do not fully understand the causes of the condition, nor know how best to treat it. The fact remains, however, that ME is an illness with real, physiological symptoms that make leading a normal life at best difficult, and at worst impossible. Jess's ME is relatively mild, but some sufferers are so severely affected that they have to use a wheelchair, become housebound or hospitalised, and mismanagement of ME of this severity has previously even resulted in death.

The strength and determination Jess shows in refusing to let ME control her life constantly amaze me, but that, in itself, is an exhausting battle. I would love for the ME Association's research to one day lead to a treatment that could end that battle for her and for other sufferers - or at least make it easier to fight.

Matt: Before Ellie first told me about Jess' condition I hadn't even heard of ME, and really that's part of the problem: not many people know about it and even fewer understand what it entails. I know how rubbish I feel when I'm tired and how much of struggle a day can be, but that's a drop in the ocean compared to what ME sufferers go through. I can only imagine what it must be like, so I have the utmost admiration for people, like Jess, who suffer from this condition every single day and yet still find a way not only to simply make it through the day, but also to flourish and excel in what they do. If nothing else, I would just really like to make a few more people aware of ME and hope that one day something can be done to give those that suffer from it a helping hand.