Hi guys,

Thanks for taking the time to visit my London Marathon 2012 JustGiving page.

In April 2012 I'll be getting 'on my marks for little hearts', or more specifically, on my marks for my sons little heart.

Having a child with a serious illness changes who you are.  You see everything in a different way - nothing is taken for granted again.  We treasure each moment because we never know if there will be another like it.

I want to dream about my son's future, and not fear it.

Lewis was born with a complex congenital heart defect, Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome - more affectionately dubbed 'half a heart syndrome'.  This illness occurs once in every 5000 live births, and without treatment, is fatal.

When Lewis was born we were faced with a two choices:

1. Palliative Care: Put him through a series of 3 open heart surgeries with a high risk of death, knowing that without it, he would die within a matter of days, if not hours.

2. Compassionate Care: To opt out of surgery, to relieve his pain and suffering, to control his debilitating symptoms and take him home to die.

As he turns 4, and is approaching his third major open heart surgery, Lewis' long term prognosis is unclear.  This condition is not correctable and cannot be cured. 

The link below takes you to a video that i have created which explains my sons journey and my fundraising efforts in more detail than I can on this page.  Please note that there are some post surgery photos included in this video.  http://animoto.com/play/iB0iainzRX60GBgWBy6aDQ

Raising money for the British Heart Foundation means funding life-saving research that will one day prevent children dying before their parents due to congenital heart defects.  It means that nurses can provide care to patients & that parents just starting out on the journey of caring for a sick child are supported to better understand their childs illness and how to deal with it day to day.

Fundraising for the British Heart Foundation means that you may just help to prolong the life of a child whose life has really, only just begun.

You can donate through this page, or alternatively, you can text CWIK84 £x to 70070 (replacing the x with the sum that you would like to donate). 100% of the donation reaches the charity.

Please dig deep. Whether it's a penny or a pound - it all mounts up!

Thank you for your support!

Laura & Lewis Hussain

xxxx