People who know me think I'm a fitness freak, who can't get enough of exercising and that entering an Ironman is something I might do for "fun" - this is true, to a certain extent (although I would contend this is at the extreme end of the fun-scale!). The fact is, all of my sporting exploits are only made possible by a powerful (Anti-TNF) biologic drug called Humira, which I inject every two weeks, and works by compromising my immune system to reduce my body's inflammatory response to well,.....nothing. I have Ankylosing Spondilitis (AS), a chronic auto-immune condition for which there is no known cure or real obvious reason as to why it occurs, and the truth is, I swim, bike and run as much as I do because one day, I'm afraid I won't be able to.

In October 2012, I woke with an ache in my left hip. Thinking it was nothing more than a minor sporting injury, I carried on as normal. Two months later, I was in excruciating pain all over my body (on the McGill pain scale AS is just below the pain of child birth-with training!); My neck, rib cage, back, hip, fingers, knees and even toes were all affected and I could hardly get out of bed, which by the way is the worst thing you can do for AS as the body only stiffens and becomes more painful the more inactive you are. I ended up at A&E twice because the pain was so severe, where they told me there wasn't much they could do. Little did I know I was experiencing an AS "flare".

In March 2013, after x-rays and MRI scans, I was diagnosed with "non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis" (nrAxSpA) (mouthful!) i.e. I had the clinical picture of AS but didn't exhibit radiographic sacroiliitis yet. After an initial (very strong) course of steroids the pain and inflammation settled to a level which meant I could move again, and I then spent 6 months trying various over the counter and prescription NSAIDS. None of which were powerful enough to reduce my symptoms to anywhere near being able to lead a "normal" life. At that point my specialist put me forward for Anti-TNF treatment - a relatively new and effective treatment, which I was told few were approved for because of its high cost. I was one of the lucky ones, and started taking Humira in November 2013.

Within three months of treatment Humira had given me most of my life back - and with a certain sense of being given a second chance, I threw myself back into sport. Without doubt being healthy and active are the best things you can do for this condition both physically and mentally - and yes, battling chronic pain does negatively impact on your state of mind. Firstly, it was just a bit of swimming, then some cycling and finally running. Three years after my initial diagnosis, I got back into triathlon. The efficacy of Humira reduces over time, and I can only hope there are suitable alternatives available in the future which have the same result. In the meantime, I will continue to push as hard as I can for as long as I can.

When deciding on this charity challenge, I felt like I had to do something 'extreme' to make it worthwhile and with a 3.8km swim, followed by a 180.2km bike and 42.2km (marathon) run, Ironman seemed to fit the bill. At the same time as it being a challenge for me to complete, I also wanted it to be something positive for my fellow AS battlers, to show them as the Ironman slogan says; "anything is possible".

The human body can do some amazing things, it can also do some awful things. I want to focus on the amazing! Thanks for reading  and for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

I'd like to give a little something back to the charity that helped me in those dark early days and continues to do so today. NASS is the only charity in the UK dedicated to supporting people with ankylosing spondylitis (AS), a painful, progressive rheumatic disease which mainly affects the spine. An estimated 200,000 people live with AS in the UK. 

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 charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.