This year marks the 10 year anniversary since recieiving life changing surgery from the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital in Stanmore Middlesex. My fundraising for the hospital is long overdue and to mark this anniversary and the journey I have had to be where I am today I will be running 10K on September 14th at London's Run to the Beat at Wembley Park.

Through my own battle and journey I have been so very fortunate to recieve such outstanding care from the RNOH and the remarkable works of Mr Aresh Hashemi-Nejad and his team have given me the chance to be able to walk pain free again.

I was diagnosed with Slipped Upper Femoral Epiphysis in March 2004 but my symptoms started from an injury at school in April 2003. An x-ray in May 2003 was wrongly marked as normal but showed a slight slippage on my right hip. The slippage worsened over the following months, my local hospital had diagnosed me with a torn hamstring, weak muscles and a low pain intolerence!!

After battling with my local hospital for months, we sought the help of a private practice and was referred for an M.R.I scan. Following the results of the scan, I was sent urgently to the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital in Middlesex with a 70 degree slip on my right hip and a slight slip on my left hip. The following day, which was also my Dad's birthday, at age 13 I endured a 3 hour operation to insert pins in both my hips and realign my thigh bone in my right leg.

The following weeks, months and years of my recovery have been gruelling at times to say the least, hearing doctors tell me that I will never dance or do sports again has only encouraged me even more to prove them wrong.

I am by no means least a runner and although 10K is no marathon distance, for me running with metal pins jammed through my hips - it's quite far enough! If I have to crawl on my hands and knees over the finish line I will do so.

So please please please help me help others in a similar situation to mine and ensure that they recieve the same life changing care that I so gratefully recieved 10 years ago at the RNOH.

Lastly, a thank you for the never ending love and support of my Family, Friends and staff of the RNOH throughout this journey, they have taught me to never give up and without them  I wouldn't be half the person I am today.

So this is for everyone who over the past 10 years has told me I would never be able to do this - See you at the finish line because this girl is about to prove you wrong!

Joanna xxx