When I first met Alan he was called Big Al by a few of his friends. I find it quite ironic he has been diagnosed with , what we joke about as his own disease , AL'S. Sadly though this disease is no joke and we had no idea what it was all about when we first heard ALS. I felt so ashamed I had never even took part in the famous Ice bucket challenge, as wrongly assumed it was just a silly Facebook chain started by a guy called Al..how stupid was I. So after completing an epic walk and completing a half Marathon, and hosting a ball all for MNDA, I have decided to try and help raise more awareness and funds by starting this page.

By doing various smaller events and dedicating it to AL'S MND challenge, we may just be able to help raise more awareness so other people aren't as niaeve as I was.

ALS (Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis ) is a devision of motor neurone disease (MND). It is a specific disease which causes the death of neurons controlling voluntary muscles. Motor neurone disease (MND) describes a group of diseases that affect the nerves (motor neurones) in the brain and spinal cord that tell your muscles what to do. With MND, messages from these nerves gradually stop reaching the muscles, leading them to weaken, stiffen and waste. 

MND can affect how you walk, talk, eat, drink and breathe. Some people also experience changes to their thinking and behaviour. However, MND affects everyone differently. Not all symptoms affect everyone, or in the same order. Symptoms also progress at varying speeds, which makes the course of the disease difficult to predict.

MND is life-shortening and there is no cure. Although the disease will progress, symptoms can be managed to help achieve the best possible quality of life.

There is a 1 in 300 risk of getting MND across a lifetime. It can affect adults of any age, but is more likely to affect people over 50. Alan was only 45 when he was diagnosed.

MND affects up to 5,000 adults in the UK at any one time. As this is not a common disease, general health and social care professionals may not see many cases of MND.

The MNDA (Motor Neurone Disease Association) is a charity which offers a life-line through accurate, professional, accessible information and practical day-to-day support to enable people with MND to live with their diagnosis and achieve the best quality of life possible.

The MNDA actively campaign to ensure everyone has access to the best possible care, no matter where they live. MNDA do this through the following:

• By working in partnership with the NHS and statutory services we help improve standards of care for people with MND.

• We regularly hold events to continue to educate health and social care professionals (HSCPs) to enable them to achieve excellence in care for people living with MND.

• With our network of MND Care Centres, our branch and group volunteers and our dedication to improving standards of care, people with MND can achieve the highest quality of life possible.

• We will continue to fund and promote ground-breaking research around the world to identify treatments and find the cure for the disease.

• Only through collaboration will a cure for MND be discovered. Therefore we promote international research collaboration and organise the world’s largest conference for MND researchers and clinicians.

• We are a member of the Neurological Alliance who are the only collective voice for more than 70 national and regional brain and spine organisations working together to make life better for 10 million children, young people and adults in England with a neurological condition.

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