After a year of health problems and investigations, my beautiful 2 year old daughter Layla has just been diagnosed with Crohn's disease, a form of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD).

This has caused Layla to lose weight, develop severe anemia and be extremely fatigued on top of the severe bowel issues that come with an IBD.

Despite all the trips to the doctors, hospital visits and general discomfort that this has caused her, Layla has continued to smile, laugh and lighten up the lives of all who know her.

Recently we were finally given answers to what was causing Layla's problems and the good news is we now have a treatment plan in place to help Layla live as normal a life as possible.

I'm happy to say that compared to the first 9 months of 2018 Layla is no longer as poorly as she was, however we have had to accept that this disease is likely to affect her for the rest of her life as there is currently no known cure. 

For those who know me, you'll probably know that I take part in many running events. 

These have always been done for personal fitness reasons but now I'd like to do 2 things I've never done before - 

1. Run my first ever full marathon

2. Raise money and awareness for Crohn's and Colitis UK.

Crohn’s and Colitis UK is a national charity in the battle against Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis. We are fighting to achieve a better quality of life for the 300,000 people in the UK suffering physically and emotionally from these and other forms of Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Ultimately, we want to find a cure.

This is now a cause that is very close to my heart and any donations made will be greatly appreciated by myself, my partner Debbie and all of Layla's friends and family who she continues to bring joy to.