Since as long as I can remember, I have dreamt of completing the ultimate challenge and swimming the English Channel, but never thought I would be able to complete the distance, time in the water or deal with the cold. With COVID closing all the pools in 2020, I got heavily into open water swimming, keeping up fitness and just loving being in the water. As the cold began to settle in over the Autumn and Winter, I thought at some point I would need to stop, but with layers of neoprene, I kept on going right through the Winter months. It's now April at the time of this writing, and the temperatures are starting to rise and the neoprene is starting to come off! 

So now onto the important part of this story, and the reason I have chosen to use this personal achievement to raise money for Crohn's & Colitis UK. In 2017, my cousin Jenny, sadly lost her life to Bowel Cancer at the age of 38. Jenny was diagnosed with colitis and coeliac disease and had to drastically change her diet. She had monthly infusions to reduce the inflammation, but sadly nothing really worked for very long. She received trials of various treatments, but eventually the only option left was a colostomy operation. Unfortunately by that time, she had developed bowel cancer, which had spread to her liver. Chemo would have aggravated the colitis, so she had the operation first. Initially, the operation appeared to go well and I personally was able to visit Jenny afterwards at home. Sadly, within a matter of weeks, Jenny died leaving a huge gap in her close and extended family.