Welcome to our Snowdon challenge 2018!

Earlier in the year Christine and I discussed whether we’d be able to climb Snowdon with our 9 year olds, Jed and Freddy. When I saw the advert about climbing snowdon in aid of QEH it made made perfect sense, as both our families have been helped by the renal department over the last ten years. 

Five years ago I went into end stage renal failure. I lost kidney function and needed haemodialysis three days each week in order to stay alive and well. As anyone on dialysis knows, it's a challenging and sometimes seemingly relentless regime, both physically and mentally. Throughout all of this my friends and family helped me keep going and made sure that both me and my son Jed always felt loved and supported.  

Last spring I got a call in the night from the hospital transplant coordinator to tell me a match had been found. Within 24 hours I had a new kidney and was able to eat bananas and drink as much water as I wanted for the first time in nearly three years!  Jed named the kidney 'Betty' and she has been with us now for a year and four months. 

There have been highs and lows along the way, which has often meant Jed's life being turned upside down. I've had lots of stays in hospital and a few scares where I thought I might lose Betty.  Jed has stayed with friends each time I ended up in hospital and would come to visit me whenever he could.  

Jed said 'my life was all messed up like a jigsaw puzzle when mum went onto dialysis but now she's doing a lot better and I hope Betty keeps mum running.' 

Throughout this whole phase of our lives, the renal team at QEH and the dialysis unit at Sparkhill have quite literally kept me alive. They have done everything they can to keep me well, make me feel I'm not alone and that one way or another, with or without Betty, things will turn out okay. 

So after all that, I'm now back to full health and with Jed, our friends Christine (who has also been supported by the QEH renal department) and Freddy to help us, myself and Betty (the kidney transplant) wanted to say a big thank you to the Hospital. 

We will be walking up Snowdon together, with others who are also raising money for QEH, and hope that by doing this we can raise some money and awareness about what life is like with renal failure.