Walking 1 million steps in 100 days is impossible for many people with M.E. In the UK, there are 250,000 people with M.E., a chronic, neurological illness which can leave 25% so severely ill they are house/bedbound for many years. It's an illness with symptoms such as severe persistent exhaustion, pain, hypersensitivity to light, sound or even touch and an inability for the body to recover after expending even a small amount of energy (read more about M.E. at www.actionforme.org.uk)
Walk with M.E. is a great initiative from someone with M.E. While I don't have M.E., I wanted to take part so my colleague and I are each walking 1 million steps. However, I am walking an additional 1 million steps for an amazing person with M.E. (read Emily's story below) who is too ill that she is not able to walk more than a few steps. That's an average of 20,000 steps or circa 10 miles a day. It may not sound a lot but for someone who spends their day sat on their backside in meetings, it's a challenge!
Please donate to help Action for M.E. stop M.E. stealing lives and support us to raise much-needed awareness and understanding about this devastating illness.
Thank you so much for all your support!
Sonya
Emily's story:
I have had M.E. for 26 years. My M.E. was undiagnosed until 4 years ago, when I had a severe relapse. All the symptoms I’d struggled with which had wrecked my life over and over again were linked up at last by a specialist. Each time I relapsed I lost my job, relationship, hobbies, and sometimes my home. I had to rebuild my life from scratch, just to have it all taken away again by illness.
I volunteer with Action for M.E. because I don't want other people to go through all the disbelief and discrimination I have over the years, and as a pharmacist with the illness I want to help improve healthcare for those who have been neglected and forgotten.
Every minute of every day is a struggle and moving around with M.E. feels like trudging through a swamp. Some days even just standing on the spot is really exhausting. I see people fundraising by doing amazing challenges and wish I could do the same, so I'm over the moon that Sonya is walking a million steps on my behalf to help us stop M.E. stealing the lives of others.
