On 7th August 2022, when I was 23, I suffered a stroke in my cerebellum. As a result I had to learn how to control my muscles again. This meant learning to walk, go up and down stairs and also, to run again. Now I am stronger, running has been my focus as I have so missed that feeling of letting your body go and feeling the wind rush past! But, it has been harder to re-learn than I imagined. My body doesn’t quite understand the movement and my right leg tends to seize up. I am hoping by committing to this challenge it will help me reach my goals as well as raising awareness for so many young people.

I have been building my running up 5 seconds at a time and can now run for just about 30 seconds (sometimes it’s more of a wobble than a run!). So 30 seconds EVERYDAY will be a challenge but a good one!

Different strokes is an amazing charity who talk about relevant and relatable things for young stroke survivors. Reading one of their articles when I was in hospital was the first time I didn’t feel as alone in my recovery.

I’d be so grateful for any donations x

Every year 100,000 people have a stroke and a quarter of these people are under the age of 65. That's 25,000 younger people whose lives are changed in an instant.

Stroke is also the single biggest cause of disability in the UK, but it's not always the visible disabilities that stroke survivors have to contend with, debilitating fatigue, cognitive problems and personality changes can also be a lifelong challenge, preventing them from returning to work or bringing up a young family.

Different Strokes empowers younger survivors to reclaim their lives through active peer support, information and exercise.

Different Strokes also support the wider family to get through challenging times with compassion and understanding.

This is why I am taking on the 'March On' step challenge to raise vital funds to support the work of Different Strokes!