June 2026 marks the 15th anniversary year of my personal diagnosis of Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM). Since then I have been through a rollercoaster of emotions from thinking I’m going to die to I can still live a very normal life (this took me about 15 years to get my head around). The reason for this fund raising is to support 2 local charities on the Isle of Man that helps people get important check ups on their heart so that they can identify an illness that can cause sudden death syndrome. But it’s not only that, I want to help people who may have been diagnosed with a condition that with the right support from the NHS and Manx Care you can still live a fun and fulfilling life. It’s all about getting the right medication to balance what you need that still enables you to be active, enjoy sport and live a fun life with your family and community. This is only possible with the ongoing help I receive from Manx Care and the new technology that constantly monitors my heart health.

There is also something else that is key, our mental health. When you encounter a personal illness you don’t think about how differently people start to treat you, in work you suddenly become overlooked because they think you are no longer capable. Friends can suddenly distance themselves because they don’t know what to say to you. That is why I am also raising funds for Isle Listen, we all need support during those difficult times when everything feels like life is turning against you and the support Isle Listen offers local people is invaluable. I’ve been lucky, I have a wonderful family and great friend group who have always supported me through the difficult times and now I would like to try and give back by raising awareness and hopefully raising some money at the same time.

I’m going to swim 100 lengths of the NSC (25m pool) everyday for the month of June, that’s 3000 lengths and 75k, I’ve been training for 4 years now gradually building up my core strength to be able to do this so don’t worry, I know my heart can handle this, I just need you to sponsor and share this so that I can raise as much money as possible and raise awareness about how it feels living with an illness. Thank you for taking the time to read this and please support where you can.

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