I'm excited (and slightly terrified!) to be running the London Marathon on 27 April 2025 in aid of Scoliosis Support and Research.

I started running at the start of 2024 with the goal of running a 10k this year. A few half marathons later and a marathon booked for the end of 2024, I think I can safely say I’ve caught the running bug!

Scoliosis is an abnormal curvature of the spine and can affect people of any age. There are several different reasons why scoliosis can occur but over 80% of cases occur in older children/teenagers and are idiopathic, which means they have no known cause.

As many of you will be aware, I was diagnosed with scoliosis in 2008 after it was noticed on holiday that my shoulders and ribs were looking a bit wonky. After a couple of years of keeping an eye on it and some rather large growth spurts, I underwent spinal fusion surgery when I was 13 in order to correct it. I was fused from T3 to L3, which means I've been the proud owner of a couple of titanium rods and 25 screws (and the inability to slouch!) ever since.

SSR promotes and funds innovative research to improve treatment options for patients, as well as offering guidance and support to individuals and families affected by scoliosis. I had never heard of scoliosis before I was diagnosed, and my family and I found resources from organisations like SSR incredibly helpful in order to understand exactly what was happening and what we could expect in the future.

I'm therefore fundraising to help to continue SSR's important work and to raise awareness of this, and other, spinal conditions. More information can be found on SSR's website: https://ssr.org.uk/.

Thank you for your support x