On the 18th March, I shall be giving up my Mothering Sunday lie in and pampering to accompany Steve Blethyn on a 42 mile walk from Buckingham Palace to Reading's Madjeski Stadium.
The twist? We have to finish in under 12 hours as its from Sunrise until Sunset! And some of those busy roads don't have paths!
There is pressure and danger in this quackathon, as usual!
I did a Midnight Quackathon with Steve last year so it seemed a good idea to accompany him on another walking adventure. He is walking 2012 miles for 2012 as part of a personal challenge and this links into it. He has been affected by the rapid detoriation of a friend who has been diagnosed with Lupus. So he is fund raising for this dreadful disease, for the charity Lupus UK.
I am always happy to help with a challenge and to support the fund raising effort for a friend. So I am asking for you all to donate and be generous in supporting this challenge. You can text a donation to LUPU55 £1 to 70070 or donate through his Just Giving Page.
This now has it's own challenge page
What is Lupus?
Over 30,000 people have the disease in the UK of whom 90% are female. Men & young children can also be affected by lupus. The ratio of women to men(who are affected) being 9:1.
Lupus is an autoimmune disease, a type of self-allergy, whereby the patient's immune system creates antibodies which instead of protecting the body from bacteria & viruses attack the person's own body tissues. This causes symptoms of extreme fatigue, joint pain, muscle aches, anaemia, general malaise, & can result in the destruction of vital organs. It is a disease with many manifestations, & each person's profile or list of symptoms is different. Lupus can mimic other diseases, such as multiple sclerosis & rheumatoid arthritis, making it difficult to diagnose.
Currently there is no single test that can definitely say whether a person has lupus or not. Only by comprehensive examination and consideration of symptoms and their history can a diagnosis be achieved.
Lupus is neither infectious or contagious.
Lupus can be triggered- ·at puberty ·during the menopause ·after childbirth ·after viral infection ·through sunlight ·as a result of trauma ·after a prolonged course of medication
The symptoms: These may include - -extreme fatigue -joint/muscle pain -eye problems -depression -mouth ulcers -facial or other rashes -miscarriage -hair loss -anaemia -fever -possible involvement of the kidneys, heart, lungs & brain
There is no cure...
People diagnosed with lupus normally remain under medical care with continuing medication. Many symptoms have less impact as a result, but side effects can often occur. Lupus can adversely influence the lives of those who suffer the illness, their families & friends.
SLE - Systemic Lupus Erythematosus
...hard to say - harder to live with...
Lupus is a difficult disease to diagnose, & can be overlooked, often for years, unless the GP or consultant is alert to it's possibilities.
How do doctors know if you’ve got Lupus?
To make a diagnosis of Lupus the patient must have had at least FOUR of these 11 manifestations at any time since the onset of the disease.
1 Malar rash fixed red rash over the cheeks
2 Discoid rash red patches of skin associated with scaling and plugging of the hair follicles
3 Photosensitivity rash after exposure to sunlight
4 Mucosal ulcers small sores that occur in mucosal lining of mouth and nose
5 Serositis inflammation of the delicate tissues covering internal organs and abdominal pain
6 Arthritis -very common in lupus, pain in the joints
7 Renal disorders usually detected by routine blood and urine analysis
8 Neurological disorder seizures or psychosis
9 Haematological disorder haemolytic anaemia, leukopenia, thrombocytopenia
10 Immunologic disorder tests on LE cells, anti-DNA and anti-SM antibodies
11 Anti-Nuclear Antibody (ANA blood test) when found in the blood and the patient is not taking drugs, it is known to cause a positive test for lupus in most cases, but is not necessarily conclusive
(copied from Lupus site)
The twist? We have to finish in under 12 hours as its from Sunrise until Sunset! And some of those busy roads don't have paths!
There is pressure and danger in this quackathon, as usual!
I did a Midnight Quackathon with Steve last year so it seemed a good idea to accompany him on another walking adventure. He is walking 2012 miles for 2012 as part of a personal challenge and this links into it. He has been affected by the rapid detoriation of a friend who has been diagnosed with Lupus. So he is fund raising for this dreadful disease, for the charity Lupus UK.
I am always happy to help with a challenge and to support the fund raising effort for a friend. So I am asking for you all to donate and be generous in supporting this challenge. You can text a donation to LUPU55 £1 to 70070 or donate through his Just Giving Page.
This now has it's own challenge page
What is Lupus?
Over 30,000 people have the disease in the UK of whom 90% are female. Men & young children can also be affected by lupus. The ratio of women to men(who are affected) being 9:1.
Lupus is an autoimmune disease, a type of self-allergy, whereby the patient's immune system creates antibodies which instead of protecting the body from bacteria & viruses attack the person's own body tissues. This causes symptoms of extreme fatigue, joint pain, muscle aches, anaemia, general malaise, & can result in the destruction of vital organs. It is a disease with many manifestations, & each person's profile or list of symptoms is different. Lupus can mimic other diseases, such as multiple sclerosis & rheumatoid arthritis, making it difficult to diagnose.
Currently there is no single test that can definitely say whether a person has lupus or not. Only by comprehensive examination and consideration of symptoms and their history can a diagnosis be achieved.
Lupus is neither infectious or contagious.
Lupus can be triggered- ·at puberty ·during the menopause ·after childbirth ·after viral infection ·through sunlight ·as a result of trauma ·after a prolonged course of medication
The symptoms: These may include - -extreme fatigue -joint/muscle pain -eye problems -depression -mouth ulcers -facial or other rashes -miscarriage -hair loss -anaemia -fever -possible involvement of the kidneys, heart, lungs & brain
There is no cure...
People diagnosed with lupus normally remain under medical care with continuing medication. Many symptoms have less impact as a result, but side effects can often occur. Lupus can adversely influence the lives of those who suffer the illness, their families & friends.
SLE - Systemic Lupus Erythematosus
...hard to say - harder to live with...
Lupus is a difficult disease to diagnose, & can be overlooked, often for years, unless the GP or consultant is alert to it's possibilities.
How do doctors know if you’ve got Lupus?
- Your medical history - what you tell the doctor
- What they find when we examine you
- What the blood tests show
To make a diagnosis of Lupus the patient must have had at least FOUR of these 11 manifestations at any time since the onset of the disease.
1 Malar rash fixed red rash over the cheeks
2 Discoid rash red patches of skin associated with scaling and plugging of the hair follicles
3 Photosensitivity rash after exposure to sunlight
4 Mucosal ulcers small sores that occur in mucosal lining of mouth and nose
5 Serositis inflammation of the delicate tissues covering internal organs and abdominal pain
6 Arthritis -very common in lupus, pain in the joints
7 Renal disorders usually detected by routine blood and urine analysis
8 Neurological disorder seizures or psychosis
9 Haematological disorder haemolytic anaemia, leukopenia, thrombocytopenia
10 Immunologic disorder tests on LE cells, anti-DNA and anti-SM antibodies
11 Anti-Nuclear Antibody (ANA blood test) when found in the blood and the patient is not taking drugs, it is known to cause a positive test for lupus in most cases, but is not necessarily conclusive
(copied from Lupus site)
Click here for more details of the route!
Steve and me getting ready for our Midnight Quackathon April 2011
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