Tony Britton, Fundraising and PR Manager, ME Association
There’s nothing like a good cup of tea to set you up for the morning! But, as Hannah Collins told us, she didn’t know how much she missed it until she went caffeine-free to raise money for the ME Association during ME Awareness Week.
“There’s nothing quite like a nice builder’s brew in the morning. So, as soon as the week had was over, I put the kettle on and had a cup of my favourite – Yorkshire Tea”, said Hannah, a 28-year-old mortgage underwriter who lives in Sheffield.
Hannah was living and working in Edinburgh and making the most of every minute until she became ill three years or so ago.
At first, she floundered around not knowing why her health was going downhill so quickly. She cut down her work hours to see if she could cope better. That didn’t work. “I was down to working one day a week and trying to live on Universal Credit”, she said.
Life in Scotland’s capital became miserable and it was hard to save anything while living in an expensive city.
Cutting her losses and now too ill to look after herself, she moved back to her parents’ home in Sheffield in 2018.
In some remarkably good strokes of fortune, she says she quickly found really serious support with obtaining a diagnosis and advice on how to manage her symptoms from her GP, the infectious diseases unit at the Royal Hallamshire Hospital and finally the specialist ME/CFS clinic at the Michael Carlisle Centre, off Osborne Road.
“My mum and dad, Graham and Jane, have also been wonderful. They’ve always been there for me,” said Hannah, who has a Master’s degree in English Literature from Edinburgh University.
The caffeine-free challenge? “Everyone with an M.E. diagnosis knows that it is important to maintain a good, balanced diet and avoid overdoing certain things. Alcohol is an obvious one.
“In my case, one of my vices is Coca Cola and I have been known to drink quite a lot of tea. So I thought – go for a week without, see how things go!”
The week went by. Hannah made £250 on her fundraising page and her employer promised to match her total. The ME Association are so grateful to you both for your support as we struggle to survive during the coronavirus crisis.
Hannah remains very proud of herself for sticking by her promise to lay off the caffeine. She may have marginally improved her health that week.
But, after a week away from her favourite brew, that first cuppa was worth the wait. Mmmmm, it was so good!
If you’d like to show your appreciation of Hannah’s fundraiser, please make a contribution to JustGiving page.
The ME Association
Please support our vital work
We are a national charity working hard to make the UK a better place for people whose lives have been devastated by an often-misunderstood neurological disease.
If you would like to support our efforts and ensure we are able to inform, support, advocate and invest in biomedical research, then please donate today.
Just click the image opposite or visit our JustGiving page for one-off donations or to establish a regular payment. You can even establish your own fundraising event.
Or why not join the ME Association as a member and be part of our growing community? For a monthly (or annual) subscription you will also receive ME Essential – quite simply the best M.E. magazine!
ME Association Registered Charity Number 801279
The post You can take the girl out of Yorkshire – you can’t take Yorkshire out of the girl! | 28 May 2020 appeared first on ME Association.
from ME Association
https://www.meassociation.org.uk/2020/05/you-can-take-the-girl-out-of-yorkshire-but-you-cant-take-yorkshire-out-of-the-girl-28-may-2020/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=you-can-take-the-girl-out-of-yorkshire-but-you-cant-take-yorkshire-out-of-the-girl-28-may-2020
from https://www.meassociation.org.uk
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