Current fundraising actvities
Sarah-Jane Stephen has set herself a (large) challenge of running in the Run Balmoral 10k event on the 24th April 2010 and wants to raise as much money as possible for PAPAA her chosen charity.
To sponsor Sarah-Jane via her personal Just Giving page click here
Run Balmoral 10k 2010 website
Previous fundraising actvities
My name is Barry Cotter and I am a 46 year old barrister and part time judge living in Bristol. My skin psoriasis started in my early teens and has persisted ever since. However the condition was not serious enough to really affect my lifestyle. It seems likely that the trigger for the onset of my arthritis was the breaking my shoulder in a rugby match. After that I have suffered with problems with both shoulders, back, knees (leaving one permanently swollen), elbows, hands and ankles. At one stage I struggled to walk any distance due to the ankle swelling. After courses of physiotherapy, hydrotherapy, 12 cortisone injections (six in the ankles) together with methotrexate and a NSAID (rofecoxib) my lifestyle eventually stabilised but with quite significant restrictions.
I took no or very little exercise for over two years and my weight increased. However as I had a sedentary job my work was largely unaffected save for some problems with fatigue. Had I not chosen to stop methotrexate to try for a third child I do not know what course my overall health would have taken. When off the methotrexate I found that although symptoms grumbled on in various sites I was able to cope pretty much as when on it.
The real breakthrough for me came when I eventually tried a personal trainer (recommended as he had a number of clients with various disabilities). What then happened was a slow phased increase in fitness and movement. For about six weeks there was no gym equipment used and some of the exercises I now realise were pilates based. Then he planned an exercise regime based on increasing fitness and coping with which ever part of the body the arthritis was affecting at any given time. Progress was slow and there were set backs, but the overall trend was upwards and I was coping with no drugs at all.
September will see the third anniversary of my first visit to my personal trainer and my attempt at the Bristol Half marathon. The training has been difficult and I have to watch my knee very carefully, but I feel the benefits, both mental and physical of the regime of running. For the race itself you may not be surprised that as someone who could not walk easily not many years ago, I am interested only in finishing rather than achieving any set time.
For a long time I dismissed the idea of going to a gym as impossible given my arthritis and I now regret the wasted time. I lived within what I believed to be my limitations and adjusted my lifestyle accordingly. However the truth was that with structured training I was in fact capable of very much more despite the fact that the arthritis was still present. However whether it includes running 13 miles remains to be seen!
To sponsor Barry via his personal Just Giving page click here
Linda Owen took part in the London Marathon on 26th April 2009.Before I showed any signs of psoriatic arthritis, I ran regularly, and I participated in races ranging from 5k to marathon. I raced at least once a month and more frequently in summer and have completed 7 marathons and numerous half-marathons.
Read more
If you would like to take part or hold in an event on our behalf, please contact us.
If you have any ideas or want to raise funds for PAPAA we are always open to suggestions.
In the past we have had runners in the London Marathon, and individuals have carried out other sponsored activities, including cycle riding and abseiling.
Other events organised by individuals, where we have received donations included:
• Raffles
• Grand Prize Draws
• Plant sales
• Garden Fetes
• In memoriam
• Sales of T-shirts, pens, key rings etc
• Craft item sales
• Cake sales
• Coffee mornings
If you have any ideas or need support, advice or promotional items please contact us:
