Bridget's sister Annie was paralysed in 2002 in a serious riding accident. Bridget has since run seven London Marathons to raise funds for research!
‘The date was 16th February 2002. We were all set to go to a 50th birthday party and just as we were stepping out of the door the phone rang. It was my brother-in-law. I was pleased to hear him, but very quickly realised that something was very wrong. He just blurted out that my sister Annie had had a serious riding accident that morning. My initial thought was that it was fatal, so when he said that she had broken her back and was in hospital in Salisbury, I was somehow relieved! However, obviously the impact of what he was telling us began to sink in.
Despite being a nurse, I knew little about paralysis. I felt helpless. All I could do was visit Annie in the spinal unit and try to offer support to her. I have learnt over these last seven years that being paralysed means being faced with a struggle to complete the everyday tasks which we all take for granted. It's not just the "not being able to walk", in fact, as Annie says, that is the least of it.
I had began running marathons in 1998, and got bitten by the bug. For those 1st 5 years I ran for various charities and as the next Marathon loomed, I decided to find a charity related to Spinal Injury. I saw Spinal Research in the Marathon magazine and chose them. Annie thought it better to support a charity involved with research into treating spinal cord injury than one supporting those already injured. Over the last 7 years I have run the London Marathon for Spinal Research. I have been supported by a loyal band of friends and colleagues and patients, who have sponsored me year after year and helped me raise a substantial amount for a charity so close to my heart.’
Would you like to run for Spinal Research? We have places available for the London Marathon 2010, the Great North Run 2009 and many others. Many races accept wheelchair entrants so if you would like more information please email us at events@spinal-research.org or call us on 01483 898786.
