Articles

Lynsey Read-Edwards's and her husband's Paul Lake District trek for FMA UK

Details

Category: General Information

Published on Thursday, 24 August 2017 13:30

Hits: 3332

Lynsey Read-Edwards from Norfolk together with her husband Paul will walk 14 km from Dale Head to Catbells in Lake District on 23 September for FMA UK with the aim of raising £1,000. She has already raised £760.

Lynsey told us: ‘’I wish to complete the challenge and raise awareness for Fibromyalgia Action UK because I wish to help fellow sufferers. I feel it is important to speak honestly in order to raise awareness and hopefully raise some money to donate towards a cause very close to my heart. Fibromyalgia is difficult to explain but it does effect every aspect of your life and for me it was life changing. 

It took away my Independence and isolated me from the world. The condition hit my life like a nasty flu bug. It zapped all of my energy & strength. I was not independent. I couldn't walk anywhere without support. Those early days were the hardest thing I have ever experienced. This stage of my fibromyalgia lasted for about two years. And after that every year I have been able to do more and more with the hope of one day being able to be more active and more able. 

The pain levels seemed to develop in my body quickly and I don't think I have really had a day of from the pain since I got unwell 6 years ago.  Your body is constantly being screamed at by your muscles and the fatigue is like your whole body is wading through thick mud just to move to shower/bath or cook tea. Nothing is easy when these symptoms take hold of you. Dealing with the pain & fatigue takes its toll mentally as well.I never thought I would be able to climb a mountain again but I was wrong!!

So nearly 6 years on after a lot of battling, I am at a place where things are more manageable than not, however the pain and fatigue are still heavily in my life. I am proud to say I mostly achieve more than I don't now so it feels like the right time to push myself, give something back and raise some money.

The walk I plan to do is in the Lake District It is a 15km (9.2 miles) hike of four summits of Catbells, Maiden Moor, High Spy & Dale Head and a ascent of up to 754 metres. Just to give you an idea, the average hiking time for a healthy person to hike this route is around 5.5 hours. There is also a map shown for your information. 

My husband Paul is walking with me and I've been so lucky to have him as he is so supportive of my health issues and always there for me. The event is to go up and down 4 peaks in a row. The first mountain is the tallest climb and this will be a big achievement for me to complete this challenge with fibromyalgia. 

I have previously attempted this walk a couple of years ago and it was so tough for my pain levels. Through a lot of tears, my legs locking up, muscle spasms and one of my biggest issues for me which was my fatigue, I got closer to the final peak (Catbells), but unfortunately the fatigue and pain just got too much and I couldn't finish it. Although to get as far as I did made me very proud, I was so disappointed to have not finished. Since then I have thought a lot about how this walk is incomplete and I am now making this my mission to complete it!!

On the 23rd September 2017 I intend to finish this goal of mine and complete this walk for myself and my ongoing battle with Fibromyalgia but at the same time hope to raise awareness for a cause that helps my fellow fibro sufferers. 

Training is very hard at the moment. My aim is to walk an hour 5 times a week which equals to 4 km a time. But I want to be able to achieve this goal and I'm really hoping my recovery time won't be 2-3 months as I've been training for the last 3 months or so. I did have a dip two weeks back which meant no walking or training for a whole week. Having Physio on my legs to keep them as healthy as possible so hopefully I've prepared well enough!!  

I couldn't walk for two years when I first got fibromyalgia it was very gradual when I started to walk. I was told by a specialist to count whatever I could see to distract from the fatigue & pain in my legs and it did help and not doing too much at once and building it up very slowly. And now I can walk my dogs nearly every day. 

I'm taking this goal very seriously and my main aim for that is too give fellow sufferers the hope that we can still achieve and that moving every day a little will help in the long term. 

Any support or donations you can offer at this time would be appreciated more than you know.

Thank you very much for taking the time to read my story.To my amazing Husband, Friends & Family thank you for your continued support & love. 

Lynsey xxx’’

To donate visit Lyndey’s JustGiving Page:

Read lynsey's story