Thanks for taking the time to visit my Just Giving page.

York Special Care Baby Unit and Action on Pre-eclampsia are the Tadcaster Harriers Running Club charities of the year for 2019. Throughout the year, the club will be raising money for these two special charities.

On the 28th April 2019 I will be running the London Marathon for York Special Care Baby Unit and Action on Pre-Eclampsia.

Why SCBU? On May the 23^rd I was admitted to York Hospital diagnosed with pre-eclampsia. My baby girl, Tegan was born 6 weeks and 2 days early, weighing just 3.4 lbs which resulted in her staying 3 weeks on the Special Care Baby Unit at York Hospital. Throughout my experience on the ward, I was left truly humbled and in awe of the staff, the facilities and the attentive and personal approach.
To offer the vital care for babies and the service they do is dependent on
support through their charity.

On the special care ward, we were new parents, but for moments we had to ask to hold our baby, there were wires, beeping machines, tubes, incubators and other babies and parents with their own challenges. It was mentally challenging. I myself for the first 48 hours had to be taken in a bed to see my baby. People rightly think about the babies, but the parents struggle and need support. It’s important to state that, as we quickly realised, we had it pretty easy compared to other babies on the ward. They had looked after babies weighing just 500 grams!

The unit has a kitchen, a lounge, two bedrooms, private rooms and more which ensures that parents both local and those who travel further afield can have facilities to make their time on the unit as comfortable as possible. We spoke to one lady who had been every day for 9 weeks. Will and I stayed in one of the bedsits so we could spend a couple of nights on our own getting used to being with Tegan, yet knowing support was only down the corridor if / when we needed it.

The special care baby unit’s staff and facilities are extraordinary. It was overwhelming to see how the staff approach their work, adore what they do and expect little in return but healthy babies having the best start in life. We received all the support we could have ever needed, mentally and practically as parents as Tegan entered the world. Despite how busy the unit can be, we had privacy when we needed it, the attentive staff would ensure someone was on the end of the phone
(even when I was discharged, I called at 2 in the morning and someone always put my mind at rest). They deal with some truly stressful situations, yet can put a positive smile on when they know you need it.

When Tegan reached 4lb and was able to feed independently, we were allowed to go home. As you can imagine, we had a lot of tears leaving SCBU and we left knowing an extraordinary chapter of our lives had been and gone with another just beginning. Since this, I have spent a considerable amount of time thinking how I can say thanks and give something in return. So please consider sponsoring me in fulfilling my dream of running the London marathon.