Have you ever heard of AMD? It stands for Age-related Macular Degeneration. It's a little known disease but it's responsible for a huge percentage of the world's blindness. If you'd be so patient as to stop and read a while, I want to tell you a story.
There are 2 types of AMD, wet and dry. The dry form occurs when the blood vessels on the back of your eye bulge causing blind spots in your vision (like looking through a sieve) it's currently incurable but it's not half as bad as the wet kind. The wet kind occurs when those blood vessels burst. This disease can take a healthy, happy person and make them completely blind within the space of a few weeks.
Can you imagine being faced with that diagnosis?
My name's Kat and my dad has both types of AMD. My grandfather had it too and completely lost his sight.
The bright
side of this story is that treatment for wet AMD now exists (if you catch it quickly), and it's improving all the time. My dad has to get injections into his eye every 6 weeks or so but has so far beaten back AMD and can still see 3 years after his diagnosis. In those three years he's been able to see his daughters get engaged and married, things that wouldn't have been the same had he lost his sight.
He's now retired and volunteering for The Macular Society, befriending people who are faced with this confusing, sudden illness and providing valuable support. He's just one of many people doing what they can. In fact, The Macular Society fund a great deal of research into the disease and, in part because they exist, treatment is available and improving all the time.
I'm going to be running in the wolf run with team (or should I say 'pack') achieve in November, and I'm raising money for The Macular Society.
It's such an important charity, and one that I've seen do more for
the cause than spend all their money on marketing or commission for the dreaded 'chuggers' (charity muggers) on the street or at your door.
So, please, if you can spare a little bit, your sponsorship can go a long long way. And if you can't afford to sponsor, share this message so more people can be aware of this little-known but
devastating disease and get treatment early.
Alternatively you can sponsor me because, despite my bright yellow 'The Macular Society' t-shirt, I'll probably get stuck in the mud and it will be funny.
Thanks for reading
Kat
