I'm so sorry for the lack of recent updates but I promise to update you all with Aydan's progress ASAP! As you can imagine it has been complete chaos in our household, with one thing or another, but Aydan is still plodding along and is making progress no matter how small his steps are! :0)
This update is about me, Aydan's mummy! (Sorry Aydan fans!)
Well despite having recently been diagnosed with ME and already having paraesthesia (pins and needles in my whole body) I beat the odds, and although it took me much longer than the others in my group, my whole group were so supportive and really helped me achieve my goal!
I WALKED THE WALL OF CHINA!!!!
To say the challenge was hard would be an understatement! All I can say is imagine walking up and down your stairs for 8 hours continuously, and then you might be close to how I felt, now try adding another 4 days to that...
On one of the days we actually did do 8 hours, and one of the girls logged it in as 17.7km, so that was 17.7km of uneven stairs!!! (That's just one day of 5....)
Some parts of the wall were virtually non existant and had turned into a pile of rubble, some times we had to avoid the wall and walk along side it and 'mountain climb' our way across! Other parts of the wall were near verticle climbs, with no sides, nothing to hold on to, and an 800 metre drop either side of us!
Not only was the experience physically exhausting but it was also mentally exhausting!
At times I experienced fear and was frightened for my life....
I have felt fatigue like no other, and have had to slow down and let others go miles ahead of me... But like a slow moving zombie, no matter how fast you run I am still following you behind... Slowly... My determination to succeed was strong and I was not letting it beat me!
I've felt pain like I've never experienced before and leg cramps that have lasted for hours and not just mere minutes! I have cried out, just like in labour, that I couldn't go on anymore and wanted the pain to stop!!!
I have experienced joy of finally climbing those awful steep bits and hearing my team cheering my name and holding their walking sticks up like a tunnel of honour for me to walk through! (After taking an hour to catch them up!!)
I have been overwhelmed by the beauty of the view as I paused to try and take it all in, because believe me, the photos I have taken will never do it justice...
I have survived Big Trevs driving and him showing us all how he's 'king of the road!' (but that's another story!!)
And, lastly, I have felt pride as my name was called, and I was told 'YOU DID IT!' And was handed a medal!
I would like to say a HUGE thank you to everybody who has supported and/or sponsored me to do this challenge, it has really meant a lot to us as a family!
If you would like to donate to such a good cause please follow this link!
https://www.justgiving.com/JessicasWallOfChinaWalk/
