Chariots of Fire: to run or not to run?

My friend kindly reminded me today that I agreed to enter Chariots of Fire a couple of months ago.

This is an annual charity race in Cambridge, this year on Sunday 16 September 2012, following in the footsteps of the famous film. Each team of six journeys through the streets and colleges of Cambridge, running a 1.7 mile course in relay format.

If you know me at all, you'll know that I find nothing worse than running. Walking or cycling any day. Running, not a chance. So why did I agree? 

To run or not to run? 

• Well, avid runner friends have always raved how liberating it is and the sense of achievement after a race is indescribable and exhilarating. It's also free and limitless. This is true, the rates I pay for the gym are stupidly high! Maybe I'm halfway convinced...
• My boyfriend is also aiming to complete a half marathon in October and has been at me for months to start running with him. I think his persistence paid off as I finally gave in and reluctantly made my way down to the park near my work on Thursday evening. I'd been trying to put it off all day - the rain was a great excuse - but conveniently it stopped raining as soon as I finished work. 
• I have to say, the first lap round the park was excruciating - my breathing was all wrong, my heart was burning and we kept stopping (probably not the best form of exercise to ease myself back into it after a week of no physical activity and gluttony at a work conference!). 
• However, a few more laps in and my fitness levels quickly adapted - I pushed through the pain and got into a nice rhythm. I think the first time is the worst - once past this barrier, it's all uphill (not literally I hope!). 

To run: So, despite my resistance to running in the past, I think I will persevere with it - at least until the race is over - I'd hate to let any one down...and you never know, to quote Casablanca this may be 'the beginning of a beautiful friendship'.

Plus, it's for a good cause - this year funds are being raised for charities; Cambridge Past, Present & Future and Cam Sight. 

If you have any tips on running or completing a race, please get in touch. Or if you've done Chariots of Fire before, please leave your comments and share your experiences here. 

I'll be posting any updates on this, so watch this space :) 

My love for health comms: where it began

To christen this blog, I thought I'd start it with the thing that inspired me to take an interest in health communications.

As I mention on my 'Who am I?' page, my real love for health communications began when I volunteered with the British Liver Trust as part of a placement at Bournemouth University.

The Communications Manager kept mentioning how useful it would be to measure to what extent the stigma of liver disease was affecting donors and general public perception - and so the idea for my final year dissertation was born!


It was so rewarding knowing I was creating a piece of research that would actually help contribute to real life issues. It was then I realised the power of health communication and fell under its magical spell. I have been captivated ever since. 



Just to give you an idea of the content, here is a quick summary of my aim and findings:

Aim: to examine the extent to which a sample of the UK public stigmatised liver disease and whether their level of education was related to their level of stigmatisation.

Findings: 

• the sample did stigmatise liver disease to a certain extent, as they believed it was purely caused and self-inflicted by alcoholism,

• however, this stigmatised perception did not stop the sample supporting a liver disease sufferer, even if they were responsible for their condition,
• results also showed that a higher level of education may loosely result in increased knowledge of liver disease and therefore lower stigmatisation, 
• yet it was found that the type of education and experience attached to it were more strongly related to the sample’s knowledge and level of stigmatisation.

Overall, findings suggest that the existing stigmatisation of liver disease can be easily reduced and prevented by introducing it into the secondary curriculum and increasing public awareness of the other types of liver disease through campaigns and medical centres.

To read my full dissertation, please click here. I hope you find it as interesting as I did - please get in touch with any feedback you may have. Thank you.

Inspiring pictures