By Mencap
"I'm Bella and I'm running the London marathon for my older brother Oli.
Oli was born with a complex congenital heart defect and suffered brain damage at birth. he spent his first year in intensive care because of complications with his lungs, liver, kidneys and bowel. He came home at 18 months old after more than 20 operations. He needed round the clock care, was on oxygen, tube fed and had a stoma. He was the size of a 6 month old baby.
Oli eventually started walking when he was 5 years old and gained some strength. He was not expected to survive into adulthood, but he is now 26 and doing well living at home with his parents and siblings.”
Oli still has many medical problems, severe learning difficulties and is physically fragile, requiring full time care but enjoys lots of things that Mencap provide.
"Watching my brother Oli and his friends go to the clubs and seeing them thrive has been my inspiration. Having a disability in this world can be very isolating. Mencap has provided safe spaces for Oli to play musical instruments, go on trips and make lifelong friends. It is a vital lifeline for him as well as for my parents. Without it, as a family, we would be so lost.
I am running the London marathon for all the parents out there who rely on Mencap to provide
respite
Respite is when a person goes somewhere for a few hours or days to have a break. People with a learning disability can have respite from their carers and family, and carers and family can have respite from the people they care for.
to spend time with their other children, partner or time to themselves."
"Being a sibling to someone with a disability can be lonely sometimes, as your parents understandably have to prioritise the child with complex needs. Mencap clubs give those siblings uninterrupted time just with their parents which is so precious, and something I am so grateful for." - Bella
"This is my first ever marathon. I have enjoyed the running but not the weather I’ve trained in! I can’t wait to say that I’ve run the marathon for a charity that holds a massive space in my heart.
Personally, what’s encouraged me to run the marathon is all the members at our local Mencap club, Grove Cottage. Seeing them go to their club and the enjoyment they get out of it has kept me going."
This is an incredible story about Bella and her brother Oli. With lived experience Experience is when you have learned or tried something before. she has really encapsulated what Mencap means to her, and how the support her and her family has received has been life changing.
If you apply for the London Marathon you could really change someone's life!