Woman with CMT in the Great London Swim this July

March 24, 2011

Why we're making a splash in the British Gas Great Swims

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by Sally Janes, Daily Mirror 24/03/2011

More than 20,000 swimmers will take to the water for this year's British Gas

Great Swim. To mark the launch, three brave souls reveal exactly why they'll be

taking the plunge and swimming one mile in the open water (this is Caroline's

story)

Doctors said I'd be in a wheelchair by now Caroline , 30, from Putney,

South London, suffers from the degenerative nerve disease Charcot-Marie-Tooth,

which causes muscle weakness. But she's determined it won't hold her back and

has signed up for the Great London Swim in July.

Commercial banker Caroline was diagnosed with the disease, which affects one in

2,500 people in the UK, when she was 13.

She remembers: " As I grew I kept tripping over all the time and my ankles kept

rolling. It happened gradually and one day I realised I couldn't run any more.

" At 14 the neurologist told me I could be in a wheelchair by the time I

finished university. "

Caroline had surgery to stabilise the ankle and vowed to always stay active.

" Over time the nerves degrade which means your muscles basically die off, " she

says. " Now I can't really move my ankles or my toes at all and my knees are a

bit unstable.

" According to the tests I shouldn't be able to walk, but I can. I have

completely exceeded what the consultant said and I think a lot of that is down

to staying active. "

Caroline's physiotherapist recommended swimming as it uses upper body strength

and the water is naturally buoyant and supportive.

And for extra motivation, Caroline signed up for the Great London Swim.

She adds: " I've wanted to do an open water swim for years. Some of my friends

asked if I was allowed to do it. My response was `yes, why not?' I want to show

everyone that people with diseases like this can be active and take part.

" I've started training, I already swim twice a week and I'm the fittest I've

ever been. I can't wait to get out in the open water. It will feel more real

than in a pool – and more of a challenge. "

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