Rare illness won't stop mum from running 10k

Published on Wednesday 30 April 2008 10:16

IT'S a challenge that most people would find daunting.

But for Catrina Philp taking part in a ten-kilometre run will be nothing short of incredible.

The 22-year-old mother had her stomach removed two years ago because of a rare condition brought on by diabetes.

Now Catrina, of Baberton Mains Way, hopes to raise thousands of pounds for Diabetes UK by taking part in the Great Scottish Run in Glasgow in September.

She said: "I started getting really sick in my late teens and was eventually diagnosed with a condition called gastroperesis.

"I was very ill and my whole life consisted of lying on the couch all day and then doping myself up at night to get to sleep. It was like my life wasn't real. I was so out of it most of the time that I just had to hand over all the decisions over my care to my doctor."

Dr Matthew Young, a diabetes specialist at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, took Catrina into hospital where staff provided 24-hour care for almost a year.

He said: "Gastroparesis affects less than one per cent of diabetes sufferers. It is basically a paralysis of the stomach that prevents it from mashing up food to pass on to the gut. It can largely be controlled through drugs but Catrina, who is 5ft 11in, was so sick that her weight dropped to almost six stone so we had to remove her stomach.

"It's an extremely rare procedure that doctors only consider as a last resort."

Catrina, who was diagnosed with diabetes when she was ten, contracted MRSA during the operation and spent several more weeks in hospital before being discharged in early 2006.

But before the year was out she was amazed to find she was five-and-a-half-months pregnant.

She said: "I was so thin after the operation that I didn't even realise I was expecting and the doctors said I may not be able to have children. We weren't sure if the baby would be okay after the illness and all the drugs I had taken, but it was too late to even consider a termination and we figured if the little guy had held on that long he might make it to term."

Baby Jack Matthew Philp was born perfectly healthy, and his middle name is a tribute to the doctor who helped him through it.

"It does make you feel somewhat special and humble having a child named after you," said Dr Young.

Catrina, who has separated from Jack's father, is now able to eat most food, although she has difficulty with anything too fatty or fibrous and her diabetes prevents her from taking anything too sweet. She added: "I just have to take it in small measures, eating seven or eight small meals a day. I call it grazing."

Sara Ling, national fundraising manager for Diabetes UK, said: "Catrina is a wonderful example of not allowing diabetes to run her life.

"She will inspire many people living with the condition to go out and chase their goals.

"The money she raises will go towards funding the vital work of Diabetes UK. We wish her the best of luck with her training and on race day."