June is CDH Awareness Month and it's also the month my friend is hoping to raise £1500 before July 1st for the charity, CDH UK. She's taking on the massive challenge of cycling from London to Paris and CDH UK is her nominated charity.
Please read on to learn some more and where to find the information to donate!
What is CDH?
CDH stands for Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia. It is a condition that occurs in 1 in 2500 births, making up about 8% of all major congenital abnormalities. For babies who develop CDH, the diaphragm fails to form or develop correctly resulting in the abdominal contents herniating into the chest cavity, which in turn prevents the lungs from growing properly. Depending at what stage of development of the abdominal contents occurs and how large the hole in the diaphragm is will determine how much of the baby's lungs, plus other internal organs such as the heart, will be affected.
The current prognosis for babies diagnosed with CDH is about 50%. You can read more about CDH from the CDH UK website here.
What is CDH UK?
CDH UK was originally set up as a small, informal group that offered support and help to parents and families dealing with a CDH diagnosis. Today, they have grown into an established and registered charity that continues to offer their support as well as raising awareness of CDH and fundraising with the goal of having better resources on offer plus raising much needed funds for research. Please visit here to read more about the charity. You can also find them on Twitter and Facebook.
Why is this important to me?
This is important to me because it's very important to my good friend who has had personal experience with CDH. In 2013, her baby son was born sleeping due complications from CDH. In September, she will be cycling from London to Paris (which is amazing all on its own, I can barely cycle a mile before I'm looking for an excuse to stop) and as part of her efforts she has nominated CDH UK as her charity to raise funds for and support. She has had help from CDH UK and would like to give back to a charity that has helped her family in so many ways.
You can read more about Amelia's journey and how to donate to this very worthwhile cause here.
So, if you have a few spare pounds this month then please consider donating and pleasepleaseplease spread the word!
Let's help her achieve her fundraising target. Better yet, let's help her smash that target of £1500 and support a great charity that has helped so many families dealing with their baby's diagnosis of CDH.