Mindful Monday - April 27th

We are still open on a limited schedule, abiding by social distancing protocols with a one-in-one-out policy. If you feel you are in need or have a few niggles that need addressing, please do contact your clinic via email or leave a voicemail and we will find a solution for you. We cannot stress this enough: you are not alone!

Hey team,

After last week’s thought-provoking Thoughtful Thursday email by Anthea, we thought it was time to lighten things up.

Difficult times can bring out the best in people, and if we’ve learned anything over the last month, it’s that you can’t deny the strength of the human spirit. Since Luke discussed Captain Tom Moore’s record-breaking fundraising effort in walking 100 laps of his garden, we wondered what other incredible, inspirational and ingenious ideas are being undertaken at the moment to raise funds for our health heroes and the community. So we did a little research (spent a lot of time on social media) and asked our team to pass on any amazing efforts they’ve seen happening in the community. These stories are sure to uplift and motivate, inspire and encourage or, at the very least, bring a smile to your face.

With the London Marathon due to have been staged yesterday, many have decided to take part in the 2.6 Challenge. It encourages people to choose an activity relating to the numbers 2.6 or 26 (the date and length of the Marathon) and raise funds for the charities that would have benefited from the London Marathon or other events that have also been cancelled. Nine-year-old Melissa eschewed popular sporting pursuits in favour of sitting in a bathtub of cornflakes for 2.6 hours. She was aiming to raise £260 for the Lindsay Lodge Hospice, where her mum works as a nurse, and has raised more than double this amount so far.

Craig’s good friend and Nuun cycling teammate Cam Fraser was set to work at this year's Marathon, so he decided cycling 262km on a stationary bike for charity was a GREAT use of his time instead! Cam completed the challenge yesterday and is aiming to raise £2,620 for Prostate Cancer UK, in honour of his father, who passed away from prostate cancer in 2000.

Many keen runners have decided to continue their running missions but within the confines of their homes. Brad’s been following the journey of former Welsh rugby captain Ryan Jones, who ran a marathon in his garden at the start of the month. But that was only the beginning – since then, he’s also completed a 100-mile cycle on a Wattbike along with 100 others, challenged his followers to “walk a mile in their shoes” to honour nurses who regularly walk long distances during their shifts, and this weekend finished a 100-mile run on a treadmill in his kitchen. Collectively, Ryan has raised over £53,000 for the Swansea Bay Health Board funds.

Father-of-two Asif Amirat is attempting to run 50 half marathons in 50 days to raise money for the NHS charities, and all from the safety of his living room, where he’s running laps around his coffee table! As an extra challenge he’s also currently observing Ramadan, so is completing most of his runs while fasting. You can follow his progress on Instagram.

Inspired by Captain Tom, recovering quadriplegic Ed Jackson decided to scale the highest mountain in the world (well, the equivalent of) on his kitchen stairs, completing the 8,898m climb last Friday. He was so committed to the task, he even set up a base camp tent in his kitchen! So far, Ed has raised over £40,000 for his chosen charities.

While many challenges revolve around physical activities, George has been following the more virtual approach by Celebrity ESports. Stars of the sports, entertainment, film and comedy industries will come together to compete in the NHS Charities Together Cup (an online FIFA 20 gaming tournament) from their homes, with supporters asked to pick their favourite team, follow along and donate to the NHS charities.

And lastly, did you know healthcare workers are restricted from having beards to enable protective masks to fit properly? However, well-trimmed moustaches are allowed, so a group of clever gents (including many who are NHS workers themselves) have banded together to grow moustaches and form MOVID-19. Supporters are encouraged to donate to a MOVID-19 member’s appeal or grown your own moustache and join the team, too.

If you’ve come across a brilliant fundraising activity that you think more of us should know about, please send us an email or tag us on Instagram and we’ll do our best to give it some more love and support.

Thanks for reading and stay safe!

Drew