As you know, I am involved in a lot of charity work for Pulmonary Hypertension working with the PHA UK, the BHF and now The Dinosaur Trust!! Anything to do with raising awareness for PH, I will be there, sharing, talking, videoing, etc. PH is my life, though I make sure it lives with me, not the other way round, it will forever be a part of who I am. But I will keep on PHighting and living life to the full!
Anyway, I am super happy to announce that I was approached by another PH charity to help them to get more recognition and to raise even more awareness for Pulmonary Hypertension!! I am very excited to become an Ambassador for them and I can't wait to be involved in some of their projects, once this pandemic is finally over.
The Dinosaur Trust was founded by Jamie and Julia Strachan when their son Archie was diagnosed with Pulmonary Hypertension at the age of 2. The family had their world turned upside down when Archie was diagnosed and I can't imagine how it feels when your child is diagnosed with a very serious and incurable condition. Both Jamie and Julia knew something had to be done to help Archie and others in their position and it lit the fire in their bellies to turn a family crisis into something amazing... Hey presto, The Dinosaur Trust evolved!
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| "Setting up this charity was prompted by a family crisis. Through the Dinosaur Trust we have met many other families, whether they have children or adults with PAH. They face the same battle, but our work to date fills us with confidence that together we can beat this disease." |
You may not have heard of The Dinosaur Trust and I only knew very little about them from what I saw on their Instagram. Please give them a follow @thedinosaurtrust. They are also on other social media platforms, Twitter and Facebook. As well as raising awareness for PH, the charity focuses a lot on the scientific side of PH and are constantly looking into the genetic side of Pulmonary Hypertension. I am going to make it my mission that not only do I help this wonderful charity to get more recognition, but do what I can to help them to hit some of their charity targets. I am in awe of what the Strachan family have done to help Archie, and I feel very blessed and lucky to be involved as well.
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| Archie With His Dad, Jamie |
I have already started work with The Dinosaur Trust by recording a Podcast with Jamie. Please click on our photo to watch the podcast. Jamie mentions how much of an inspiration I am to him, but Archie is a true inspiration to me.
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| Podcast: Jamie Chats With PHighter Tess |
Archie is now 13 years old and despite the battles he has endured during his young life, he has always kept fighting! Archie is a patient at Great Ormond Street and I am so pleased to let you all know that Archie is doing very well. He is now on tablet medication only (he was previously on the IV Hickman line). He is able to do a lot of teenage activities, yes he still has the PH symptoms and there will be good and bad days, but he is able to live a "normal" teenage life. Archie, you are an amazing young boy and I can't wait to meet you very soon!
As we all say, we are Stronger Together, so I hope you can help me to spread the word for The Dinosaur Trust and I can't wait to share our future work together.
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| My Inspiration, Archie |
Thanks for reading!