Twenty-five year old Sarah Houghton from Laxey resolved to stay off alcohol for a year as her 2014 New Year’s Resolution.
As part of her challenge Sarah decided to raise funds for a cause close to her heart: Arthritis Research UK, the charity leading the fight against arthritis which affects one in six people in the UK.
Sarah was diagnosed with inflammatory arthritis (the specific type is yet to be determined) in May 2013, when her life changed entirely.
Simple tasks that she never used to think about now proved difficult (opening drinks bottles, door knobs) and she was rarely able to take part in the sports she used to enjoy such as hockey and tennis. As Sarah said when she started her alcohol-free year: ‘I now rarely take part in sports, which is a bit of a bummer.’
For all of 2014 Sarah was her friends’ designated driver, resisting all opportunities such as weddings, hen parties, holidays and Christmas parties to imbibe.
Come midnight on New Year’s Eve Sarah celebrated with her first pint in a year.
She said: ‘As much as it was hard, I am so glad I did it – only now from taking myself out of the binge drinking society most young people live in could I really see the destructive way I was living my life.
‘“Eat, sleep, rave, repeat” is now in moderation!
‘One thing I did notice quite early on was that I was sleeping a lot better and my skin cleared up a lot. I’m not sure whether it was related but my arthritis improved significantly – so much so that I was able to enjoy playing tennis again with my dad in the earlier months (whilst being on no medication).’
Sarah has raised over £1,000 for Arthritis Research UK already from her abstinence and her JustGiving webpage is still open should any readers wish to sponsor her for her efforts. Just go to: http://www.justgiving.com/SarahHoughtonDryathlon2014.
Arthritis Research UK regional fundraising manager Ruth Owen said: ‘I would like to thank Sarah for this incredible achievement and all of her sponsors for supporting her.
‘All of us at Arthritis Research UK are truly grateful for their support and we wish Sarah all the best in fighting this cruel and very painful disease.
‘These generous donations will be used to help the charity to fund world-class research into arthritis, the biggest cause of pain and disability in the UK.’