Joey and Judy's Walk for HDANI

Joey Watson and Judy Boucher from Limavady are taking on a mammoth challenge of walking over 20 miles a day to raise money to help families affected by Huntingtons Disease in Northern Ireland. The Ireland Way is a walking and cycling trail over 900km / 560 miles It covers 14 counties from Cork to the Giant's Causeway It takes roughly 40 days to walk To see their route visit http://www.theirelandway.ie/ HD is described as a ‘neuro-degenerative’ disorder as it damages or kills the neurons in the brain. HD is a genetic disease. Every child of an affected parent has a 50% chance of inheriting the gene mutation which causes the disease. HD affects males and females equally HD affects approximately 200 families in Northern Ireland HD usually affects adults between the ages of 30-50 and is often described as an “adult-onset disease”. Although it can occur anywhere from age 2-70, it is less common in children and older people. It is said that those who develop HD earlier in life may find their illness progresses at a faster rate. Life expectancy from onset is approximately 15-20 years. HD causes progressive deterioration – physically, cognitively and emotionally until the individual becomes dependent on the help of others. No two patients’ condition progress in exactly the same way. Symptoms can vary widely and the rate of progression is difficult to predict with any real accuracy. HD is referred to as a ‘disease of families’ where several family members from different generations may be symptomatic at the same time. As a ‘disease of families’ no family member is left untouched because if they do not have the disease they are often caring for someone who has. For more info on HD see www.hdani.org.uk