A Kilwinning man is taking on a marathon task – running a 10k, every day for 47 days in memory of his mother, a well-known community figure, who passed away suddenly after a heart attack.
Craig Potter, 37, has set himself the challenge to raise money for Heart Research UK’s Heart of Scotland appeal, and to raise awareness of the dangers of undiagnosed heart conditions.
Craig’s mum, Theresa, passed away suddenly after suffering a heart attack at home in July.
“She never displayed what we perceived were normal symptoms of a heart attack,” said Craig.
“She never mentioned about a tight chest or about pains in her arm. She had woken up the night before and said she felt anxious, which was unlike her. The next day, she had been mildly nauseous and had a dry mouth, but was still working from home and was planning to meet up with a friend.
“My dad went downstairs to make himself a quick lunch. When he came back upstairs, 3 minutes later she was dead, it was that sudden.
“It was devastating, we are a small, close family. A huge part of our life was gone.”
With the family grieving, Craig began looking for a charity and a challenge to take on in her memory.
“Two things my mum was really proud of – she was a proud woman, and a proud Scot. When we came across the Heart of Scotland appeal, some of the stats shocked us. The fact that you are more than 50% more likely to die from heart disease in Scotland than in South East England is just unpalatable,” said Craig.
“Since my mum died, people have come to us with their own tragic stories, other mums, wives, sisters, and daughters suddenly dying from heart conditions, and yet somehow it is still not perceived as a women’s health issue. We want to change that.
Another stat the family found form the Heart of Scotland appeal was that currently, 47 people a day die in Scotland from cardiovascular disease.
“We were in the grieving process, and we knew we wanted to do something. Something that would raise money, but crucially, raise awareness. Should we have known these signs? Should people be aware? We weren’t, and certainly other people aren’t.
“This is where the idea came from, to run every day for 47 days, with different groups of people to really spread the word. 47 days means we’re talking about it for longer, more people will hear the message and will hear the stats.”
Craig’s challenge begins on the 24th March 2021, with the final day of his run falling on his mum’s birthday, the 9th of May.
He will be joined each day by different friends, family members and well-wishers across the UK, all keen to pay their respects and help spread the message around heart health in women and Scotland.
A number of Heart Research UK staff will also be joining Craig throughout his challenge
Following Theresa’s passing, the family was overwhelmed with the amount of messages they received from people that had been impacted by Theresa, who had dedicated her life to supporting and developing those in the community.
Theresa had spent many years working in communities, focusing on education, health, campaigns against poverty and, most recently, response to the COVID pandemic.
“The impact was overwhelming, we had hundreds of messages from all over the world,” said Dougie Potter, Theresa’s husband.
“More people than we could ever know that Theresa had developed in a positive way. I knew she had an impact on people’s life, but the scope and range of people that sent us messages was breath-taking.
“High level politicians, saying that Theresa had influenced their lives, to young people, community groups, activists and colleagues saying that Theresa was just so impactful in their lives forever. That range took our breath away.”
As well as raising money for research across Scotland, both Craig and Dougie are passionate about raising awareness of heart conditions and their symptoms, especially in women.
“The research we have read seems to show that if women have problems, we often think of other things that could be causing their symptoms. With men, we tend to get to the idea of heart problems quicker and therefore get treatment or medical intervention quicker.” said Craig.
“The reality is, this is killing 2600 women a year in Scotland. That shocked us a family.
“That’s what this is all about, getting people talking, reinforcing these messages. Mum was the last person you’d expect this to happen to. She was upbeat, strong, energetic and lived a healthy life.
Dougie finished by saying “Us talking openly about Theresa has already saved lives, with women asking for treatment where in the past they may have not.
“But we’re not talking about this enough, and it’s affecting so many people. My hope is that by sharing Theresa’s story it creates more conversations, more awareness and we can begin to save lives.”
Craig’s challenge kicks off on the 24th March 2021. and you can support his challenge here – https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/craig-potter12
You can learn more about the Heart of Scotland appeal here: https://heartresearch.org.uk/heartofscotland/
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