Simon’s big changes have been very effective – the inevitable decline into kidney failure that comes with late stage kidney disease hasn’t happened and he has managed to maintain the same kidney function as when he was diagnosed.
Whilst the future is unknown, Simon is determined to make the most of the opportunity to help others which he feels the disease has given him.
“I actually feel it’s something I embrace having,” he says. “I feel I can share what I’ve learned about it with other people. I’m willing to have kidney disease if how I’m dealing with it helps other people.
“It would be different if I was on dialysis or waiting for a transplant – though I did say I will always talk about it and be positive towards people, so pity the person that would have to sit next to me at dialysis three times a week! So there’s an acceptance that I’ve got it, but I use what I need to fight it.
“Our work is about encouraging and equipping people, so sometimes people who haven’t run in years turn up to our running group because they’ve heard me speak about my kidney issues, my story, and that’s why they get back involved.”
This in turn, seems to give him the strength to take each day as it comes, and to have an optimistic outlook, which is reflecting in his fundraising efforts too.