Kentish Express Ashford & District
MS sufferer faces challenge head on with marathon plan
A disabled man who went blind for a year and struggles to move has started walking half marathons and hopes to take on the London Marathon next year.
Paul Jenkins, 44, has neurological condition multiple sclerosis (MS) and four years ago, when he was a passenger in his now ex-wife’s car, his life changed unexpectedly.
He said: “All of a sudden I said ‘I can’t see’. It just went. It was obviously very scary.”
He spent several days at Ashford’s William Harvey Hospital and after a couple of weeks the sight in his left eye returned but he was blind in his right eye for a year, which he describes as a “daunting” experience.
Mr Jenkins was given guide dog Buddy, a long-haired golden retriever, who saved his owner’s life during the 12 months he was with him.
“I went up to the kerb and couldn’t see or hear anything so started to cross but Buddy cut across me and stopped me walking,” he said.
“An electric car was coming from my right-hand side. Buddy was brilliant.”
The father of one - who lived in Godinton Park, Ashford for more than 30 years before moving to Maidstone - who was diagnosed 14 years ago, walks with sticks or a frame and has a wheelchair for bad days.
The MS gives him “funny sen- sations” throughout his body, almost constant pins and needles and a numbness that means he sometimes can’t feel his limbs.
On top of the sight problems, which left him unable to work, Mr Jenkins was diagnosed with PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) from a car accident he had 25 years ago, and his marriage broke up.
However, when he was at his lowest, inspired by Paralympic athletes such as gold medalwinning wheelchair racer David Weir, Mr Jenkins changed his outlook on life.
“I used to see my MS as something that was intruding in my body but now I work with it, it’s my friend. If it flares up it’s my friend telling me to slow down for a bit and rest.
“My disability doesn’t stop me doing anything and I wanted to put an obstacle in my life so I started training to walk half marathons.”
Mr Jenkins, who now works in Kent County Council’s contact centre, joined Maidstone Leisure Centre’s gym and completed the Canterbury Half Marathon on Monday.
He is now preparing for the Maidstone Half Marathon in October and has applied for a place in next year’s London Marathon.
He said: “MS isn’t the end of your life, it’s just a different approach to it.”