A young Dublin woman who was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis at six months old has overcome the odds to take on a 32-county fitness challenge.
Bevin Murphy, 24, is aiming to do a 65-minute run or walk in every county across Ireland in aid of Cystic Fibrosis Ireland's 65 Roses Day.
Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a genetic condition that affects the lungs, digestive system and other organs.
Although there are treatment options, at present the illness is incurable.
Lucan native Bevin reveals she turned to exercise to ease her symptoms after she became unwell during her Leaving Cert and college years.
Bevin told The Irish Sun: "I could be in hospital for a week or two at a time, so I basically missed half the year.
“I did the Leaving Cert and got my first choice in DCU, but I had prioritised studying over exercising, which is very important for people with CF.”
Bevin found she could barely walk five minutes without getting breathless and decided to work on her fitness levels to see if it would help.
She explained: "I realised that I wouldn’t be able to graduate if I missed so much college, and that something needed to change.
“I started walking for a few minutes a day and gradually built it up, increasing my speed and doing interval jogging.
“About four years later I was able to join a gym and do fitness classes, and run 3km without stopping.”
Now the brave young woman is tackling an even bigger challenge and is calling on the public to help her reach her fundraising goal of €4,000.
Bevin said: "My condition has both progressed rapidly while also improving substantially over the years and this is due to exercise.
"Exercise is an essential part of treatment for people with CF and for that reasons I have decided to run/walk for 65 minutes a day all over Ireland for the ‘65 roses’ awareness campaign for Cystic Fibrosis Ireland."
She started her challenge on April 1 in Wicklow and has since completed challenges in Wexford, Carlow, Waterford, Cork, Kerry, Limerick, Offaly, and Laois.
Today she is hitting the road in Kilkenny which will bring her total up to 11 counties.
Bevin is being supported by her family, boyfriend Emmet and the Spar supermarket chain who support CF Ireland.
To support her cause, visit her crowfunding page here.
