Huntington's Disease Association (Auckland) Inc

https://www.instagram.com/brucewalksnz/

**Join the Huntington's Walk 4 Hope

Let’s walk together toward a brighter future! 🌟

#HuntingtonsWalk4Hope #SupportTheCause #FollowAndDonate #TogetherForHope Follow my journey as I tackle the Te Araroa Trail and strive to make a difference for those living with Huntington’s. Your support means the world! 💙 #TeAraroaTrail #HuntingtonsDisease #SupportTheCause #FollowMyJourney

🌟 **Join Me on a Transformative Journey** 🌟

Walk Walk Walk in Support of Huntington’s Disease Research

Despite leaving home for University as an enthusiastic but very green 18 year old, I still call the beautiful region of Turanganui-a-kiwa Gisborne, home. My name is Bruce Hamilton, my wife is Tanya and my two children are Jackson (19) and Ella (17). Living right next to the beach, I was privileged to grow up surfing and running and in a loving family, but in my early teens it was apparent that there was something going on with Dad - we just didn’t know what it was. To start with, it was just annoying but his uncontrolled movements and at times irrational behaviour steadily progressed. However, it wasn’t until I was in my 5th year of studying medicine that Dad was diagnosed with Huntington’s Disease - it was a surprise because we didn’t think there was Huntington’s in the family. But there was. Seems there was an entire branch of family, our gene pool, that we didn’t know anything about - such was the way things were done back in the day.

I still remember vividly the day that I was told of the diagnosis (over the phone) - it was about a week before our 5th year medical school exams. The big ones. I understood the implications for myself, and sitting in the library I immediately began to twitch like Dad and started to second guess my thought processes - not ideal. Wrapped up in my own world, I didn’t really think about anyone else particularly. I was fortunate in that I had access to some great support at Wellington Medical School - although I’m pretty sure that geneticist Dr Joanne Dixon (who incidentally was made an Officer of the NZ order of Merit in 2016 for her services to clinical genetics) got tired of my random drop in consultations and persistent questions! I quickly committed to not letting the diagnosis affect my life path - whatever that may look like - but I now know that was impossible.

Dad’s course was insidious and pretty typical of Huntington’s and my amazing mother cared for him at home throughout. I was very much the absent son appearing at home for the holidays. Sadly, Dad passed away 20 years ago this year, with Huntington’s Disease having stolen much of his adult life. With Tanya’s support that same year, after years and multiple ‘almost’ testing moments I finally tested - the result was negative - the coin toss had landed in my favour and we subsequently had two beautiful children. Now, more than ever, I know how lucky I am and how blessed my life opportunities have been.

As a Doctor, I specialised in Sport Medicine, and have spent 25 years working in elite sport. I’ve had the privilege of attending five Olympic Games with the British (2) and New Zealand (3) Olympic teams, as well as multiple commonwealth Games and world championship events. I’ve been fortunate to work with amazing athletes, coaches, clinicians and sports leaders in Australia, the UK, the Middle East and for the last 12 years New Zealand. In all that time and until now, I’ve never discussed Huntingtons Disease with any of my work colleagues and by avoiding it, I’ve been able to largely ignore it.

But Huntington’s is a tragic condition that picks off generations and it’s now reared its head in my generation. This re-emergence has made me realise that while I had managed to (at least superficially) ignore Huntington’s, pretend it wasn’t affecting me, box it and put it away - the reality is that it has at least subconsciously influenced just about everything I’ve done. Sometimes for the good. Sometimes for the not so good.

So, as I approach 60, I’m ready to change my approach and rather than bury Huntington’s Disease deep in my cortex, I’m committed to really trying to understand how it’s influenced my life and life decisions, and to be a better person as a result. That’s one of the reasons why I’ve decided to walk the 3000km Te Araroa Trail from Cape Reinga in the north, to Bluff in the south. I’m not a walker. In fact, I used to hate walking. But this walk will physically, mentally and emotionally challenge me and give me the time to reflect on my family, life and the impact of Huntington’s - and that’s just in the first week!

Through the long walk, I hope to raise awareness of the challenges of Huntington’s Disease, the importance of ongoing research and the importance of translating that research into helping peoples lives.

Any funds raised will go directly to supporting retreats, workshops and conferences where researchers, clinicians, caregivers, patients and families will collaborate on a New Zealand approach to combating the challenges of Huntington’s Disease.

The trek begins on October 26, 2024 and will take about 120 days. You can follow my story on Instagram (@brucewalksnz) and check my progress by following this link:

Follow my journey. Support the cause.