Fife Netball Coach Raises £3,000 for Mum Living with MND

Morna McMurray (26), from Cowdenbeath, Fife, has raised over £3,000 for MND Scotland and is now sharing her mum’s story to raise awareness of motor neuron disease (MND).

In October 2021, Morna’s mum, Helen (65), who worked as a waitress and barmaid, began experiencing pain in her shoulders and hands.

As both issues continued to worsen, Helen underwent multiple surgeries on her hands, but unfortunately, with no sign of improvement, she was soon forced to give up her job.

Morna said: “Mum’s only small and when she first began having difficulty in lifting her arms, she would stand on stools to help her pull pints. She loved her job and I know packing it in was a big blow for her.”

With her condition continuing to deteriorate, Helen was referred to neurology and after undergoing multiple tests, in May 2022, was sadly diagnosed with MND.

MND is a rapidly progressing terminal illness, which stops signals from the brain reaching the muscles. This can cause someone to lose the ability to walk, talk, swallow or breathe unaided and the average life expectancy is just 18 months from diagnosis.

Speaking about Helen’s condition, which has begun to deteriorate more rapidly, Morna said: “Mum’s main problems now are no longer being able to use her hands or arms and that her neck is very floppy, but we are still doing the best we can with what we have. Mum’s speech is also pretty bad now so I’m glad that we banked mum’s voice when we did, although the language therapist has been an amazing help as well.”

Along with her physical deterioration, Helen has also experienced a severe decline in her mental health.

Morna said: “Even after watching documentaries on people living with MND or seeing news stories, I think it’s impossible for people to get a real sense of what it’s like to live with a loved one who has MND or to understand what they experience. The day-to-day reality is much worse than I think anyone would believe.  It’s been a complete mental health disaster for my mum and no medication will help with her feeling hopeless. I’d do anything for my mum and so would my dad. It’s taken a massive toll on all of us.”

Morna’s dad, Kevin has also given up work to provide full time care for Helen, with Morna looking after her mum when she can. MND Scotland has also helped the family throughout their journey through financial, wellbeing and practical support.

Morna continued: “MND Scotland have been great in helping me and my family. They provided a grant to help adapt the bathroom, as well as grants to hire a cleaner and for mum to still get her hair and nails done.

“Trying to sort out any benefits was an absolute minefield. I don’t think I would have been able to work out what Mum needed if it wasn’t for MND Scotland’s benefits team. It’s all new to me, and stressful, but they have been amazing.”

Wanting to give back to the charity, Morna started by organising a Facebook fundraiser which raised over £1,500. She then raised a further £1,600 with the support of Kirkcaldy Netball Club, where she serves as chair, with the club helping Morna to organise fun training nights, bonus balls, bake and raffle sales, along with a silent disco.

Morna said: “I want to thank everyone who has donated and especially to Kirkcaldy Netball Club for keeping me sane during this difficult time.

“I’d also like to say a special thanks to MND Scotland for helping my family. I wanted to give back to them in some way and no matter what happens in the future, I’ll always be doing so for the rest of my life.”

Congratulating Morna on her fundraising success, MND Scotland CEO, Rachel Maitland said: “I would like to thank Morna and the Kirkcaldy Netball Club for raising a fantastic amount of money that will help us to provide direct support to people across Scotland affected by MND, as well as helping us to fund vital and life changing research. Thanks to their support, we can continue to make time count for people like Helen and their loved ones.”

You can make time count for people like Helen by donating today. For more ways to get involved and take on MND click here.