Life Is Bliss

Debbie Bliss has never been a shrinking violet. She has fought all her life-not just for herself, but for others too. Now aged forty-eight, there was a stage when she thought she would not live long enough to see her son grow up, to ride a horse again, to travel the world, or to follow one of her greatest passions-to push herself to the limit while raising money for charity at the same time. Debbie is one of the few people in the world to suffer from dermatomyositis. One in a million are affected by this debilitating condition that can leave sufferers totally paralyzed, in a wheelchair, and unable to walk or even to talk in some cases. Her reaction when she was eventually diagnosed was not to sit back and be a victim. She fought back, determined that this crippling disease would not triumph. Debbie has led an incredible life, one which has taken her to all the corners of the earth, including to Australia and the sunshine island of Tenerife. She was born in Leicester and comes from a family of four girls. Even then, however, life was never easy, and her book gives us an insight into why she became the determined and headstrong person she is today. One day, she was a healthy, happy, fit, and loving mother and wife. The next, she was struck down by a mystery illness that saw her weight plummet to seven stone and led to months in a hospital ward, where she could only be fed through a tube. But she did. "Life is Bliss" conveys Debbie's ethos: that life is for living to the full. But in this fascinating book, she also hopes to provide inspiration for others-to tell them not to give up hope, to find that inner strength to fight whatever challenge they face.