Hi everyone.
Over the course of 2017 I'm fundraising for Mind - the mental health charity.
http://www.mind.org.ukIn a nutshell, Mind provide support services for those suffering with mental health illnesses. As an increasing number of us very sadly realise, this can literally be the difference between life and death.
I don't want to tug on the heartstrings too much but, for anyone who doesn't know me personally, I'm very fortunate to be able to say that my sister is still here today. She still fights a battle every day with her mental health but with increasing levels of support from people, such as those at Mind, the battle gets more manageable.
Following on from last year, when I ran Chester Half Marathon for Mind, my challenge this time around is to run 1000 miles over the course of this year. So far I've run 78.95 miles since the start of the year, and all is going well, but there's a long way to go yet!
If you're able, and are willing, to contribute financially to my cause, that would be very much appreciated. However, just as - if not more - important (and free & easy to do!) is sharing what I'm doing. Making more people aware of the services that are available to them when times are hard can save lives. Helping support people who want to remove the stigma that surrounds mental health illnesses will save lives. To that end, all updates on my fundraising contain the hashtag #1000MilesForMind on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram - any shares/mentions/retweets etc would be just as gratefully received.
Finally, I just want to say that I'm here for anyone that needs someone to talk to. I'm no professional, I can't fix your problems for you, but sometimes just talking about your problems can release some of the struggle you're having. You might not want to pour your heart out to some stranger on the internet, and that's fine, but drop me a PM and I'll let you know who you can get in touch with who can help. Please don't suffer in silence.
I'll keep this bumped after each run for those of you that are interested in my progress (and aren't bored to tears of the many social media updates
).
Thanks for reading.
http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/AntonyRunsForMind