The reason I am going to be doing this climb Is for a number of different reasons. When I was 14 I found myself victim to Cyber-Bullying, and it led down a road of self-harm and eventually into an overdose. I was lucky enough to make it out the other side and share my experience with young people hoping to help them too overcome their issues with Cyber-bullying and mental health.

However 3 years ago I took to self-harm again through different issues going on with myself and the fact I was finding it hard to get up out of bed each and every day. As of the 22nd January 2016 it marked 3 years since I last self-harmed or try to take my own life.

I have been lucky enough to be able to campaign in helping young people overcome mental health issues. For too long I have heard people talk about mental illness not being a real illness and for anyone suffering with mental illness, that they just need to smile. However this isn’t true and I am challenging this outlook people have. I am also doing this to prove to people that, yes we have a mental illness but that isn’t the be all and end all. Many people both young and old have different mental health illnesses and that doesn’t stop them achieving their dreams. If I believed that then I wouldn’t be fighting to help young people overcome mental health issues and I sure as hell wouldn’t be working on becoming THE FIRST BLACK PRIME MINISTER of this COUNTRY. There has been amazing work done by amazing charities. I want to help and I want to show people that a mental illness doesn’t stop you, and to the people who told me I should give up, because of my past I am challenging them.

This Challenge isn’t just going to be a onetime thing but something that will hopefully give people hope when they think about giving up their fight. I want this to show that both young and old if you do have a mental illness then it is nothing to be ashamed of. It is something you can hold your head up high because you really are beautiful and let that soul shine. It will also hopefully show people that no matter what your dream is, as long as you keep on going, keep on building, keep on fighting that one day you will make it to the top of your hill and let the sun shine on to your face.

As well as showing people that a mental illness doesn’t have to stop you, it will also be to the young people that lost their lives to a mental illness. To our beautiful souls who unfortunately didn’t make it here with us. As a reminder I will be taking a T-shirt with names of young people who lost their fight, so that they can make it to the end of tunnel. I am always inspired by the amazing people who are campaigning for young people and it always makes me smile to know that I am not alone in this fight, and also to the young person who is thinking about ending it all. Please keep fighting because you really are doing the best and the light will come shining through soon.