In 2017, I undertook my first ever running challenge. I was happy to raise money, but if I'm honest, it was a selfish act. I wasn't in a great place, physically or emotionally, and I needed something to focus my thoughts and efforts on so that I didn't get bogged down. It's the first exercise-based challenge I've ever started AND completed. I know I can be proud of that. 

So I am doing another one. Mind is such an important charity and deserving of whatever money you could spare them. So why am I running for a mental health charity?

1) The numbers speak for themselves: 1 in 4 people will suffer mental health problems in their lifetime. Suicide is the biggest cause of death for men under 35. PR professionals are one of the highest sectors to experience mental health problems, with 30% of employees generally and 50% of managers report stress, depression and anxiety. 

We need to address these statistics and build a world where it's not a taboo to talk about what's on the inside. 

2) A number friends of mine have been bereaved by suicide. In some cases, they've been able to access support from Mind. In all cases, they have stressed how important the work of Mind is and will be in the future. I am not able to be with one of those friends on a special day, but by running on this day, I know I am running for them and something close to their heart. 

I'm sure you know someone just like my friends. 

3) I am 1 of the 4. I have been treated on and off for mental health problems since I was 15 years old. That's over one decade of my life. I chose this profile picture specifically because it shows how little the people around could tell I was sick. It was taken at a friend's wedding and I'd recently returned from a three week lobbying trip around the Caribbean. During that trip, I met Presidents and Premiers, I worked the room, was the picture of a bubbly, outspoken and engaging guest. I earned a more-than-favourable salary for a 28 year old. 

I danced and drank and laughed for the whole night at the wedding. I was also heavily medicated with anti-depressants and anti-anxiety medicine. 

Some days it was all my strength to wash my face and go to work. I negotiated budgets, staffing reviews and began a thorough review of my department's resourcing and service provision. I cried for an hour because I didn't know whether my hair down or hair up made me look more authentic before the Board. I skipped meals because the supermarket was too overwhelming and I couldn't decide what to buy. 

I hid my trouble from almost everyone around me, glossed over by a veneer of bleach blonde hair and a fancy business card. I looked like a woman on top of her game and inside I was desperate for someone to see through the façade and see me for who I was in that instant. 

No more. Every single step of this run is a step which reminds me that my health problems are no less important because they are invisible and they are a step for everyone else who has felt, and still feels, like they are not allowed to talk about what's going down in their life.