I am very excited to be running the London Marathon, a marathon I have wanted to do for years, a dream come true, every step of the 26.2 miles will be an honour to support and raise money for a charity close to me.

On top of the marathon i have decided to push myself further this year, to complete a total of 40 challenges....after all this this my 40th year!

Please see my list of events below with more due to be added.

Why have i decided to raise money for Mind?

What I am about to say, many people do not know, I don't know why, maybe I felt ashamed or scared of being judged but we need to break the stigma so here I am being open and honest...

When it comes to me and mental health I am one of the lucky ones, I manage to cope with anything life throws at me, and believe it makes me stronger...sadly this isn't the case for everyone and certainly not for my now 18 year old daughter, Chloe. 

Since the young age of 12, Chloe has really struggled with her mental health, in school, with friendships but she somehow pushed herself through, until we hit 2020. She had just turned 15 as we came into Lockdown, in my eyes everything was good, we were forced to be together, play games enjoy exercising together whilst caring for my terminally ill father at home. We had a lot of quality time as a family. For Chloe though, it was too much to deal with, trying to keep up with school work, missing friends, dealing with social media and 2 younger brothers but above all to watch her beloved Grandfather pass away with us at home. Over the following months Chloe hid her sadness, she was self harming and one night she attempted to take her own life. This is when I first became aware of what was happening  to my little girl. I really struggled to understand what she was going through, why she would want to harm herself and take her own life. She had a good life, a nice home a loving family, surely that was enough? Was she craving attention, had I been so wrapped up in everything else I simply wasn't giving her enough attention? Why couldnt she just cope the way that i do? Why is she being so selfish? These are some of many questions I had when speaking to the charity Mind. They helped me to understand how Chloe was feeling, how she felt so trapped in a dark place and unable to feel happy. How she had become so good to disguise her sadness, her hurt and her scars. Mind was there for me, to help me to support my daughter when all I really wanted to do was shake her and tell her to stop. They made me see that she wasn't selfish, or craving attention she was just lost and needed help.

Chloe was admitted to hospital several times since 2020 and has had some long stays in hospital. 

Mind have also been a huge help to Chloe, she of course still has her bad days, but she is so determined to beat this and live the life she deserves. I am so proud of her, she is truly the strongest woman I know. 

Every mile in training and on marathon day will be for you, Chloe and everyone else struggling with their own mental health and for those caring for loved ones. 

When you're experiencing a mental health problem, supportive and reliable information can change your life. That's what we do. We empower people to understand their condition and the choices available to them through the following:-Our Infoline, which offers callers confidential help for the price of a local call.-Our Legal Line, which provides information on mental health related law to the public, service users, family members/carers, mental health professionals and mental health advocates.-Our award-winning information, certified by the PIF Tick."Mind was such an invaluable source of information. I can't put into words how helpful they were for both of us..."

40 medals for my 40th year, all for Mind

14 Jan Tour De Broads- 50 mile ride ****  21 Jan Reedham -10 mile run **** 27 Jan London Winter Walk-26.2 miles **** 11 Feb Valentines- 10k run **** 25 Feb Malta Marathon **** 3 March Cambridge Half marathon **** 17 March Rome Marathon **** 7 April Trowse- 10k run  **** 21 April London Marathon **** 24 April Great Yarmouth 5mile run race1 ****27 April Swimathon **** 28 April Norfolk Marathon **** 5 May Aylsham- 10k run **** 8 May Great Yarmouth 5mile run race2 **** 12 May Dereham 10mile run **** 22 May Great Yarmouth 5mile run race3 **** 26 May Ride London- 100 miles **** 9 June Beccles Triathlon- sprint **** 14 June Harling Lotus Race Track- 5k run **** 23  June Norwich Triathlon-standard ****30 June Victory Triathlon super sprint **** 3 July Wroxham 5k run **** 7 July Outlaw Holkham Triathlon- Half **** 14 July Humpty Dumpty 10k run ****21 July Flying 5k **** 26 July Worstead 5 mile run **** 11 August Great Yarmouth Half Marathon **** 17 August Run Sandringham 24 (a 5 mile loop at Sandringham with 24 hours to do as many laps as possible- i aim to run at least 50 miles) **** 8 September Great North Run **** 14 September Swim Serpentine, 2 mile swim in the Serpentine lake in London's Hyde park, this will also complete my London Classics challenge and give me a BONUS medal 29 September Bure Valley 10 mile**** 5 October Shine Night Walk 10k**** 6 October The Reef Triathlon super sprint**** 13 October Great Eastern Run **** 20 October Blickling Half Marathon****TBC November Three Peaks Challenge **** 10 November George Munday 10k**** 16 November Clontarf, Dublin Half Marathon**** 24 November Norwich Half Marathon **** 29 December Tour De Broads 35 mile