Story
As many people are aware, every year I complete a 24 hour workout raising money for a different mental health charity in rememberance of the death of my oldest brother Jed by suicide on Christmas Day 2008. My brother, from the outside appeared to have everything - a family who loved him enormously, friends all over the country, a promising law career, endless talent and a happy long-term relationship. But his (undiagnosed and undisclosed) depression ate away at him until his emotions were so suppressed that suicide appeared to be the only escape. This just serves to illustrate that you can truly never understand when somebody around you is suffering, and that it’s not obvious when it’s going to next take a life. Somebody in your family could be struggling without you even realising. Just as our family didn’t realise.
This year, I’m taking it up a notch - I’ll be doing a 36 hour non-stop workout on 3rd June and I’m aiming to raise £100 per every hour of exercise.
Mind is a charity which deserve every single penny they can get - as they fundraise and provide support for all sufferers of mental illness. Nobody should suffer alone - and yet so many people do.
All causes of death are decreasing due to medical and social progress, yet depression/stress/mental illnesses/suicide as a direct cause of death rises year on year. It is more commonly being spoken about over popular media, as these illnesses take the lives of our friends, family and popular celebrities. Despite that, governmental spend and charitable donations are at a fraction of what they are for all the other leading causes of death.
For example, if you are a man, you are more likely to die from suicide than from cancer, car crashes or heart attacks. It is the number one killer. Yet it is barely discussed. England is suffering from an epidemic. 84 men will take their own lives this week. One man every two hours will lose his life. And yet the funding is just not there.
For that reason, I am raising money for Mind. For every single person I know who suffers from anxiety, stress, depression, personality disorders, self-harming, psychosis, mania, sleep disorders, eating disorders, panic attacks, anger disorders, addiction, postnatal depression, phobias, seasonal affective disorder. Every single one of you deserves respect and support to help you through, and I want to be part of the solution.
There needs to be a huge societal shift until this epidemic changes, but until then, we can all make a small difference. We can raise awareness, we can support the charities desperately attempting to help those suffering, and we can encourage our friends, family, colleagues and strangers to discuss their emotions. Be an open, non-judgemental ear for all those around you. You just might save a life.
In loving memory of Jed Valoroso, my 36 hour workout will be documented live on all my social media pages. A prize raffle will also be held on the day in PureGym Shirley Southampton.
More details and prizes to follow.
This year, I’m taking it up a notch - I’ll be doing a 36 hour non-stop workout on 3rd June and I’m aiming to raise £100 per every hour of exercise.
Mind is a charity which deserve every single penny they can get - as they fundraise and provide support for all sufferers of mental illness. Nobody should suffer alone - and yet so many people do.
All causes of death are decreasing due to medical and social progress, yet depression/stress/mental illnesses/suicide as a direct cause of death rises year on year. It is more commonly being spoken about over popular media, as these illnesses take the lives of our friends, family and popular celebrities. Despite that, governmental spend and charitable donations are at a fraction of what they are for all the other leading causes of death.
For example, if you are a man, you are more likely to die from suicide than from cancer, car crashes or heart attacks. It is the number one killer. Yet it is barely discussed. England is suffering from an epidemic. 84 men will take their own lives this week. One man every two hours will lose his life. And yet the funding is just not there.
For that reason, I am raising money for Mind. For every single person I know who suffers from anxiety, stress, depression, personality disorders, self-harming, psychosis, mania, sleep disorders, eating disorders, panic attacks, anger disorders, addiction, postnatal depression, phobias, seasonal affective disorder. Every single one of you deserves respect and support to help you through, and I want to be part of the solution.
There needs to be a huge societal shift until this epidemic changes, but until then, we can all make a small difference. We can raise awareness, we can support the charities desperately attempting to help those suffering, and we can encourage our friends, family, colleagues and strangers to discuss their emotions. Be an open, non-judgemental ear for all those around you. You just might save a life.
In loving memory of Jed Valoroso, my 36 hour workout will be documented live on all my social media pages. A prize raffle will also be held on the day in PureGym Shirley Southampton.
More details and prizes to follow.