I'm Alyx, and I'm almost 18.
I've had a severe Anxiety Disorder since I was 8 years old.

The first time I had a panic attack, I was sat in my year 5 class minding my own business, when the news that the 'Big Science Experiment' in Switzerland might end the world, because the news said so.

I have no clue if this was the only reason I developed anxiety, or if I was going to anyway and this event tipped me over the edge, but ever since, I haven't slept through the night, I haven't been able to have a full social life, and I've had to have my dad hold my hand throughout most of my life. I'm almost 18 and I still have to wake him up at 2am because of racing thoughts I cannot convince myself out of.

Mind has helped reduce the stigma of mental illnesses massively. I truly believe that they are one of the main reasons I can speak about my anxiety and depression (which developed a few years later) without being worried that people will leave me, or that I won't be hired.

But there's still a long way to go.

And that's why I want to take part in Mind's Iceland Trek. So I can have experiences that aren't governed by my mental illness; and so I can give something back to a cause I believe needs more attention than ever.

I know my goal is huge, but it's the minimum I need to be able to go, set by Mind, and the actual fee of the trip is going to be payed by me.
I hope you feel my cause is good enough.

Mental illness affects 1 in 4 people in the UK. At the moment, the largest amount is teenagers and the elderly. I want to help build a society which means they can try to cope without having to help the world cope too.

Thank you.