I will be running the London Marathon on 2^nd October to raise money for Mind, the mental health charity.

Over the past decade or so, I have really struggled with my own mental health, following an abusive relationship. This is something I rarely speak about and it’s taken me a long time to fully comprehend what happened. At the time, I only associated domestic abuse with physical violence and didn’t recognise that what I was experiencing was coercive control, a form of domestic abuse. Coercive control feels like being taken hostage; it was disorientating, often terrifying and completely overwhelming. After escaping the relationship, I spent my twenties living at a million miles an hour in an attempt to outrun what had happened to me. When the pandemic hit, I lost all my coping strategies and was forced to confront everything. I have been so lucky to have the support of my family and a therapist who is helping me to understand and deal with the impacts of coercive control and the related trauma.

I am also running for George, my mum’s godson, who died in 2019. He hid his illness behind his smile and he is greatly missed.

I was originally supposed to be running the marathon in April 2020 - thank you so much to everyone who donated back then, we raised over £1200 and all your donations went straight to Mind. Obviously no second donations expected, but I would be extremely grateful for any supporters on the day!

No one should have to struggle with their mental health alone and every donation to Mind will help them to improve services, raise awareness and promote understanding. Thank you for all your support.