Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

WHERE THE MONEY WILL GO

The first £2000 raised will go solely to Mind the national charity https://www.mind.org.uk/ as it is they who gave me the marathon place. They have kindly agreed to my request that I could give some money to support the separate charity and entity that is Hertfordshire Mind Network https://www.hertsmindnetwork.org/ so that can help support people local to where I live. Therefore, anything raised in excess of £2000 will be split equally between Mind (National) and Mind (Hertfordshire) charities.....i.e if I raised £3000. National Mind will receive £2000+£500, Hertfordshire Mind will receive £500

WHY I WANT TO RUN FOR MIND

Back in 1997 my mental health wasn't very healthy!. The Prozac got me back on my feet, but when I had a couple of dips in the following years, I realised there was a lot more help available in addition to the doctor's pills. As part of that I went on a very useful Mind course on dealing with stress in the early 2000's. My medication if needed now is running rather than any prescribed drugs 😊. I wanted to share some of what I had learnt over the years, so I work mentoring pupils in a senior school one day a week, trying to assist them with whatever they want to talk about.

We all have mental health, be it good, bad or somewhere in between and we can all move up and down that sliding scale, at any time and when we least expect it. I wanted to run for a cause important to me and so Mind was my first choice. This is my first proper London Marathon. I never thought I could run 26.2 miles, but lockdown inspired me to run London virtually in 2020 and repeat the experience in 2021. It'll be great to do 2022 for real.

WHO ARE MIND (NATIONAL)?

"We provide advice and support to empower anyone experiencing a mental health problem. We campaign to improve services, raise awareness and promote understanding. We won't give up until everyone experiencing a mental health problem gets support and respect (https://www.mind.org.uk/about-us/what-we-do/)

WHO ARE HERTFORDSHIRE MIND NETWORK (HMN)?

Delivering essential mental health support in Hertfordshire, HMN providing a diverse range of services from their seven Wellbeing Centres and other venues across all ten districts of the county. Funded locally, their services are available to all residents in Hertfordshire over the age of 18 and they offer dedicated services for 10-18 year olds.

JUST GIVING BLURB

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.