Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

My name is Mike. After more than 20 years, I have chosen to hang up the car keys and get back on the bike. I will be cycling the Liverpool- Chester - Liverpool bike ride on the 5th July 2026. It will be 50 miles, starting in Liverpool, riding out to Chester and back again. After 20 plus years I am under no illusion that this is going to be a huge personal challenge for myself both mentally and physically. Thankfully, I have the ultimate fan club behind all my (sometimes crazy) ideas, in the form of my wife Chloe. Chloe over the years has supported me through all the ups and downs and mental health struggles I have found myself going through.

Chloe is a former patient of the Darwin Centre in Stoke on Trent. Her story is the reason I want to support this charity to give back something that shows my undying gratitude to the hard work and support the team at the Darwin Centre do. Without them, as hard as this is to say, Chloe probably wouldn't be here now and I wouldn't have the beautiful wife that I adore.

In 2016 Chloe was diagnosed with Anorexia nervosa (often called anorexia). Anorexia Nervosa is an eating disorder and serious mental health condition.

People who have anorexia try to keep their weight as low as possible. They may do this in different ways, such as not eating enough food, exercising too much, taking laxatives or making themselves sick (vomit). This can make them very ill because they start to starve.

They often have a distorted image of their bodies, thinking they're fat even when they're underweight.

Men and women of any age can get anorexia, but it's most common in young women and typically starts in the mid-teens.

Chloe's anorexia got so severe that there was no other option than to admit her into the Darwin Centre for treatment. For the next 9 months, Chloe stayed there receiving support and treatment to help her understand and ultimately beat the anorexia. Chloe was finally discharged in 2018 and continued to grow stronger day by day. Almost 10 years on and Chloe is a million miles away from where she was then. Shes healthier, fitter, stronger and has a much better relationship with food.

Chloe is currently training to run her first half marathon. Something she wouldn't have had the strength to think about let alone run back in the day.

Inevitably, she will and sometimes does still hit some small bumps in the road, but she has a great support network around her, and she takes full advantage of being married to a chef.

The Darwin Centre do amazing work with young people aged 12 to 18 years who have a variety of mental health and emotional difficulties who require an inpatient admission. Their work is so valuable to the lives of these young people.

The mental heath crisis we are currently facing here in the UK means we all need to do our bit to help and support, however small, to give these young people the best fighting chance we can to beat their demons and go on to live happy, healthier lives.

So please, whatever you can spare, every penny will help this amazing Centre continue to do the amazing work they do for these young people.