A Two-Part Challenge 💜

We’re taking on two huge running challenges in 2026 with the goal of raising £5,000 for Action on Postpartum Psychosis, and raising awareness of the devastating illness that turned our worlds upside down - twice!

💜 Challenge 1 - We’ll both be running the London Marathon 2026 as part of Team APP! 🏃‍♀️🏃‍♂️ It’s an absolute honour to represent a charity that has been a lifeline for us and so many other families.

💜 Challenge 2 - An incredibly personal one - we’ll be attempting to run (or crawl if we have to!) around 84 miles from The Mount (Yorkshire Mother & Baby Unit in Leeds) to Ribblemere (Lancashire Mother & Baby Unit in Chorley) along the Leeds and Liverpool Canal in June 2026. These are the two specialist units where I received treatment after experiencing postpartum psychosis following the births of Evelyn and Jude. Without them, and without APP, our story might have been very different.

We will be sharing our training updates, more of our story, and how APP continues to bring hope, connection, and recovery to families affected by postpartum psychosis.

Please support us if you can by donating and/or sharing our fundraiser! 💜

Our Story 💜

After the birth of our daughter Evelyn in 2019, I developed Postpartum Psychosis - a severe and traumatic mental illness that came out of nowhere. I experienced delusions, confusion and terrifying hallucinations, and ended up in a Mother and Baby Unit. It felt like everything had been ripped away from us at what should have been the happiest time of our lives, I genuinely believed I would never feel like myself again. Choosing to have another baby was a huge decision for us, as the risks were much higher, and after having our son Jude in 2022, we experienced this nightmare all over again.

The first time around, I didn’t find APP until months later - but when I did, everything changed. They allowed me to process what I’d been through and realise I wasn’t alone, and this wasn’t my fault. Second time around, I had APP to hold my hand throughout, offering calm and compassionate support during an incredibly anxious pregnancy, and again during my second MBU stay.

APP were there for us all when everything fell apart, giving us hope when we thought I’d never get better. They were a huge support to James too, through their Partner Support network - helping him cope with the shock and trauma of seeing someone he loved go through something so frightening and unexpected, especially the second time round when he had Evelyn’s needs to consider too.

APP is the leading UK charity dedicated to supporting mums and families through postpartum psychosis. They offer life-saving peer support, provide trusted accessible information, train healthcare professionals to help improve outcomes for both mums and their babies, support campaign for better services like Mother and Baby Units and facilitate groundbreaking research to improve understanding and treatment for postpartum psychosis. Most importantly, they bring hope.

Now working with APP as a Peer Supporter, using my experience to support other mums going through this devastating illness is one of the most meaningful things I’ve ever done.

Training for these events will be a huge physical and mental challenge. Each step we take will be driven by the strength we’ve witnessed in the women and families I support and who we have both met through APP - and in ourselves. Taking part in these challenges for APP is more than just running; it’s a celebration of recovery, a way to raise vital funds, and a promise that no one should have to face Postpartum Psychosis alone. Above all, it’s a chance to make our children proud. 💜