Story
I'm gearing up to climb Mount Kilimanjaro! It's not just any climb; it's part of the Emergency Service Challenge to raise awareness for the mental health of emergency service and frontline workers. The team and I will fly out on 19th September.
A little about my journey: I'm recently recovering from a heroic surfing knee injury (turns out waves are tougher than they look), so training for this climb has been as much a personal challenge for me as the climb itself will be. Yes, I say ‘heroic’ because it sounds way cooler than ‘fell off the board’. Picture me wobbling up the mountain, one wobbly knee at a time. But I'm determined to reach the top, or at least get as close as I can, before the altitude sickness kicks in! This has always been a bucket list item for me, I have never climbed anything as high (5,895m / 19,340ft), or as long as this - I am excited and anxious for the adventure. Perhaps not as keen about not being able to wash for a week! We will start off in humid jungle, and end on the peak in arctic -15 Celsius conditions. I will be covering all costs of the trip myself.
Now, for the serious stuff. We are all raising money for different but related charities. My choice is ‘You Okay, Doc?’, an organisation dedicated to supporting doctors’ and healthcare workers’ mental health through harnessing community, providing evidence-based resources and via the provision of services including therapy led support groups. One doctor dies by suicide every three weeks in the UK. 39% of doctors reported feeling burnt out. One nurse attempted suicide every day in 2022. I have personally experienced burn out as a junior hospital doctor working full time during the COVID-19 pandemic, so it is a cause very close to my heart. It can creep up on anyone, at anytime, often without realising.
Here's the deal: I've never done a charity fundraiser before, and we also start this trip on my birthday. So, I'm calling in all favours now and asking for your help. I'm asking you, dear family, friends, colleagues and generous strangers, to support this cause. Even if it's just £1, a fiver, or more, and you want to remain anonymous (or if you're just donating because I bugged you enough), every bit counts. And hey, even if I do succumb to altitude sickness and end up needing an emergency evacuation off the mountain, your donations will still go directly to the charity and you can have the satisfaction of laughing at me instead!
Let's come together to support those who sacrifice so much for all of us. Your contribution, big or small, will make a world of difference. Thank you for your generosity, support, and wish me luck (and sturdy knees)!
Tom
Emergency Service Challenge:
https://emergencyservicechallenge.co.uk
The Emergency Service Challenge was born out of a desire to help raise awareness for mental health for our emergency service colleagues.
In 2016 we lost a beloved doctor, mother, sister and friend, Dr Liz Sizer to suicide. Sadly this is not uncommon with doctors being quoted to have up 2-3x higher rates of suicide than when compared to the general population.
It is our mission to eradicate the stigma associated with mental health in the healthcare community, reframe the conversation and thereby reduce mental illness including rates of suicide.
We have provided support to 2,000 doctors to date and use vital funds to host therapist led support groups, called the Huddle.