wearewithyou.org.uk

Mental health affects us all. Some more than others but there’s not enough support out there which unfortunately leaves a lot of people alone. I want to share my story with you to raise awareness and to raise money to support more and more people each day.

My journey to recovery began towards the end of February 2021. As you may or may not know I was addicted to drugs for 6 years. I struggled with the addiction which made my anxiety levels get out of control. I was taken to hospital on the 24th February with a suspected heart attack. I had to chew 5 aspirins and got rushed into hospital to find out it was just an anxiety attack. I was very lucky and that’s when I knew my life had to change. I was diagnosed with anxiety and put on medication (2x10mg propranolol 3 times a day and 50mg of sertraline 1 a day). I also had to have antibiotics and found out I may have kidney damage. That was on the 24th February but before then I was in a bad place.

I felt so down like I was dying from the inside out. I felt alone and struggled to socialise with my friends and even my family. I found myself hiding away from everyone and I seemed to push everyone away. At the time I didn’t realise I was doing it and just took each day as it comes.

I’m happy to say that my life has changed for the better. I have taken up running and fitness and my aim is to be the best I can be. I have just finished my 4 session counselling course with #WeAreWithYou. I went to them to help my understanding of anxiety and they nailed it! They helped me so much and I can now see a light at the end of the tunnel. It hasn’t been easy though. A few weeks ago I had a bad day, so bad I felt the need to call the Samaritans. I walked for over 2 hrs trying to find a phone box as my battery died on my phone. I found one phone box full of cobwebs and no dialling tone. I found my self on top of the cliff wondering what to do but I managed to pull myself together. Anxiety will never go away but I can now deal with it and understand what the triggers are.

I want to try and do some thing to help other people that are not as strong minded as me so I’ve come up with an idea. If I could raise enough money to get a sos emergency mental health volunteer hotline, 1 per town, it could be a life line for others that need it. I was out practicing my half marathon when I saw a young girl the other side of the railings. I watched how the situation was dealt with by the police and ambulance services and it was clear that none of them were trained in mental health. This has made me even more determined to raise as much money and awareness as possible.

I need your help though. If all of my friends, your friends and their friends donated just £5 this would help my fundraiser. Please feel free to share and I will keep you all updated on my progress and my onward journey.

Thank you for taking the time to read my story. Remember that your never alone!