Help Lacie Hike the AT
Donation protected
I have struggled with depression for as long as I can remember. I don't let most people see that part of me, but trying to get through the day while staring into the bottomless void of self-loathing is downright debilitating. I've been able to reel myself back from the brink every time so far, but sometimes it gets so dark inside my mind that it feels like I can never escape it.
In my adulthood, managing depression has become almost a like a part-time job. I have been to countless therapists, taken dozens of medications, been hospitalized (twice!), switched careers, moved states, done yoga, tried meditation, not to mention all the self-destructive coping mechanisms I won't bother to list here.
In all this time, I have tried to push myself to be successful in a career that I don't particularly love, and it has only served to make things worse. Since moving to VT, things have been so bad for me I have felt that, this time, I might not be strong enough to come back from the edge.
I have come to accept that my life depends on getting well, and healing from this horrible disease. For that reason, I have decided to quit my job and focus 100% on my mental health.
In order to do this, I have decided to spend 6 months in the only place where I have ever felt the clouds of depression lift: hiking in the woods.
I will be hiking the Appalachian Trail beginning this April.
I am hoping that this experience will teach me how to use hiking to recover from mental illness, and that when I return to the real world I may turn around and devote myself to sharing that knowledge with others.
Since I will not have an income during this time, and since I have plowed through most of my savings by moving so many times, I am asking that in lieu of holiday gifts this year that you please support my effort to recover from depression by donating money to this page. Every little bit helps and I would appreciate anything you are willing to give.
Thank you all,
Lacie
In my adulthood, managing depression has become almost a like a part-time job. I have been to countless therapists, taken dozens of medications, been hospitalized (twice!), switched careers, moved states, done yoga, tried meditation, not to mention all the self-destructive coping mechanisms I won't bother to list here.
In all this time, I have tried to push myself to be successful in a career that I don't particularly love, and it has only served to make things worse. Since moving to VT, things have been so bad for me I have felt that, this time, I might not be strong enough to come back from the edge.
I have come to accept that my life depends on getting well, and healing from this horrible disease. For that reason, I have decided to quit my job and focus 100% on my mental health.
In order to do this, I have decided to spend 6 months in the only place where I have ever felt the clouds of depression lift: hiking in the woods.
I will be hiking the Appalachian Trail beginning this April.
I am hoping that this experience will teach me how to use hiking to recover from mental illness, and that when I return to the real world I may turn around and devote myself to sharing that knowledge with others.
Since I will not have an income during this time, and since I have plowed through most of my savings by moving so many times, I am asking that in lieu of holiday gifts this year that you please support my effort to recover from depression by donating money to this page. Every little bit helps and I would appreciate anything you are willing to give.
Thank you all,
Lacie
Organizer
Lacie Smith
Organizer
Winooski, VT
