Paddy Johnson
The Marathon Des Sables for YoungMinds
Fundraising for Young Minds Trust
Story
On the 3rd of April I'll be flying out to Marrakech to run 156 miles with a 10KG backpack on through the searing heat of the Sahara desert for 6 days. This is the equivalent of running from Oxford to Manchester. If I'm going to go ahead and put myself through something as extreme as this, I thought it would be a bit of a shame not to raise some money for a worthwhile cause. So I've teamed up with my pals over at Sliide, and we thought YoungMinds was a logical choice as mental disorders aren't particularly well represented in Society, especially amongst young people. A mental illness can be just as destructive as any physical illness, and given the state of general awareness surrounding these issues, raising some money for a mental health charity devoted to improving the lives of young people couldn't be more relevant.
YoungMinds uses the media to champion the cause of children and young people’s mental health and thereby influence policymakers and funders to improve the help available. It also enables the public to understand the reality and importance of children and young people’s mental health, the lack of resources available and combats stigma. YoungMinds also supports schools, staff and pupils in a variety of ways and this is an important and growing area of our work. Schools have a key role in developing children and young people’s emotional resilience by being able to identify problems early on and enabling access to help. Research demonstrates the strong links between emotional well being and academic attainment, behaviour in school and attendance.
In terms of government funding towards mental health, the figures are shocking:
- 77% of NHS Clinical Commissioning Groups that supplied data had frozen or cut their Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services
(CAMHS) budgets between 2013/2014 and 2014/2015.
- 60% of local councils in England have cut or frozen their CAMHS budgets since 2010/2011.
- 55% of local authorities in England that supplied data have cut, frozen or increased below inflation their budgets this year (2013/2014).
Please get involved, no donation is too small, and be a part of something amazing - a fund raising campaign through an event that defines the word "ultramarathon".
I'm now in the final stages of my training - which means a 50 mile run on Friday (13th March), followed pretty much by just stretching and short runs until I fly out to Morocco on the 3rd April and start the run on the 5th April for 5 days or so. Its without a doubt going to be the most difficult thing I've ever put myself through, so any motivational words or one liners you may have to accompany me on my trip through the desert will be met with great appreciation. Below is the MDS website, if you need more convincing - check it out.
www.marathondessables.co.uk
YoungMinds uses the media to champion the cause of children and young people’s mental health and thereby influence policymakers and funders to improve the help available. It also enables the public to understand the reality and importance of children and young people’s mental health, the lack of resources available and combats stigma. YoungMinds also supports schools, staff and pupils in a variety of ways and this is an important and growing area of our work. Schools have a key role in developing children and young people’s emotional resilience by being able to identify problems early on and enabling access to help. Research demonstrates the strong links between emotional well being and academic attainment, behaviour in school and attendance.
In terms of government funding towards mental health, the figures are shocking:
- 77% of NHS Clinical Commissioning Groups that supplied data had frozen or cut their Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services
(CAMHS) budgets between 2013/2014 and 2014/2015.
- 60% of local councils in England have cut or frozen their CAMHS budgets since 2010/2011.
- 55% of local authorities in England that supplied data have cut, frozen or increased below inflation their budgets this year (2013/2014).
Please get involved, no donation is too small, and be a part of something amazing - a fund raising campaign through an event that defines the word "ultramarathon".
I'm now in the final stages of my training - which means a 50 mile run on Friday (13th March), followed pretty much by just stretching and short runs until I fly out to Morocco on the 3rd April and start the run on the 5th April for 5 days or so. Its without a doubt going to be the most difficult thing I've ever put myself through, so any motivational words or one liners you may have to accompany me on my trip through the desert will be met with great appreciation. Below is the MDS website, if you need more convincing - check it out.
www.marathondessables.co.uk