I have signed up to run the Rome Marathon on 19 March 2023. 

Why? Good question. Let's call it a combination of peer pressure, curiosity and opportunism - when else am I going to do one? 

Not that it was ever on my bucket list. I've never run a marathon before. I had never run a half marathon until this month.  

In fact, before starting training, the furthest distance I'd ever run was 12km/7.5 miles. A marathon is 42.2km/26 miles. 

I started my training plan back in November and I've been gradually building up the miles, along with the mental and physical battering that comes with them! 

It's been brutal, it's been time-consuming, it's taken over most of my waking hours when I'm not working. 

So help me out and show some support by helping me raise money for an incredible cause, and one close to my heart. 

Scott Hutchison's suicide had a profound impact on me. It was a huge shock to discover the man behind some of my favourite music and lyrics had been struggling the way he had, and Tiny Changes is a fitting and wonderful cause that was set up in his memory. 

Having experienced difficult times with mental health myself - who hasn't - I feel it's vital that future generations are as well prepared as they can be for these challenges. 

Tiny Changes was set up to do just that for children and young people in Scotland - but here's what they say in their own words: 

"Scott Hutchison, singer in the band Frightened Rabbit, died by suicide in May 2018. 

"Since then, his family have been campaigning to improve mental health amongst children and young people in Scotland.

"Tiny Changes (SC049112) aims to further that cause by funding projects and events that support affected people and advance research, and also by raising awareness and influencing policy.

"There is a crisis in young people's mental health in Scotland and it is getting worse. The next generation needs your help now."

Find out more here: https://tinychanges.com/our-story/