On Sunday 11 October 2015 I will be running my first half marathon in support of Mind, the mental health charity. Possibly a crazy idea with my tendency to get injured as soon as I've recovered from one thing and the fact that I've never run more than 8k in my life (I'm going to miss pentathlon's 3k) but I'm determined to make those 21 kms, and would really appreciate the support.

Mental health is close to my heart as it is what took my best friend Florice's mum from her, on 19/03/13. Anne Marie was not just another number in some faceless statistics; she was an incredible woman who formed part of my teenage years as a welcoming and strong figure from whom I could draw inspiration. I respected her enormously for the life she had built for herself, from the horses to the family that I was at times envious of. To hear of her death came as an enormous shock to me, and I remember going to school the day after I found out unable to believe how everything was just carrying on exactly the same as if nothing had changed, yet she was now missing from the world. I truly admire Florice, Bertie, Arthur and Michael for the strength that they have shown since then.

But mental illness does not have to take so many victims. This is why charities like Mind are so important, charities that are working to get rid of the stigma that surrounds mental illness, which often people know almost nothing about, to raise awareness, and to provide support to those who need it. The support that charities like Mind provides is essential, often providing a first step in seeking treatment, with mental illness being notorious for self-denial. 

I would also like to add another aspect of mental illness that is close to my heart just briefly, and this is eating disorders. Sadly I was surrounded by this while at boarding school, but it is not only the handful of girls diagnosed with anorexia and who called everyone's attention I am thinking of (the cliché of people boiling eating disorders down to a girl who is really skinny and doesn't eat). With hindsight it is easy to see that there were too many of us who suffered from disordered eating, something that rarely gets taken seriously because it is not seen as extreme enough, and also because, sadly, certain eating habits start to be seen as too commonplace to be concerning. Those who have heard of the EDNOS diagnosis are too few, but the truth is that a lot more people are suffering from eating disorders than one would realise. Because this is a mental illness, and common assumptions made such as that of weight loss are merely physical symptoms, and not the disease itself.

Sorry for having written so much but as you can see mental health is extremely important to me. There is so much I haven't covered here and if you managed to get this far down I would encourage you to go on the Mind website and find out more.

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