Approximately 1 in 4 people in the UK will experience a mental health problem each year.

Mind offers support, guidance and advice to those struggling with mental health, or to the friends and families who want to better understand.

In 2010, when I told the very first person I thought I might be depressed, I was told to “stop being silly”. I was bullied by course-mates and 'friends' at uni for the first few years whenever I talked about it and branded an ‘attention seeker’. So I stopped talking about it; but I did seek solace in the online resources available through Mind to help me better understand the feelings I was experiencing and what was 'happening' to me.

Believe it or not, we've come a long way since then. It's something I live with every day and probably always will. But while I know it's something I don't have to be ashamed of, it's something that still attracts a certain stigma.

I've been very fortunate. Despite some very rough periods, I found the help I needed and I'm here. Not everyone is so lucky.

And so, to sound entirely cheesy, I'm running 13.1 miles to raise money for a charity pretty close to my heart, even though I've always said I don't believe in running.

I want everyone to feel as lucky as I do: to know where to find support when it's needed; to accept that the grey clouds may never fully go away but that you absolutely can 'live with them'; and to realise that anyone who tells you it's not "okay to talk" is not your friend.