By Monica Chard
Hardy by name and hardy by nature! Sheppertonian and former Halliford pupil, Alex Hardy set himself a challenge before Christmas of walking 1500 miles in 100 days. He is walking locally, so you may spot him (you may know him from his job in Prezzo in fact). He tells me his target equates to around 3 two hour walks every day, come rain, shine, snow and gales. This man is hardy indeed!
Alex felt compelled to do something to raise awareness of and funds for mental health and will be making a significant contribution to Mind. We joined him on a (socially distanced) early morning walk one cold January morning. The 10,000 steps we did together is more than most do in a day, but it was merely a warm-up for Alex! He clocked up an impressive 60,000 steps on one day alone in December. He has been in touch with Shepperton Matters since the start of his endeavour and freely admitted when he first started that he thought he has bitten off more than he could chew. He ached everywhere, had sore feet and felt a bit dejected. In addition, donations were slow to come. But that all changed. He is now feeling fit and positive and donations are coming in thick and fast. The link is at the end of this article.
Alex told me during our walk that he had lost several friends to suicide. As well as the hopelessness of those who take their lives “it is the effect it has on those left behind” he says. No one should get to the stage of desperation that suicide is the only way out, and the effects of the pandemic and national lock-downs have had a significant impact on mental health. Mind refers to it as a mental health emergency. The lure of drink and drugs as an escape and coping mechanism is all too prevalent in mental health stories. Antidepressants are the regular sticking plaster to the problem. But physical activity itself is seen as hugely beneficial for mental health, so Alex’s Walkathon is very appropriate and a kind of therapy in itself.
Alex has a long way to go. He hit the 1 million step milestone after 25 days. That equates to almost 500 miles. But with more than 1000 miles to go, he would appreciate any help you can give him to encourage his efforts. Most of us have stories to tell relating to mental health issues, whether personally or relating to family and friends. It is indeed a pandemic in its own right so let’s see if we can do something to help. There are posters around the village with details of how to donate to Alex’s cause and here it is too:
www.justgiving.com/fundraising/thewalkathon
For more information about mental health and support mechanisms please visit:
www.mind.org.uk
We will bring you a further update next month and meanwhile you can keep an eye on Facebook (Alex Hardy) to see Alex’s progress.