This month we have a fantastic contribution from Coopah ambassador Estelle Albertyn who shares a powerful, passionate and heartfelt message on mental health. She hits a lot of notes that will resonate with all if not many of you. Thanks again Estelle! You are awesome.

By Estelle Albertyn

I have always been an avid runner, but I've realised that running has a deeper meaning in my life over the past few years – it helps me cope with my mental health!

Those words "mental health" and the stigma around it – the "don't mention it" when talking about what is going on in your life…why? I will tell you why – it is the "taboo" two-letter word no one wants to acknowledge or understand. When people hear "mental health", they think ", oh goodie, another crazy one". BUT the last couple of years, the focus on mental health has shifted, and more people can talk about this and not feel judged.

Now you might ask, what the hell does that got to do with running or this blog post…well, let me tell you - A LOT!

Running is not just an activity to stay fit and healthy. It is a lifesaver for many people out there. The number of times that I had thoughts of just ending it all when life is too hard to deal with – endless and countless. Running has been a big part of my life over the past 11 years. Not only for my mental health but also to cope with my asthma and improve my lung capacity to prevent exposure to severe lung illnesses. When you see me, you would not say I have asthma, anxiety and depression…but I do. Everyone that knows me well will know that I LOVE running. It is not even up for a debate to try and convince me otherwise or to change my mind about what is more important in life. If it was up to me, I would be running day and night!

It is hard to even get organised and stick to the running plan; that is when I know, oh dear, it is that time again…anxiety and depression kicks in. You can't decide on anything, apart from just feeling down in the dumps. That is when I force myself to get my gear on and get out ASAP, get on the road or trails and RUN! Getting dressed and out of the house is a mission on its own – it can take anything from 5 minutes to 2 hours to get out and get going. It's horrible, but that is the reality. My reality! I am sure I am not the only one, but not everyone feels comfortable talking about it.

That mentality needs to change. I am not ashamed of admitting my struggles.

Some people may perceive this as a weakness. I see it as a fighter living for my family, others and to be an example for my son.

My family has lost three crucial figures in our lives over the past 18 months, including 2 parents in 5 months. The sudden loss of a parent without warning is not only hard to deal with, but how do you cope afterwards? This is someone that has been part of your whole life, someone that you looked up to, protected you, provided for you, and most of all loved you no matter what. To make matters worse – we could not even go back home (South Africa) to mourn with our family and say our final goodbyes due to the pandemic. How does someone process this? How does one make sense of any of this? It took me a few days, but my only coping "tool" was getting up, getting dressed, and go for a RUN.

It is hard, but I know it is what helps me, and I will be okay.

Exercise is so important – running more than anything – you learn to cope with your mental health. You know how to live a better, healthier life (plus you just added more years to live to your life), so for me, all I can see is ticking all the right boxes. As I would say to fellow runners at Coopah and NewEraRunning – running saved my "back behind" many times *lol*!

Running vs Mental Health is something we can all share and talk about for many days, months and years to come. Still, I just wanted to share with the community what this has been for me and how I cope with my problems and general life problems – like the pandemic we are in and have been in since March 2020.

So my question to everyone is, why are you running? What does that mean to you? What does running do for you? We need to embrace our feelings, our struggles, our lives – after all – we only have one chance to look back one day and say, "Mount Everest does not come close to what I have achieved in my life".