Every Step Toward Recovery
GILL GOLDENBERG
If you watched the Hastings Half Marathon runners on Sunday 22 March, you might have seen Dave King embracing the challenge along with thousands of others. He was carrying a 5ft PTSD flag on his back, drawing attention to his next challenge – running more than 1,000 miles from John O’Groats to Lands End to raise funds for the 2.6 million people living with PTSD in the UK.
During the 31-day challenge, Dave will run up to 40 miles a day, carrying his own kit, including a tent. He hopes to talk to people about PTSD and trauma as his route takes him through towns and villages. Donations will help people who are suffering from PTSD to access the support they need. It’s not just army veterans like Dave who are suffering from trauma – a whole range of experiences can result in devastating mental health issues, like being involved in a road traffic accident, working in the emergency services, bullying, sexual violence and many others.
Dave joined the British Armed Forces at 17 and was deployed to Northern Ireland, Bosnia and Cyprus. What followed were years shaped by trauma, injury and repeated mental health crises – including long periods in and out of psychiatric hospitals. After leaving the army, Dave’s struggles with his mental health intensified, and he spent decades struggling in silence with his condition. He was later employed as a nursing assistant at the very hospital where he had once been a patient – supporting others facing the same challenges he had lived through.
He is speaking out now in the hope that others will be able to seek support and get the help they need more quickly. “This run is about far more than miles or endurance,” he says. “It’s about raising vital funds so people affected by PTSD and C-PTSD can get the support they deserve, sooner. For years I believed I had to face everything alone – now I want others to know that help is available. If my journey gives people hope and helps fund that support, then every step truly matters.”
He is hoping to raise £2,500 for PTSD UK – a small but growing charity supporting everyone with PTSD and C-PTSD, no matter the trauma which caused it. “The hardest part won’t be the miles,” Dave admits. “It’ll be being alone with my thoughts for long periods of time.”
His challenge has already received generous backing from corporate sponsors who have helped provide essential equipment and logistical support including, Royal British Legion, Nice Work Running Management, Otimos Outdoor gear, Atom Packs and Sailflags.
Dave is also appealing for qualified massage therapists, physiotherapists, sports therapists and recovery professionals who may be willing to volunteer time or expertise along the route to help him manage the physical toll of running over 1,000 miles in one month.
Every donation – no matter the amount – brings Dave one step closer to his £2,500 target and helps ensure people don’t have to face PTSD.
Donations can be made securely via Givestar, with all funds going directly to PTSD UK. givestar.io/gs/every-step-towards-recovery—running-the-uk-in-31-days To get in touch directly: [email protected]
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