shareyourstory

I had spent 10 years avoiding attention due to mental illness and my embarrassment, now I was telling my Invictus story to the BBC

For me talking about things and having my cycling well-being tool have improved all areas of my life, I am emotionally and physically stronger to cope with the situations that made me crumble

I realise now that the very process of rowing was my way of moving the grief that had settled so deeply into my bones

Exercise had taken over my life. I lived to get faster race times and would feel depressed if I didn’t improve. Nothing else mattered.

Psychosis for me feels like someone has taken control of my actions and all I can do is sit and watch. Running helps to ground me and prevent any form of psychosis.

Waking up the morning after this anxiety attack the last thing I wanted to do was climb a 3560ft mountain

At 22 stone, I told my wife I needed to get fit. She just smiled and said she had heard it all before, but this time I was on a mission

When I climb, the only thing that matters is my next move, where to put my hands or my feet. It’s an escape from the nightmare that is PTSD.