I teamed up with
hikeformentalhealth.org in July 2012 before taking off on my
MST thru hike. I heard of them thru
Facebook and after checking out the site i knew this was something i want to be a part of. I have lived with someone who suffers from severe bipolar disorder and know not only what affect it has on them but also on the one's who love them and see the way that some people look at them or act toward them because of it. I also myself have adhd and have learned to live with it and hiking seems to be the key to my personal sanity, if that's what you'd call it :) I hope to bring attention to the site and help raise some funds... below is the mission statement -
Hiking on backcountry trails helps many people re-connect with nature
and with places within themselves that get obscured in the daily hustle
and bustle. A few days in the solitude of the trail re-grounds them and
helps preserve their mental health.
For people battling mental illness, however, the path to mental
health is rarely so simple. Mental illness affects 1 out of 4 families
in the United States, leaving those who suffer from it and their
families searching for answers, cures and treatments that will allow
them to experience the simple joy of living.
The mission of
HIKE for Mental Health is to
- Increase public awareness of the challenges and suffering faced by those afflicted by mental illness and their families.
- Increase public appreciation for and responsible use of wilderness trails.
- Raise funds, principally by coordinating fundraising wilderness
hikes, for distribution to nonprofit organizations committed to (a)
preventing and alleviating the pain caused by mental illness or (b)
maintaining and preserving wilderness trails.
In distributing its net proceeds,
HIKE for Mental Health will direct
- Eighty percent to scientific research to prevent, cure, or treat mental illness and
- Twenty percent to help preserve wilderness trails.
hikeformentalhealth.org
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