After surviving bipolar disorder, depression and addiction, one man is walking more than 4,800 kilometres across the UK and Ireland to encourage people to talk about their mental health.
Seven months into the challenge, Jonathan Kemp arrived in Belfast after setting off from the Shetland Islands on New Year’s Day. He began the Northern Ireland leg of his journey in Derry earlier this month, travelling through Coleraine, Magherafelt, Ballymena, Larne and Carrickfergus before reaching Belfast on Saturday.
Jonathan will walk a further 380 kilometres across Northern Ireland in support of charities, including depression charity AWARE NI, before continuing to Galway, where he is expected to complete the challenge in October.
One man is walking more than 4,800 kilometres across the UK and Ireland to encourage people to talk about their mental health
PICTURE: BRIAN LINCOLN
Speaking to The Irish News, he said his goal is to speak with eight strangers every day and use those conversations to break down stigma around mental health.
Jonathan crossing over the Peace Bridge in Derry on his walk to Dungiven
“I’ve got a long history of my own personal challenges with mental health. By the age of seven, I wish I hadn’t been born. It was sufficiently bad for me to feel that way. By the time I left school at 18, I’d poor exam results. I was convinced I was stupid because of the dyslexia.
“I didn’t get help until my late thirties. I tried religion, exercise, diet, changing jobs, learning languages. I thought it was an external problem. Only when I was on my knees with no other options, did I then go and see a therapist, which makes no sense now, because that should be the first port of call.
“Now, it’s not an effort to live, breathe. The interference I’d sort of constantly had in my head, which was often nonstop, all that’s gone. It’s been that way for about three years.”
The first day of the walk in Haroldswick, North Shetland. Jonathan walked through horizontal rain and gale force winds
Mr Kemp said the support and stories shared by people he has met along the route have helped keep him motivated.
He added: “I’ve had a few incidences where I have met people, and it has been too much of a coincidence to be a coincidence. I call them special moments. I had one here in Ireland when I bumped into a farmer. Those moments will stay with me always.
“The people have just been really friendly and welcoming. The friendliness has gone up two notches since I’ve been here. It’s really noticeable.
“The other amazing thing here, it’s just the green. It is so green. Grass, the trees, it’s amazing.”
Jonathan in Shetland where he was met with unusually heavy snow fall
He continued: “If people find getting through each day is an effort, I’d recommend seeing a doctor first. Having a diagnosis can be invaluable because it helps people access support, information and peer groups.”
Karen Gallagher, Head of Fundraising at AWARE NI, said: “Jonathan’s challenge is extraordinary, but the conversations he’s creating are what really matter. Every day at AWARE we see how powerful it can be when someone feels able to say they’re struggling. By sharing his own experiences so openly, Jonathan is helping more people realise they don’t have to face mental health challenges alone.”
Jonathan is offering a free complimentary copy of his memoir, Finding Peace of Mind Walk Official.