He was supported throughout the event by family and friends who joined him along the route, including his best mate Isaac May, who rode behind him for the full 100km.<\/p>\n
Speaking to his fellow students at Newman College in Churchlands, Austin said his own mental health struggles, along with those experienced by his friends and family, inspired him to take on the challenge.<\/p>\n
\u201cSeeing people I care about go through such heavy challenges has had a deep impact on me, and it made me realise how important it is to acknowledge what we are feeling, to talk about it, and to support one another,\u201d Austin said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou shouldn\u2019t need a special week or month to check in on your mates. Someone could be struggling on any day at any time, and often it\u2019s very hard to see.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"Sixteen-year-old](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/ef7047bd46cbf5a5fba05d860a8088b706f3b3c8.jpg\")
Camera IconSixteen-year-old Austin Wyeth during his 100km run, being supported by friends and family. Credit: Supplied<\/p>\n
Austin encouraged his peers who may be struggling with their mental health not to be afraid to speak up, telling them that reaching out was not a sign of weakness but rather a sign of courage.<\/p>\n
\u201cSpeaking up can be the first step towards getting support, understanding, and relief. And when we create an environment where people feel safe to talk, we make it easier for everyone to take that step,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cToo often we convince ourselves that we have to deal with everything alone, but the truth is very different.<\/p>\n
\u201cOn average, one in every five people will experience depression at some point in their lifetime. That means even when you feel isolated, you\u2019re far from alone.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are people around you, teammates, classmates, family and friends who are facing similar mental battles, even if you can\u2019t see it on the surface.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, almost two in five Australians aged 16 to 24 experience a mental disorder each year, the highest rate of any age group.<\/p>\n
Anxiety was found to be the most common mental health condition, affecting almost one in three people aged 16 to 24.<\/p>\n
While going through tough times, Austin believes the most important thing a person can do is surround themselves with good people, but also find something they are passionate about.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve learned one of the best things you can do for yourself is to find something you genuinely love, something that feels safe, grounding, and free from judgment,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
![\"Sixteen-year-old](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/688a0b1a64c7f1367c5b2396362e5a319568aca8-161x229-x189y281w3818h5431.jpg\")
Camera IconSixteen-year-old Austin Wyeth completed a gruelling 100km run along Perth\u2019s coast. Credit: Supplied<\/p>\n
\u201cFor me, that was running. No matter what was going on, I could always head out for a run. Angry, upset, stressed or just bored, it gave me something to do.<\/p>\n
\u201cI encourage everyone to find their own version of what running became for me. It could be anything from taking the dog for a walk, going for a swim, cooking dinner with your family, reading a book, or even just drawing.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s no doubt there are people out there who love you for exactly who you are and will stand with you no matter what.\u201d<\/p>\n
If you or someone you know needs support, contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or online at lifeline.org.au.<\/a> Young people can also contact the Kids Helpline on 1800 55 1800 or visit kidshelpline.com.au.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Sixteen-year-old Austin Wyeth, from Trigg, has raised more than $11,000 for youth mental health after completing a 100km…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":610800,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[276],"tags":[18,135,19,17,167,502,10940,8329,122374,22638],"class_list":["post-610799","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-mental-health","tag-eire","tag-health","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-mental-health","tag-mentalhealth","tag-north","tag-perth","tag-stirling","tag-wa-news"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ie\/117006109205487412","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/610799","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=610799"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/610799\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/610800"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=610799"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=610799"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=610799"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}