Anybody here struggling with any common mental disorder and found relief and help by running/jogging?
I'll tell a bit of my story.
In the spring of 2019, I've had my first panic attack.
I was struggling with anxiety for quite a few years but I had never had a full-on panic attack before that time.
I was at a friend's house, having dinner. I suddenly started feeling light-headed and a bit confused. My head started sweating and, while I started worrying about what was happening I felt my heart beat increasing its pace and fell into a state of complete confusion. I thought I was going to die.
I'm sure if somebody had a panic attack in their life can relate.
From that point onwards, life became a constant struggle, as I didn't overcome the first attack but instead I started worrying about when the next could happen.
I went to see a doctor when the attacks started to happen more and more frequently. I also almost resigned from my job.
I won't go into many details of what I did or did not try, but the one thing that personally helped me was starting running.
I was doing a very sedentary life up until then, and the cardio exercise helped me overcoming the struggle.
I run now from January, my overall health is much better and I didn't have a single panic attack in the whole year!!
Anybody that went through a similar situation, I would like to hear their story
I've also started thinking that running is easily overlooked when seeking help with anxiety and panic.
I think anybody going through anxiety problems or panic disorders should really fit running into their daily schedule.
I have a charity idea that could combine the activity of running with donating for helping people going through mental disorders.
Since July I've started donating 1chf for every Km ran. For example, if in one month I run 80km, at the end of the month I donate 80chf to my charity of choice.
I can assure you, it feels awesome to run not only for youself but also for others.
I think it would be great to create a community that can raise money depending on how many kilometers they run. It is very motivational in my mind. People could also donate a simbolic sum, for example 0,10chf every Km ran. That would be 10chf every 100km.
Depending on how this thread goes and if some people are interested, we could start creating a small community.
Thanks for reading through everything
J