Three years ago, Jen was struggling to leave the house as she battled crippling anxiety. She describes not even feeling safe inside the house with noises on the street frequently triggering panic attacks. Jen and her partner Matt discovered Ed in lockdown whilst he was climbing Everest on his parents’ stairs. “Matt was newly injured and so seeing another young person with a disability giving it a go was a big boost for us.”
Jen’s first experience with M2M was Walk the Coast in June 2021. “I was quite nervous to start with to be honest” but it “really pushed me out my comfort zone. Everyone was incredibly kind, and I felt comfortable almost immediately. I think it helped that everyone was on the hunt for Cornish pasties for breakfast, I knew they were my kind of people straight away!” Just a couple of weeks on from this year’s Walk the Coast, Jen climbed Mount Toubkal, the highest point of North Africa. It was nothing short of incredible to watch years of limiting beliefs Jen had held, break away and watch her achieve something she never thought would become her reality. “There were many happy tears!”.
“M2M have supported me in my scuba diving by helping me become a professional diver, so I’m really excited to teach!” She explains her excitement at the prospect of giving back to future beneficiaries as the charity evolves and we know through her openness with her own mental health Jen will inspire others to find out what’s possible when you step into the unknown. One thing is obvious at M2M, we open the doors and the beneficiaries step through it, with their own courage, grit and determination.
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