Dorset veteran taking on challenges to highlight mental health issues
Abbie Jones will be wearing a weighted vest to symbolise the cause
A military veteran from Dorset has begun a personal challenge, while wearing a weighted vest, to symbolise mental health issues – all while raising funds for Help for Heroes.
Abbie Jones, 27, who lives in Christchurch, was in the Military Police between 2013 and 2020, and started her own gardening business upon leaving the service after having been inspired while taking part in one of the Armed Forces charity’s recovery programmes.
Her move to Dorset, from Wales, in 2021, allowed her to take up the post at the renowned Crichel House, which is continuing to prove beneficial for her own wellbeing.
She explained:
“During my time in the military I had an ankle injury that affected my career for about two years. It really affected my mental health and wellbeing, and I was having a bit of a tough time getting the right support.
“A lot of organisations said they didn't have the capacity to help me, which, obviously, when you're suffering with your mental health anyway, is not the best thing to hear.
“My welfare officer suggested gaining support from Help for Heroes and mentioned its Rolling Recovery Programme (RRP), which was, essentially, a mindfulness week where you could do lots of different activities – including yoga, swimming, gardening, art, and creative writing – with other serving soldiers and veterans, all in a completely non-judgmental environment.
“The RRP got me interested in gardening, and, having enjoyed the great outdoors when I was travelling following my move to Civvy Street, it seemed a natural progression.
"There was a lot of support at Help for Heroes: you could talk to external people rather than just your unit in the Army. It was somewhere I could deal with my problems outside of work.
“One of the main things I liked about its support was, when my mental health improved and I was medically upgraded from my injury, the support continued, and they invited me to other programmes which I attended, and that’s why I want to help by raising funds with this challenge.”
Her two-fold challenge, which began on 20th August, includes two weeks where she will continue her life as normal – going to work, attending her weekly running club, seeing friends, family, and going for walks – but with one significant difference: the entire two weeks will be spent wearing a weighted vest.
And, on the 15th day, after almost 200 hours wearing the vest, she will don it again to participate in the South Coast Challenge, running from Eastbourne, along the coastline, over the Seven Sisters, to Cuckmere Haven, over the South Downs and onto the promenade at Brighton.
She added:
“Mental health issues can be invisible. The weighted vest represents the invisible weight carried on the shoulders of each person who is suffering; somehow, they find the strength, the courage, to carry on with their normal routines. Every day they get up, they go to work, they carry on as normal, even when they feel like they have the weight of the world on their shoulders.”
The second part of her challenge will see her cover a total distance of 57 kilometres, including 1,250m of climb.
“It’s personal too,” she said. “This part of the challenge represents the road to recovery. There are a lot of hills and inclines on the challenge, and I wanted that to represent the undulating road to recovery, because, for me, it certainly wasn't an easy one or a straight road.
“I know a lot of people have experienced the same, where it's been a very up-and-down battle; some days you have good days and then you have bad days. I thought the South Coast Challenge would be a good representation of that.”
Help for Heroes champions the Armed Forces community and helps them live well after service. The charity helps them, and their families, to recover and get on with their lives. It has already supported more than 26,500 people and won’t stop until every veteran gets the support they deserve.