On October 22nd 2011, I did a sponsored skydive at Redlands Airfield close to London. Deciding which charity to do it for was quite a simple choice as ‘Mind’ – the mental health charity – is one very close to me. Mental health is something I have been aware of from a very young age; my granddad had Alzheimer’s (dementia), a friend was hospitalized with Bi-polar disorder (manic depression), and another friend with severe depression went missing nearly two months ago, and hasn’t been seen since. I think all these experiences have helped to shape my career path of wanting to become a clinical psychologist.
‘Mind’ helps people take control of their mental health, and every year they work with around 250, 000 people. One in four people are likely to experience a mental health problem, so ‘Mind’ aim to raise awareness and promote good metal health for the benefit of all members of society.
They run many campaigns, and through these they push for those who influence change to work with ‘Mind’ to bring about improved services, better legislation, protection of legal rights, and a more accepting attitude among employers. They also offer two confidential mental health information services, so that people can easily get help if they are worried about themselves or someone else. I don’t know how I came up with the idea of doing a skydive, it just popped into my head and I began to research it. When I first decided on doing one, I don’t think I realised what I was letting myself in for! I didn’t really think about it too much, it was only when I watched a video online of someone else doing one that I realised how crazy the idea was. But I thought that it had to be something very scary in order to be worthy of sponsorship! As the weeks went by, and the day drew nearer I became more and more nervous – there was no going back though as I couldn’t let everyone down!
When the day came, I arrived at the airfield with my family, had some training, and then before I knew it I was getting dressed into the jumpsuit and walking towards the TINY plane. To be honest once I was up in the air, things didn’t seem too bad and I was more excited than nervous. The scariest bit was probably seeing the other girl jump out before me – she just disappeared so quickly (unsurprisingly!). Then it was my turn, and I edged towards the door, attached to my instructor. We were sat on the very edge, and then we moved forward more until I was actually hanging off the plane. After a count of three my instructor pushed us from the plane and we free fell. It was the most amazing feeling ever! It all happened so quickly, and after thirty seconds the parachute went up and we slowed down dramatically. I then had 5 minutes to take in the beautiful views as we slowly drifted to the ground. 
It was the most amazing experience and I would really recommend it for anyone who is able to do it! I felt so proud of myself and what I had achieved, and most importantly I raised over £500 for ‘Mind’!Visit: www.mind.org.uk
Here is the video... enjoy!
Here is the video... enjoy!
