Back in 2019 BLEND Bude youth collective took on a challenge of raising funds for PAPYRUS prevention of youth suicide. They decided to incorporate a gruelling walk along the coastal path with raising awareness of the stigmas surrounding mental wellbeing.
And so the idea of the Worry Walks began.
Creating an open discussion group that talk out their worries and help each other face them and voice them.
Writing them out on to slates and placing them in to the worry box.
Setting a challenging route for the group to carry that box.
Jamie Wright. Project manager
This is a fantastic tool for approaching the delicate subject of mental wellbeing, showing that being open to those around you and listening to their concerns helps to build empathy and understanding. Writing out your worries and helping others do the same builds resilience and courage. Getting out into nature and sharing the burden of the worry box together sets grounding for determination and support awareness.
Then add the metaphors for this idea, sharing the heavy load, laying your worries to rest and in turn making the load lighter. Overcoming unplanned obstacles and working out the best way to do this, together. Facing the journey and encouraging each other to move forward, battling the elements.
All this means that those that do take part grow and become wholly aware of their own part and remember their journey for years to come.
Thanks to the Cornwall Community Foundation and UK Youth charities seeing the potential of this idea, we are now in a position to offer our support and a worry kit out to others.
All this is fully funded and free of charge, we only ask that you use this idea to raise funding for a mental health charity of your choice and that you give a small portion of this back to the worry walk initiative so we can carry on sending out worry kits to others.
We believe that in this time of uncertainty and social disruption, the act of coming together to help each other through a worry walk will be a vital stepping stone to support.
We hope that, with your help we can spread this concept around the county, the region and the country!
Other words…..
Helping young minds/helping tired minds/helping others….
(website that acts as a thorough introduction to the concept and gives access to our past walks via video and news reports)