I'm a mother, grandmother, psychotherapist and trail runner. My life has changed a lot since I started trail running nearly 5 years' ago. Trail running has brought me back to not only my childhood roots of being in nature but it has helped me restore that human-nature connection where I have found healing and balance. My favourite thing is to get out onto the mountains either by myself or with some equally mad, trail running friends. It's all about the fun and freedom of running as fast as you can downhill, skipping over rocky trails and tree roots, splashing through rivers and muddy bogs...getting sweaty, mucky and sometimes even a bit bloody and feeling like a kid again, laughing and whooping with joy.

Through participating in long distance ultra-trail events I have realised that I'm capable of so much more than I ever would have thought possible and this transfers to daily life too, giving me more self-confidence, self-belief and it also makes me a better therapist. I have gone from 10km road runs to mountain marathons in Ireland and in Chamonix, France. Last year I completed the Transylvania 50k ultra in Romania, a real adventure where I faced my fear of heights having to climb up a sheer, vertical snow gully!

Doing ultra-trail marathons has taught me how to endure physical pain and exhaustion as well as how to tolerate and naturally process the gamut of emotions that can be experienced during an ultra, from moments of pure joy to feelings of fear, anger and despair. Knowing that I have the endurance and resilience to overcome difficult situations has helped me cope with the stresses and anxiety that we can all feel in modern life. I can put things into perspective and respond more calmly to problems as they arise and I can also challenge myself to do new things I might never have tried before. Running in the mountains seems to restore a balance between mind and body as well as between human and nature.

Trail running has brought me back to not only my childhood roots of being in nature but it has helped me restore that human-nature connection where I have found healing and balance. ​