Walk to raise mental health awareness

People are being invited to take part in Walk 4 Wellbeing is an event planned for the last day of this year’s Mental Health Awareness Week (3-10 October).

The walk which is being held between 10am and 2pm on Sunday 10 October has been organised by Pathways, Richmond New Zealand, Mental Health Foundation, Christchurch City Council and Canterbury District Health Board.

Anyone interested in taking part can turn up anytime between 10am and 2pm and people are encouraged to bring a picnic lunch; there will also be limited food for sale and a coffee cart onsite.

“The event is non-competitive and there is no mass start – people can ramble around the walkway and visit each station on the way around, in their own time,” says Ciarán Fox from the Mental Health Foundation.

The theme of this year’s Mental Health Awareness Week (3 - 10 October) is “Flourishing for Everybody: feel good and function well”. The organisers therefore wanted to reaffirm the connection between being physically active and mental wellbeing.

Along the 3.5 km walk there are five “stations” where participants can check off the five winning ways to wellbeing: “Connect, Be Active, Take Notice, Keep Learning and Give”. Everyone who gives this fun event a go has the chance of winning a spot prize.

Travis Wetland was chosen as the venue because it is accessible for wheelchairs and pushchairs but is also a beautiful place of regeneration and recovery of nature.   This is especially poignant for Cantabrians given recent events and allows for an opportunity to reflect on our own potential for recovery and regeneration.

“There are parallels between restoration of flora and fauna and the flourishing of the body, mind and spirit”, Ciaran Fox says.