A Dunmurry man has opened up on how a "Big Dander" held the key to saving his life and inspired him to keep battling his depression.
He said he had lived with depression for about 15 to 20 years but that last year it had all reached a breaking point.Des said the walk, organised by Brian Elwood, had offered him a route into feeling better."Last year, it was just the lowest I've ever been. "My feet were in absolute bits and I was beating myself up because I didn't think I could complete the whole thing," he added."But I thought I have to go back and complete this for my own sanity because if I don't, I'm not making it through the rest of the year.
"So five years ago, I started telling people about this idea and then people said they would come with me so it grew legs if you'll forgive the expression and we had about 15 or 20 people," he said. "This year we've decided to mix it up a bit, going a bit international if you like - we're starting off at the Circle K garage on the R173 in Dundalk and by the time we finish three days later, we'll be at the Slieve Donard carpark in Newcastle," he said.
Brave of Dessie to speak out about his deepest personal struggles and in continuing to fight his demons 👊