Emily Rouse is running the London Marathon for P3 this year, and told us her story…

On 3rd October 2021, I will be running the London Marathon for P3. In November 2019 I sadly lost a friend to suicide. He had suffered with his mental health and had found his addiction issues difficult to manage. At his funeral it was said that he was too kind for this world - nothing truer could be said.

Shortly afterwards, I lost my biological dad to addiction issues. Due to the challenges he was facing, he was homeless at the time and being supported by P3. I will be running in memory of them both.

In December 2019 I had the pleasure of meeting the P3 Link Worker, Sam, who was involved in my father’s care in Cheltenham. Sam was able to offer me comfort by sharing stories about him. She went beyond her day-to-day role to ensure he had the opportunities to live a full and meaningful life; from ensuring he had his glasses prescriptions to helping him to purchase a camera for photography projects he'd wanted to carry out. She also made sure his funeral was personal and meaningful to him.

Sam was just talking about the everyday things she does, but from this I could tell P3 do a whole load of stuff to make somebody’s life happier and easier to live. It didn’t feel like a clinical description of support, it felt like ‘what does this person need now, how can we make that work, what impact will that have on their quality of life’. It was like a breath of fresh air to hear all of that.

I want to do this to make sure P3 can keep doing what they’re doing and make sure they can support as many people as possible. So, this is my way of giving back, as a thank you, but it’s also a therapeutic process. Running has been therapeutic for me, particularly over the last few years; it’s a way that you can clear your head, process information and make something a little bit more positive out of something that’s been difficult to overcome. 

I hope that we can raise money to help others out there who are experiencing difficulties and are in need of this support.

To support Emily, go to her JustGiving page:
https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/emily-douse3