A remarkable man from Cockermouth, is using his own mental health challenges, to help others who may be having similar experiences.

George Bean, a 26-year-old electrician, has ADHD and has been affected by anxiety and depression for most of his life. He launched a podcast in December ‘Share Your Story’, where he interviews people on topics relating to mental health. And at the start of this year, he set himself the challenge to complete the Three Peaks in Three Months, in order to support veterans who may also be living with anxiety and depression.

George said: “I know what it’s like to struggle with your mental health and I’ve found it particularly difficult over the past few years. I wanted to do something positive about my experience to try and help other people. The podcasts give me the opportunity to explore mental health issues with some really interesting local people and hopefully provide some useful insight for others.

“At the end of last year, I knew I needed to set myself a challenge. I saw an advert from veterans’ charity Help for Heroes for their Three Peaks in Three Months challenge – and I signed up straight away.”

As part of his training regime, George has been completing a number of Wainwright routes every week since the start of the year, and has a chart on his wall so that he can mark which ones he’s completed – so far he’s done 41 routes and completed an incredible 97 miles in total. He’s also lost over a stone in weight and is feeling much fitter and healthier.

George added: “My great grandad served in World War II and my grandad was an RAF pilot and I know that veterans can be affected by mental ill health as a result of their service. My message to anyone who is struggling is, don’t be afraid to reach out for help. It isn’t weakness to talk about how you’re feeling.”

“If you’d asked me a year ago whether I could do something like this, the answer would have been no. But the training programme I’ve set myself is actually helping me – it's giving me something to focus on, and the response from my friends, family and even people I don’t know has been heart-warming.”

The Three Peaks in Three Months are part of a series of seven guided Heroes Hikes organised by the veterans’ Charity. Siobhan Warren is part of the team behind the Heroes Hikes and said: “We can’t thank George enough for putting his own problems to one side to help our former service men and women. There will be people of all ages, levels of fitness and experience taking part, and everyone supports each other. We’ll also have experts on hand to provide encouragement. Everything George is doing to try and help others living with mental health problems is inspiring.”

George kicks-off his challenge with Scafell Pike on 25 April, will take on Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon) on 9 May and will finish with Ben Nevis on 6 June.

If you would like to show support for George go to https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/George-s-3-Peaks-in-3-Months?utm_medium=FR&utm_source=CL or more information about Heroes Hikes go to https://www.helpforheroes.org.uk/give-support/fundraising-events/heroes-hikes/

Help for Heroes champions the Armed Forces community and helps people live well after service. The Charity supports veterans and their families with their physical and mental health, as well as welfare and social needs. It has already supported tens of thousands - and won’t stop until every veteran gets the support they deserve.

The Charity supports veterans and their families from any branch of the UK military, regulars and reserves, irrespective of length or place of service, and locally embedded civilians who worked under the command of UK Armed Forces.

To get support visit helpforheroes.org.uk or call 0300 303 9888