Why I'm Running for Mental Health America of Greater Houston
Running started as survival, not a hobby. I laced up recreationally for the first time in January 2026 because anxiety and CPTSD had made my own head a hard place to live. I didn't start running to get fast, I started because I needed somewhere for all of it to go.
It works, but only alongside real treatment. Running didn't cure anything. Paired with consistent therapy, it gave me something therapy alone couldn't: proof, in miles, that I could do hard things I once believed were impossible. Movement and professional care do different jobs, and both have helped me greatly.
In January, I'm running my first marathon. 26.2 miles, less than a year after my first mile — a distance that would have been unthinkable for the version of me who started this.
Not everyone gets the door I got. I was lucky enough to find a therapist. Many Houstonians aren't. MHA of Greater Houston connects people to quality care, equips communities with education and training, and advocates for legislative solutions — the part of my recovery I couldn't have built on my own.
This is a Houston problem, and a Houston organization. MHA of Greater Houston has served this community since 1954, working across schools, integrated health care, veterans, and community education. Every dollar stays here.
Saying it out loud is part of the point. Naming CPTSD and anxiety publicly is uncomfortable. I'm doing it anyway, because silence is what keeps people from asking for help. If one person reads this and calls a therapist, that matters more to me than my finish time.
