Most people leave to go overseas and feel like they are heading on a big, life changing adventure all starting with a plane trip. But when I boarded the plane to Tanzania with the goal of climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro I felt like the journey I’d been on for the last four years was coming to an end. I had dreamed, planned, trained and fund raised for such a long time that it was such a shock to finally be there but the time had come for me to go climb a mountain for mental health and it was definitely a challenge.
I love hiking for so many reasons but one of the main reasons I love it so much is because it takes me to parts of the world I wouldn’t normally think of going to. I’m really glad it took me to Tanzania. Tanzania is a gorgeous, lush country, rich in landscape, culture and kind hearted people. And Kilimanjaro is a pride of the country, that brings travellers from all over the world to walk on her back and embrace her diversity. It’s a really special mountain.
We took the “Marangu Route” also known to the locals as the “Coca-Cola Route” as it is only 5 days and you sleep in huts along the way. However as it is much shorter than other routes it has a much higher failure rate due to a lack of acclimatisation and common altitude sickness. I was surprised that when we walked in through the gate to start the hike, we weren’t surrounded by the dust and desert that you associate with Africa, we started in forest. Very, very green rain forest. In fact throughout the 5 days we went through rain forest, bush, desert, alpine desert, snow and glaciers. If you’re looking for a versatile hike go climb Kili.
Although not everyone does, I felt the altitude from day one. I wasn’t sick immediately but it suddenly felt very effortful to be doing every day tasks like going to the bathroom and keeping up a good walking pace. Half way through day two I suffered from nausea and stomach pain. But the real challenge as it is for everyone was summit night.
They call it the ‘summit night’ because you wake up at 11pm and walk from midnight to try and reach the top of the mountain or the summit at sunrise. This is where the hard part comes in, and everyone warns you about it but nothing really prepares you properly for the mental challenge of being physically exhausted, underslept and sick while climbing the hardest, highest part of Kilimanjaro. Up until this point I loved the mountain, I thought it was so amazing how there was so much variety all in one place, but then I started climbing on summit night and well past 5000m I really struggled to breathe. So of course in my head, I was telling the mountain off “Geez Mountain what did I ever do to you?!”. But this is the other thing I love about hiking, it’s a mental challenge more than anything else, and your biggest lesson on Kili is that no matter how slowly you walk, “pole, pole” as the locals say, each small step gets you closer and eventually you see progress and then if you just keep going you may even reach your target.
But this is why mountain climbing ties in so well with mental health for me. Not only does having depression feel like climbing a mountain- it really, really does but it also can be summited step by step. The summit night of climbing Kilimanjaro was the hardest physical challenge I’ve ever undertaken but it was so, so worth it. Not just because it’s pretty, not just because it feels good to accomplish something that big but because Kili is so similar to life- you just keep walking.
So no I didn’t board the plane on December 15th, 2016 to experience a life changing journey, my life changing journey began years ago when I first started putting one foot in front of the other. My life happened when I decided to keep walking through a depression that could have ended it and as a result got to experience some of life’s best surprises.
I had so many reasons for climbing Kilimanjaro. The first was to raise $10,000 for my favourite mental health charity the Black Dog Institute. The second (just as important) reason was to say good bye and thank you to the most inspiring man I’ve ever met Rory Hayward, who died from a sudden heart attack while we were together and happy. And the last reason, well the last reason was for me, because after suffering from depression, anxiety, mental illness and grief for my entire adult life I decided that it was time to keep walking and live.
In the toughest part of the mountain the thought occured to me (several times) “why do I do these things to myself?” and when I voiced my thoughts to my travel buddies later my friend Emma said: “For Rory, For Black Dog and For Yourself”. And just like that, in her simple, matter of fact statement, my 4 year journey to Kilimanjaro was complete.
Who knows, where my next adventure will be or why it will be but Kilimanjaro holds a very special place in my heart for good. There aren’t enough words to tell you really just how amazing it was but I know that the crazy ‘why not attitude’ that got me there in the first place will never leave me. I am just that person that needs to adventure, always. Because if living with Depression and grieving the loss of an incredible loved one teaches you anything at all it’s that life is too short not to adventure.
Naomi Robinson raised over $12,700 AUD for the Black Dog Institute to help mental health in Australia. Her page closes on 19/02/2017. If you’d like to donate please follow this link. https://teamblackdog.gofundraise.com.au/page/NaomiRobinson
Naomi would like to thank all those who donated to her fundraising campaign. All names were printed on a T-Shirt and worn up Mt. Kilimanjaro as a gesture of thanks.
Mental Health Mountain Climber 