I am excited to announce that I will be running the 2023 Bank of America Chicago Marathon! I am even more excited to partner with No Stigmas to run and raise funds for their organization!
The Chicago Marathon has a Finish Line
And I WILL cross it in 2023.
As many ultramarathons as I've run, I've never run an officially timed marathon, let alone one of the biggest road marathons in the world. Chicago has a special place in my heart. I lived there from 2010-2012. I worked all over the city and experienced a lot of it and loved almost all of it (minus the traffic and the dumb winters). I've sailed many times on Lake Michigan, eaten at some of the best restaurants, and explored the multi-cultural melting pots in every nook and cranny of nearly every neighborhood and suburb in the Chicagoland area. To say that I am excited to go back and experience the electric vibe of the city infused with over 40,000 other runners is an extreme understatement. But I am. I am excited. And I am privileged to be running for the good of mental health.
A Cause that has No Finish Line
I am running and raising funds for No Stigmas mental health organization. It is my hope that I will raise more than the minimum requirement of $1,850 by race day. While I am new to the No Stigmas Team, I am not new to the world of mental health.
Did you know that I battle depression? Anxiety? Suicidal thoughts and tendencies?
Did you know that I am an alcoholic? An addict?
Did you know that I've been in therapy since 2016?
Did you know that I proactively combat my struggles with mental health on the daily?
Did you know that I've been in recovery from my vices since 2018?
Did you know that I was 33 years old before I first said "I love you" to myself? And meant it?
Over the course of the year, it is my intention to open up more than ever before on a public forum about my struggles and successes in my world of mental health. It will be honest and unfiltered and raw. It might make us cry from the hurt AND from the happiness. And that is okay.
Because it's okay to not be okay.
If you would like to learn more about No Stigmas, this is their website:
If you would like to make a donation on my personal fundraising page, please click below:
Thank you for reading.
Thank you for donating.
Thank you for sharing.
Thank you for being here.
Patrick Messenger
@louisvilleveganrunner
