"If I can save one life, it's worth it."
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Inspired by his own experiences with mental health, Alan Thorpe has set off on a monumental journey, walking more than 600km from Ballarat to Adelaide to raise money and awareness for men's mental health.
Setting off on Saturday, Mr Thorpe walked through Ararat, Stawell and Dadswell Bridge; he is scheduled to pull into Horsham at 1pm on Thursday, March 24.
Covering about 40km per day, he has worn through two pairs of shoes in six days.
"The pain in my feet is nothing compared to the pain of losing a brother, a father or a friend," he said.
"I just keep that in my mind and I'll keep going."
Mr Thorpe has personally seen the toll of mental health, losing six family members to suicide and suffering from anxiety, depression and bipolar himself.
After a tough time where he watched his former house burn down and tore his larynx while screaming for his family, which were saved by his 11-year-old daughter, requiring speech therapy, suffered from seizures and found out his brother was diagnosed with cancer, Mr Thorpe found himself in a dark place.
Still, he found walking helped him both physically and mentally.
Weighing in at 146kg during the pandemic, Mr Thorpe said he had lost about 30kg during training for the walk, which included walking a total of 1100km, along with personal training and gym sessions.
To keep himself focused and motivated, he listens to Australian rap.
"TKO is one of my favourite artists; we live-streamed last night," he said.
"I'm going to meet him in Adelaide. Although I haven't been able to listen to much music, (because) my phone's been blowing up all day.
"People were reaching out, people I haven't heard from for ages.
"I've got people telling me that what I'm doing is inspiring them, teenagers telling me they were suicidal but seeing what I'm doing, they think they'll give it a crack."
When his walk started on Saturday morning, Mr Thorpe had raised $8000 for Beyond Blue and was rapidly approaching his $10,000 goal.
Mr Thorpe said he hoped his walk would help teach men that it was okay to speak up if they were struggling.
"I'm walking to Adelaide for men's mental health because it touches home a lot with me, with the suicides and stuff in my family and myself," he said.
"I'm raising awareness for other men to speak up and not sit away thinking that they're on their own and there's no one out there for them.
"Trying to break the stigma, just any way I can help, to be honest."
Mr Thorpe estimates it will take him about 14 or 15 days to get to the South Australian capital with a routine of walking 50km for two days and 30km every third day.
Mr Thorpe has the help of a support vehicle, a Winnebago RV supplied by Evoke Building Group, which is stocked with supplies, two support staff, and can be slept in if his day ends between towns.
Despite the daunting 630km trek ahead of him, Mr Thorpe said he was not nervous.
"When I put my mind to something I don't muck around," he said.
"I'm very determined to make it happen. A lot of people have been behind me and just for the reasons that I'm doing it.
"It's been a bit overwhelming. It makes me feel like there are still good people out there.
"I was losing a bit of hope but everyone just jumped on board and got behind me as much as they could."
Mr Thorpe said he wanted to continue working to promote men's mental health issues and become an advocate for change.
To follow Mr Thorpe's journey or donate, visit his Facebook page (Alan's walk for men's mental health) or @charitywalkballarattoadelaide on Instagram.
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