Registrations for the Medicine Ball Challenge are now open!
The Medicine Ball Challenge was created by Staff Sergeant Andy Unwin who, after losing too many friends and colleagues to suicide, felt compelled to try to make a difference.
The challenge is about normalising conversations – encouraging people to speak freely about mental health while being handcuffed to a 3kg medicine ball for seven days. It encourages people to talk openly and come forward for help if they need it. It’s about creating powerful conversations.
Taking part in this challenge could be transformative. Sponsorship raised from those taking part will help ABF The Soldiers’ Charity and Combat Stress continue to support those in difficulty.
How it works:
The challenge involves cuffing a 3kg medicine ball to the participant’s wrist for seven days. While 3kg doesn’t seem particularly heavy, after a while it will start to drain on energy supplies as it becomes a significant burden to carry out day-to-day tasks. The ball becomes a physical, visual and tangible representation of the invisible burden of mental illness that so many of us can experience.
Once the seven days are up, the participant will pass the medicine ball to the next participant and so the chain continues.