Worthing Teen Jumps Out Of Plane On Birthday For West Sussex Mind

Sunday, 12 September 2021 06:00

By Iona Stewart-Richardson @IslandIona

A Worthing teenager is planning to jump out of an aeroplane on her 16th birthday to raise money for West Sussex Mind.

Millie, who has struggled with mental health problems herself has decided to help others by plunging from 15,000 feet in the air.

Her charity skydive has already raised over four times the original target.

The funds will help West Sussex Mind continue to offer vital mental health services in the area.

Millie's jump is inspired by her own struggle with mental health. She first began to feel anxious after starting high school four years ago. She suffered from panic attacks and began to self-harm, which prompted her mum Sally to switch schools in order to give Millie a new start.

Sally said:

"She's only been at this school for a few months. But the help that they've given her has transformed her completely. She's a lot happier. That's why she wanted to do the jump, to give back and help others like her. The support Millie gets will change when she turns 16, so we realised West Sussex Mind would be her next port of call. That's the place she'll go when she feels low and down."

The charity skydive will take place on September 16 at the GoSkydive centre in Salisbury near Stonehenge.

The 15,000 ft jump involves almost a full minute of freefall, during which Millie will be travelling at around 125mph.

Sally added:

"I couldn't believe it when she told me what she was planning. I just thought wow! To me it's massive. I said to her that if she can do that, it proves that she can go on to do anything. Nothing can stop her. She's looking at colleges now and she's very scared of all that, but I said if you can jump out of that plane… Well, I think in those 60 seconds of freefall her head will be clear. After what she's been through, it's amazing for her to want to do this."

To donate to Millie's fundraiser visit her GoFundMe page: https://gofund.me/86af354b

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