A young woman successfully completed the London Marathon to raise money for a Barrow charity after they helped her to overcome her eating disorder

Bethanne Childs has opened up about the challenging and ‘scary’ times she endured as part of The Mail’s Time to Talk campaign to help tackle the stigma surrounding mental health.

The 25-year-old successfully completed the London Marathon alongside her brother Matt Barnett-Jones raising an impressive £1768.64 for SAFA.

The organisation is committed to making a positive difference to the lives of people who self-harm or have an eating disorder.

The charity, based on Duke Street, Barrow, as well as in Carlisle and Kendal, was key in supporting her throughout her difficulties.

“I have had an eating disorder in the past and not being able to admit what was going on was a big part of it and the way my brain was trying to trick me made it much more complex”, she said.

“The feelings I had were around not wanting anyone to know, not wanting to label it, not feeling myself and hiding how I felt.

“It wasn’t nice and at times pretty scary.

“It was so draining.”

Her mum got in contact with SAFA’s helpline who helped her to understand what her daughter was going through.

Bethanne said: “They gave her excellent advice.

“I would encourage anyone supporting someone to ring for advice.

“SAFA also enabled me to talk freely about what was really the issue and work through it in a safe way.”

SAFA work with all different types of eating disorders to help people understand the underlying issues behind your eating problem and develop healthier ways of coping.