Meet Darren: A veteran with a passion for swimming
Darren served in the Royal Signals for 10 years, leaving in 2007. However, 12 years later, Darren experienced a significant breakdown which lead him to see his GP in 2019. Darren was later diagnosed with anxiety, which helped him understand his feelings since leaving the Army. Through treatment, Darren’s life has improved significantly.
Darren found his love for swimming as a child and shortly after leaving the Army, he began to take on different swimming challenges. He started with one mile swims and worked his way up to completing his first 10km swim. This led to Darren setting his sights on swimming the English Channel. Training for over seven years, he swam countless hours and kilometres, including grueling six-hour swims in 13-degree sea temperatures. There's a lot of discussion about the mental health benefits of cold-water swimming, and for Darren, endurance swimming in cold water has been a tremendous help for his mental health.
In 2017, Darren committed to swimming the English Channel, initially without a charity in mind. However, he wanted to support a cause related to his experiences, and Combat Stress was the perfect fit. Although his first attempt to swim the English Channel in 2021 was unsuccessful, Darren still raised funds for Combat Stress and was eager to support us again.
Darren fulfilled his dream of swimming the English Channel in August 2024, finishing in 14 hours against some tough conditions, raising nearly £1000 in the process.
Feeling inspired? Why not take a look at more challenges you can get involved in?
