Woman with schizophrenia decided she would just Run With It
Peggy Hickman admits she thought her psychiatrist was “off his rocker” when he suggested she try running to help manage her schizophrenia symptoms.
The Ottawa grandmother was 58 at the time, had spent decades dealing with the mental illness and had recently undergone heart valve surgery. And she had never run in her life.
Still, she agreed, skeptically, to give it a try.
And from almost the first step, she knew she had found something that could change her life.
Hickman, now 61, has since run 5k and 10k races, two half-marathons and a 30k race.
This spring, she will tackle her first full marathon during Ottawa Race Weekend.
For Hickman, a run is more than just a run. It is a way to gain control over the symptoms of her illness.
Like many with schizophrenia, Hickman hears a voice in her head. During rough times, it can interfere with her ability to lead a normal life.
But running, she says, helps to calm that voice. “It allows me to get away from it. I use it as a tool.
“We learn to try to figure out ways to manage our voices. I have learned that I can run faster than him. So unless he can catch up, he has to wait until my run is over.”
Hickman has used running as a way to help her see “there is more to me than my illness.”
She has also raised money for treatment of and awareness about schizophrenia, among the most stigmatized mental illnesses.
And she has helped encourage others with schizophrenia to take up running, forming a group called Run With It at the Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre.
Hickman joined Her Excellency Sharon Johnston, wife of the Governor General, and others to receive six inspiration awards Friday night during the Royal’s annual awards gala.
Hickman calls the award an honour, “it means a lot,” but says she thinks it should go to “everybody in the (Royal’s schizophrenia) program who is dealing with this illness.”
At a time when ending stigma around mental illness is widely talked about, schizophrenia remains stigmatized. Hickman has become a face of the illness in an effort to help others better understand it and bust myths about it.
Running, she says, was part of an awakening she had about schizophrenia, after undergoing heart surgery. She had many people rallying around to help and support her during her surgery, which made Hickman think the psychiatric illness she has is also an illness “but people are not so eager to rally around you.”
Once she accepted schizophrenia as an illness, she says, she was able to be more honest with herself and her doctor which helped her work to get better.
Running was part of that. And because she gets so many benefits from it, she says, she wanted to try to encourage others to do the
same and use running for a cause. The Royal also recognized Sharon Johnston, who donated the royalties from her first novel Matrons and Madams to the Royal Ottawa Foundation. Others who received the awards included:
Dan Greenberg and Barb Crook. Crook has spoken publicly about her own struggle with depression and the two have been long-standing advocates and fundraisers for mental health.
Dr. Kelly Babchishin, a young researcher interested in stemming the impact of sexual abuse.
Jenn Coward, a patient with obsessive-compulsive disorder who speaks about mental illness.
Joy Xu, who, inspired by her family’s struggles with mental illness, started a Wellness Week at her school dedicated to spreading kindness, promoting physical wellness and starting conversations about mental health among her peers.
The Student Alliance for Mental Health at Carleton University also received an award.