As a kind, chatty, and good-humoured man with a zest for life and a
passion for helping people, Chris Young adored his job as a social
worker. But things fell apart when, in 2008, he was diagnosed with
borderline personality disorder.
His illness brought about the end of his calling and he found himself in
need of a new project and purpose. And so it came to be that in 2011,
Chris began a campaign called Walk A Mile In My Shoes. He walks around
the edge of the UK - the edge of society being where many people with
mental health problems feel they are - without spending any money and
relying on the kindness of strangers.
In 2015, he joined forces with See Me Scotland to distil the success of
the coastal walk into a series of events, inviting other people to join
him and discuss mental health. He encouraged them to literally walk a
mile in each other's shoes. Walk a Mile: Tales of a Wandering Loon is
the story of how a normal, nurturing childhood turned into one of
neglect and abuse and how this, combined with a little faulty brain
wiring, led to a severe and enduring mental illness.