Blog

By: Avery Greenblatt

Scott Oughton-Johnson created a walking group to help Englishmen combat mental health struggles.

After struggling with mental health for years and going through a lot of problems in his life, Scott decided to start walking with the hope that it would help his mental health challenges. Scott decided to see if anyone wanted to walk with him, and posted a video on Facebook inviting people to join. 

At first he was disappointed when only one man showed up. He said  “I thought hundreds might turn up. But we were together for eight hours that night. We had so much to chat about.” The walking group quickly began to grow until one day the The Proper Blokes Club was created. 

The Proper Blokes Club aims to end the stigma surrounding men’s mental health. Studies show that exercise helps with mental health struggles. Walking clearly has had a positive impact with the members of this group.

People of all ages from 19 to 79 show up constantly, and they have anywhere from 2 to 35 people walking each time. Members of the club share each other’s struggles and give one another support. 

Scott said “We’ve had incidents where people say, ‘I’m not in a great place; is anyone about?’ And people have gone and met them, or called them up.” “People have gone to each other’s weddings and birthdays… Sometimes I take a step back, and think, this group of lads never knew each other a few months ago, and they’ve found lifelong friends out of it. It’s amazing.” 

Scott is an inspiration to people around the world, and he demonstrated how you can use your struggles to help not only yourself, but create a solution for others around you.