PORTLAND, Ore. — We all have our outlets for relieving stress, but a Southwest Portland woman is on a mission to get more people running their way to good mental health.
To mark World Mental Health Day next week, Shoshana Gordon is recruiting participants for the Still I Run 5-kilometer race on Oct. 10.
Gordon is a co-captain for the Greater Portland Chapter of Still I Run. She morphed from a walker to a runner while she was dealing with her divorce and needed a way to relieve stress.
“Feet on the pavement, air in my face, smelling the smells,” Gordon said. “You can get a runner’s high, which is basically an exercise high.”
Gordon is hoping all level of walkers and runners will feel welcome joining the race to end the stigma associated with mental health struggles. She also invited participants to bring along their families and dogs.
“If I am struggling with racing thoughts with my ADHD, my anxiety is high, and I’m stressed out, I know if I go for a run, especially with my dogs, I always feel so much better,” she said.
Gordon said running is like medicine for the soul, and Oregonians may be ready for a big spoonful.
According to a study published by Forbes Advisor, Oregon ranks 11th in the nation for worst mental health, based in part on the percentage of people who don’t mental health care or don’t have access to mental health care.
The study claims that “nearly one in five U.S. adults experience a mental health condition each year, yet many are unhappy with the state of mental health treatment in the U.S.”
Gordon and other participants in I Still Run believe running can help people center themselves and help blow off steam.
“Some of those are my best runs, to be honest,” said Gordon’s running partner, Dardee Layne, “when I’m upset about something or just have something on my mind.”
Gordon said people should not worry if they’ve never run or don’t feel like a runner: “Our tagline for Still I Run is 'Forward is a pace,' meaning, whenever you’re moving, and you’re moving forward; that is your pace,”
The Greater Portland Chapter’s Still I Run 5K is set for World Mental Health Day, Oct. 10, at 5:30 pm. Runners will gather on Fanno Creek Trail on Southwest Oleson Road.