A woman from Kidderminster has recalled the "surreal" experience of running in the London Marathon over the weekend.
Wendy Garrett took part in the couch to 5k in the summer last year and nine months later managed to cross the line at the major running event.
Ms Garrett completed the feat in five hours, 38 minutes and 33 seconds and managed to raise an incredible £4,150 for Samaritans.
More donations are still to be added to the total with the 41-year-old taking on the challenge for the charity to give back after it supported her through her own mental health struggles and her work helping others.
Ms Garrett said: "I really can't describe what it felt like to run in the London Marathon. The whole experience was a whirlwind and it's very surreal. The crowd were amazing. I've never experienced anything like it.
"The cheering and the singing from bands and the choirs were incredible. A special hats off goes to the Salvation Army for handing out chocolates along the route. The atmosphere was electric and to run for such an important charity meant so much to me.
"They have been there for me a couple of times at difficult points in my life when I needed to give them a call. I have also turned to them to get advice on how to support people in my life who might be having suicidal thoughts and to make sure I'm saying the right things. They really do listen and help give important advice that could help save someone's life."
Ms Garrett had a huge community backing for the marathon and was joined on the day by her husband, mom, stepson and daughter-in-law.
The founder of Garrett Learning had previously done half marathons in Birmingham and Shrewsbury but she was spurred on to do the marathon following a networking event.
She said: "We were at a networking event and had to find someone who had run a marathon. I told one of the women that I had run a half marathon, but she said it didn't count as it wasn't a full marathon.
"It made me determined to prove to her that I could run one and at the next event, I'd be able to say that I had run a full marathon. I didn't get the person's name but if she remembers me then I want to say thank you for being such a big driver behind me taking part."
Despite the excitement of the run, Ms Garrett said she had now ticked running a marathon off the bucket list and had no intentions of running any more in the future.
She has also thanked all her amazing supporters for their encouragement, messages and donations.
She added: "It was such a relief to cross that line but the whole experience was so exciting. I don't think I'll be running any more marathons but my next challenge might be Hadrian's Wall. I always say life is too short to do the same thing twice.
"I want to thank everyone for getting behind me not only those who have donated but also people who have offered words of encouragement and told me to follow my dreams.
"It might look as though I ran the marathon on my own but there is a huge community that has been running alongside me in the lead-up to the event and I really couldn't have done this without them."
To donate visit https://2024tcslondonmarathon.enthuse.com/pf/wendy-garrett
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