Local swimmer’s Channel length swim to raise £1000

Last Saturday 7:30am, Roman Zaki  started a swim he had never attempted previously. To swim 21 miles (1950 lengths) of his local Devon Hills pool. He did this to raise funds for the OCD UK charity. At the time of writing the fundraiser is only 113 pounds short of the target £1000.

I felt like stopping

After his extremely strenuous day, Roman told the Pulse “The swim was grueling, both physically and mentally. I started off well, completing 2 miles an hour with 5 minute breaks in between, eating sweets/cakes and plenty of water.” He felt he was doing well but as the 10 mile was reached, “things started to be clear to me that this won’t be as easy as I thought it would be. My shoulders started to burn, my legs felt like jelly. I had amazing support by my family, friends, and colleagues throughout the swim which really got me going.”

However at mile 16: “I felt like stopping. Every part of my body screamed at me and said STOP!…But with encouragement from the lifeguards, I kept going and put my music in!”

At the 5:30 closing time of the pool the unfinished few miles were not going to stop his challenge. With his parents, they raced over to Aztec Swimming pool to complete the final 21 miles. “It was done! After feeling like my body had gone through hell, I completed it. The feeling sunk in, I swam the distance of the channel!”

Roman says the cause is very close to his heart: Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder is a serious anxiety-related condition where a person experiences frequent intrusive and unwelcome obsessional thoughts, commonly referred to as ‘obsessions’. These manifest in repetitive behaviours or rituals to prevent a perceived harm or worry that preceding obsessions have focused their attention on. Such behaviours include avoidance of people, places or objects and a need for re-assurance. These rituals can involve internal mental counting, checking of body parts, or blinking for example. A more fullsome explanation is available here on the OCD UK website.

“I was so proud at the end and so grateful to see so many generous people donating to this special cause.”

If you would like to support the cause you can find Roman’s fundraiser details here