Ian Lawton : Running for Hank

Trigger warning : Infant loss, grief, depression, disordered eating, weight loss.

This week I speak to father and ultra marathon runner, Ian Lawton.

He lives in Navan in County Meath, is married to Jennifer, and is the father of two sons, Ike who’s 12 and Hank who passed away 10 years ago, the day after he was born.

In this conversation he gives us a profound insight into infant loss, and the pain of a bereaved father. Not alone does he speak about loss and grief but also about rebirth and moving forward with a newfound purpose.

In a year, he went from being morbidly obese to becoming an extreme runner, which lead to him running 10 marathons in 10 days finishing on what would’ve been Hank’s 10th birthday, this February.

This September he turns 50, an age he wasn’t expected to live to see, and he’ll mark it by embracing the challenge of the 'Kerry Way Ultra', running the gruelling 200 kilometres through mountain passes, bogs, roads and trails.

This was a deeply emotional and challenging conversation for him and I commend his rawness and willingness to be real.

If you’d like to support Ian’s fundraiser, simply click on this link… https://www.gofundme.com/f/10TEN10 and his website is www.runningforhank.com

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