I lose every day. Each time I step onto the mat at the start of a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu training session, I know that I will soon be ‘tapping out’. Giving the signal that I have been defeated, and effectively admitting to myself, to my opponent, and to everyone watching, that I was bested. ‘You win or you learn’ is an aphorism that we learn to live by, and in most sessions, I lose more than I win. Yet I return, day after day, and plan to continue to do so for the rest of my life. By the end of this chapter I hope to convince you of the reasons why…

A traumatic past left me with anxiety and depression issues as well as a significant amount of pent up rage. With no guidance of how to deal with it, I turned to punching a bag for relief. Luckily for me it started to work, and I fell in love with martial arts.

Eventually I came across BJJ and I was hooked - the social atmosphere, constant learning, physicality and the practicality in a self defence situation all combined to be one of the best treatments for my mental health issues...