Clint Mawer’s amazing physical and mental journey

Clint Mawer, 38, a welder, was living in Penrith in November 2024 when he decided to jump out of his fifth-floor window.

He still has broken ribs, an injured shoulder, and can’t lie on his right side.

A welder by trade, life was plodding along really well for Clint until a car accident began to unravel it all.

“I was travelling along a country road and hit a kangaroo,” he said. “I was then laid up at home with a broken leg, with too much time to think about things, so my mental health began to suffer.”

After a time, he had a relationship breakdown, was eventually evicted from his home, and in his own worlds, “Everything I ever wanted just slipped through my fingers.”

Clint felt as though he needed to do a reset on life, to stop and truly listen to his intuition. Before this life changing part of his life, he had been fearful to share his struggles with others, as ‘men don’t cry,’ and to open up to people feels so much harder as men are taught to dismiss and discard their own feelings.

“I felt as though I needed to get up and walk it off, so I did,” he said. “Something had to give and I needed to take advantage of my life, to really do something.

“A line needed to be drawn, so I deal with these issues head on, to develop strategies for dealing with them so they do not have such a negative impact on my relationships and my life into the future. My go to strategy of isolating myself and pushing loved ones away needed to change.

“I am learning so much about myself along this physical journey, and if it inspires others, that’s really wonderful.”

If you want to support Clint in his journey, you can use your banking to send a donation to his PayId 0413975470.

This trip was not planned, with many people intending to do these amazing charity and awareness walks planning months and sometimes years in advance.

Clint, with the help of good friends, is still setting up his website and alternate donation option through the Black Dog Institute, which can sometimes be a little hard while he is on the road.

Clint hauls his backpack along with him every day, which can weigh between 20 and 30 kilograms, depending how many supplies he has with him.

He has a tarp and an inflatable mattress, the Life 360 app so his loved ones can track him, and the essentials, including toiletries.

He picks up supplies from town to town, and will gratefully accept a can of coke or bottle of water, as many people who come across him on the road have offered.

Clint, like many of us, suffers from social anxiety but makes it a point to interact with as many people as he can on his journey, to share his tale and listen to the tales of others.

The empathy radiating from Clint is palpable.

“People have harrowing tales of struggles and hardships, it is really touching,” Clint said.

“The further you get rurally, the more stories you hear, the more you understand suicide and mental health struggles are so prevalent; many farmers and men in particular are so at risk.

“It’s what keeps me going. To inspire others, to help where I can and to show people, we are all in this together.

Yesterday, Clint travelled 45 kilometres in 10 hours.

Concentrating on each individual victory at a time, Clint’s focus is Balranald, the next town on his trip. It will take Clint about four days to get to Balranald. 

Longer term, Clint is really keen to get home to Perth and hug his beloved mother, who has been a wealth of support. He also wants to visit his dear friend’s grave. His friend sadly committed suicide a couple of years ago, and living in Penrith, Clint had not had the chance to see his grave.

“My driving forces are my mum, who I call religiously, and my 13-year-old son, Kyden,” Clint said.

People like Clint who do things people would not normally do, give us a peek behind the curtain. They wake us up to what really matters.

So often we get caught up in the day to day, we don’t often stop to think about what we want from life, or to check in with ourselves or others and ask, “Are we really ok?” So often it gets to the point where someone will end up trying to self-harm.

Thanks for getting the message out there, Clint.