Having walked 9 million steps across three states, Newcastle's Bailey Seamer let the tears flow.
She was elated to have completed a 5500-kilometre walk along the entire eastern coast of Australia.
The 24-year-old began her "Wandering Minds Walk" in May last year at the most southern point of Australia - Wilsons Promontory in Victoria.
She ended the epic adventure last week at the most northern tip of the country - Cape York Peninsula in Queensland.
"I went out at sunrise. There were a lot of tears," she said.
Speaking on a road trip home to Newcastle, she said "managing bipolar disorder was the inspiration for the walk".
"I got into walking as an important part of my recovery and healing."
She walked the east coast to "show myself there was a life worth living" and that people with bipolar disorder were "capable of achieving great things".
Along the way, she raised about $89,000 for the Black Dog Institute and did public speaking on mental health.
For her, living with bipolar disorder meant "fluctuating between periods of elevated mood and instability and crushing depression".
"The depressive side has always been the most disruptive part. I could be really functional for six to seven months, then catatonically unwell for a week to three months with no warning."
She takes medication daily and does "a lot of things to maintain wellness", like focusing on diet, exercise and sleep.
During her walk, she had to take breaks to twice receive treatment in mental health hospitals with transcranial magnetic stimulation [TMS].
She says it can be "a very frustrating experience for a lot of people" to get the mental health help they need.
"I've been pretty lucky that my family was always relatively proactive," she said.
"I've been accessing resources like psychiatrists and psychologists since I was about 14 or 15.
"Over that decade, I acquired a network of resources and learnt what does and doesn't work."
In her public speaking, she gives the message that "mental health isn't your fault, but it is your responsibility".
"It's important to be as proactive as you can with your mental health, instead of waiting for things to get bad."
She walked solo through Victoria and NSW, mostly along beaches and through national parks.
"I had a 20-kilo pack named Monster. I literally went north every day as far as I could."
At times, she was miles away from anyone while "crossing creeks and rivers by swimming".
"There were a lot of situations where I felt unsafe and unsure," she said.
"I saw some of the most gorgeous stretches of coastline, but a lot of it was pretty gnarly."
In Queensland, she recalled "isolating stretches between petrol stations, with no towns, police or anything".
She had a terrifying experience when a maniac tried to hit her with a car.
"But I never had a day on the walk that was as difficult as managing a mental health condition."
