Amoy Blake’s journey through pain to purpose

FORMER Edwin Allen High School athlete Amoy Blake, who represented the Frankfield-based institution between 2003 and 2010, where she specialised in the 400 metres, has bravely shared her life story -- a powerful journey from promising track athlete to overcoming deep personal struggles -- in a book she has written titled Purpose: Birth Through Pain.

Now 35, Blake's story is one of resilience, faith, and survival. After leaving Jamaica, she was awarded a track and field scholarship to South Plains Junior College in Texas, before moving on to Texas Tech University, where she later graduated with a Bachelor's degree in Human Development and Family Studies.

Despite her academic and athletic success, Blake admitted that life after college was extremely difficult.

"Things have been very difficult for me since being in college. I dropped out of university for a year after getting pregnant, but I returned and eventually gained my degree," Blake explained.

TRIED COMMITTING SUICIDE

However, the challenges did not end there. A series of severe depressions followed.

"I went through several bouts of depression, and on a number of occasions I tried to commit suicide. After leaving college, I could not get a job despite being successful in most interviews. Being out of status in the United States after graduating was a major hindrance," Blake stated.

She recalled enduring some of the darkest moments of her life.

"For months, I had nowhere to live and nothing to eat. For nearly six months it was so bad that I couldn't even brush my teeth. On two occasions, I tried to hang myself with a rope, but each time it felt like someone was pulling the rope from me. I also took depression pills, but by the grace of God, I survived," she shared.

MENTAL INSTITUTION

Blake revealed that her physical health deteriorated rapidly.

"I was living by myself and getting sick. I was eventually placed in a mental institution, became extremely thin, weighing about 60 pounds, and completely lost hope.

"Doctors in the United States had given up on me because they could not find the cause of my illness," she said.

She returned to Jamaica during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021, hoping for relief. But the struggle continued.

"When I returned to Jamaica in 2021, it was the same. Local doctors also gave up on me, and I was still being treated for multiple depression issues. My stepmother was the only one who stood by me and fought for me," Blake noted.

DRAMATIC TURN

Today, Blake says her life has taken a dramatic and positive turn, which she attributes entirely to her faith.

"God has healed me in a positive way, and there has been a major turnaround in my life," she said.

She is now employed at a financial institution in Kingston, where she serves as a sales manager, and continues to share her testimony to inspire others.

Her book, which has been available since September, tells a deeply personal story of struggle, faith, and victory -- proving that pain is not the end, but the beginning of purpose.