I found that talking to someone positive made such a difference, and it helped me look at things more positively. It helped me realise that I could make new friends and find people who were more similar to me, instead of friends who didn’t have good intentions. The people at Young Devon helped me to get myself out and meet new people, and now I’ve got a new friendship group, and friends that I can turn to. I’ve realised that examining things shows that they aren’t as bad as they look, you just have to take some time to think instead of dwelling on things for weeks at a time.
I recently went through a very low period in my life, where I realised that my social circle wasn’t treating me well. I was in a bad mental place, but I realised that the people I was friends with were also in a bad place and they weren’t very healthy, for me or themselves. This was a really low time for me and I was in a very bad place. It wasn’t just this situation with my friends that was negative, I wasn’t really on track with any of my college work and I was slacking in lots of different parts of my life. After this event my college referred me to Young Devon and I started talking about all of my worries and troubles, and everything that I’d been through.
I feel like I’ve come through this now, and I’m in a much happier place, but I still have days where I don’t feel completely one hundred percent. My confidence is so much better than it was last year though, and I feel like I can look at things that happen a bit more easily without dwelling on them for a long time. When I am having a bad mental health day I usually talk to my mum or my best friend. My mum usually picks up on things and knows when I’m having a bad day. She usually reassures me, and I feel better for knowing that someone is there for me to talk to. Everyone feels alone sometimes and having someone there to talk to is really important. I think being active is really important and thinking about your lifestyle can make a big difference to your mental health. I think that we should make the most of things and being active is a really big part of this. I always feel best when I get out of bed early and do something productive with my day.
What’s your advice for other young people?
Get help. I know that there’s stigma around young people’s mental health, lots of people think that getting help will be frowned upon but it’s the best thing you can do for yourself. There’s no need to be embarrassed, it’s not something that should be looked down on. I think it’s important to realise that not every day is a bad day, but they can’t all be good ones either. Bad chapters in your life will happen, but they just end up reinforcing the good chapters in your life and these are the ones you should focus on and remember.
