Emma Rawlins found herself in a position that a lot of parents are finding themselves in today. She had a teenage daughter that she loved dearly who was experiencing issues which not only affected her but the whole of the family. Emma's story is for all the parents that are just embarking on this journey & feel helpless to reassure them that there is support out there and you will come out the other side. Emma's Words: I would like to share our perspective as parents of a young person that had a lot of problems. One of the things that we really struggled with was the lack of support anywhere for parents or being able to talk to parents who were going through the same sort of things as us. W
I am writing this as Dumfries and Galloway’s Third Sector Young Volunteer and Volunteer of the Year which is so amazing and I still can't quite believe it. But I will take you back to a shy, quiet, unconfident 12 year old Amy who didn't know quite where she fitted in, in this world! At times didn't even want to be here and frequently missed school and didn't have that many friends. It all changed one evening when my Dad took me to youth group where one of his friends was a youth worker. From being there as young person I began volunteering at their youth groups for primary school pupils and also a project during the summer holiday. It was while I was there as young person I met Tracey who wa
We’ve passed the seven month mark. Seven months since Mum died. I’m not sure when I’ll stop counting these milestones. Maybe it’ll happen when things get easier. I’m not sure it’s getting any easier yet, in some ways it’s getting harder. The day Mum died was hard, but every day since, there’s been a nagging voice in my head saying: “The longer she’s dead, the more she misses.” I moved house again last week. A few months ago I had to move out of halls very quickly due to taking a Leave of Absence from uni, so I lodged with someone for a couple of months. But last week I moved out, into a flat which I’m sharing with a friend. I’ve also got a new job - I’m still waiting for a start date, but it
It can be far too easy to assume you haven’t got any time for a little self care, but in reality you can always find a small space for it. In the long term it will definitely be better for your wellbeing that cutting it out altogether! After handing in my dissertation last week, I realised how little time I’d been setting aside for self care. It’s so easy when you have an upcoming deadline, an important project at work or even just other life stuff going on... to just set recovery to one side. You can do a ‘good enough’ job... and hey isn’t that what they always said to do! But you can really end up settling for a middle ground that can ultimately not be very enjoyable or helpful. I’ve spent
