I've raised £50000 to cover the costs of securing a home & funds to adapt our home into a suitable environment to deliver our mental health counselling services.
Organised by The Recovery Community (non-profit organisation)
Story
According to the World Health Organisation, good mental health is defined as a state of well-being in which every person realises their potential, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and is able to make a contribution to their community.
Within our local communities across Herts and Essex, there are so many people struggling with the pressures of life. Many of these people have to cope with crime, deprivation, anti-social behaviour, substance misuse and wider addiction issues, low income, poverty, unemployment, ill-health, skills and training shortages, housing issues and a feeling of detachment from society. The list goes on. Anyone who has experienced any of these can often suffer with well-being issues, which affects your mental health. And it doesn't stop there. Generally speaking, partners, children and wider family also suffer as well - and this can have long-lasting effects on everyone.
Christopher was able to access support through counselling and has told their true story - (some material facts have been changed to protect identity):
One of my first memories at the age of seven was being moved to a "special" school because the "normal" school didn't like my behaviour. I remember the bars on the windows of my "special" school and guessed it was to stop people escaping. It felt like a prison. When my Mum moved us to London, I was sent to a “normal” school where I needed a lot of help and extra support for my studies. I knew I was different to the other kids, but I couldn’t work out why. Bad things happened on the council estate and it was rough where we now lived. My one small escape was sport. My talent was spotted and I was picked to represent my county age group and from this, had trials for a professional club. Professional players spoke of my talent and how far i could potentially go, but what they didn't know was that I self-harmed. I took drugs. I drank and I lived in two different worlds where not alot made sense. One world was with people with cravats and trilby’s and the other with shadowy people who scared me. I self-medicated for years until eventually, I had a breakdown and reached out to people in my community. I was amazed at the support I got. I was later diagnosed with borderline personality disorder and with ADHD. I was invited to play for a representative side soon after, but I had to tell them I wasn't ready and needed more time to recover. More time to work through things. More time to work with my counsellor in one-to-ones sessions and through group support....and it saved my life. I was in counselling for over a year. I attended support groups. Ive had drop in sessions with support staff and I still attend my recovery support groups. My mental health is good at the moment but I’m lucky that I found support when I did. There is more understanding in the world now about mental health. It's not weak to talk to someone. It’s not wrong to admit you need help. Help that charities like The Recovery Community can give to people like me.
Research has highlighted how good emotional and mental health is so important to your well-being. It is linked with improved learning, increased participation in community life and reduced risk-taking behaviour. However, with the NHS waiting lists growing, local authorities cutting back on statutory funding and counselling being seen as an expensive long-term treatment, these issues are going untreated.
Our vision is simple; to support those who experience any form of mental health and/or well-being issues through counselling and recovery support. To cut out the long waiting lists and remove the high costs of counselling so that its available to everyone, not just those who can afford it. The Recovery Community want to help people, like Christopher improve their mental health & wellbeing.
We are at a critical stage where we need to raise funds to cover the costs of securing a home and funds to adapt our home into a suitable environment to deliver our services.
Once we are established, we are keen to expand this support across Essex, Herts and beyond as soon as possible, as well as launching a new Child and Family Service to replace the priceless service ADAS used to run.
To do this, we need your help us through crowdfunding. Please donate anything you can and share our cause as far and wide as possible!
Thank you!
