Joe's story

“I’d moved away from home for work and was living alone in a studio flat. Work wasn’t going well at all, I was in a role I’d previously been doing great at but things changed and I wasn’t hitting my targets anymore. My self esteem started to suffer, I was going into debt as I wasn’t earning enough money, and I was very down. I started feeling suicidal and was fixating on it, I was thinking about it a lot and worrying because I didn’t feel safe. I told my manager at work, who was really supportive, and he found James’ Place online.

I was seen very quickly. It was a lovely building, it felt like an escape from reality. All the staff were so kind. I had an amazing therapist, I’ve had therapy before but she was the best counsellor I have ever had. It really helped being face to face to build trust with her, she could pick up on my body language and using the therapy cards to explain what I was feeling were really helpful too. She helped me deal with some past trauma that I’d not really dealt with, my dad passed away of a heart attack in front of me in the car, and I think I almost went numb and shut down to try and deal with it. With my therapist’s help I managed to reach out to my brother and sister and tell them what was going on – and I moved to Liverpool to live with my brother. I’ve realised how important it is to talk to people when you’re having a hard time, I’m learning you don’t have to keep all your emotions in and deal with things on your own.”

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