After having an epileptic fit I became very poorly. I couldn’t communicate with people – verbally or otherwise. I became very distant from everyone. The impact on my family was huge. Everybody was stressed and worried about me all the time. My dad lost his sense of humour and my parents took time off work to look after me.
It didn’t make any sense to me at all. I was trapped, I knew what I wanted to say but I physically couldn’t speak. My cousin was getting married in Ireland and my parents were going to miss it to look after me.
I can’t even remember when Touchstone first came to see me. Bit by bit I started to go to Pathways and the gym. My support worker takes me swimming, to play pool and for coffee. I enjoy spending time with him and I feel much more relaxed in myself. The speed of my speech is so much better and I don’t feel frustrated anymore.
I couldn’t comprehend my thoughts before. Now I am much calmer. I can talk to other people, my confidence has grown. I can do lots of things for myself now. I couldn’t have been around people before, but now I love it!
We all went to my cousin’s wedding. They hadn’t seen me for over two years and everyone was really impressed with the improvements they could see in me. My dad’s sense of humour has returned and we have such good laughs.
There’s been a massive change for the good, for me and my family. My aim now is to get back onto the University course I was studying. I could not have done this without the support of my family, Touchstone and my support worker. Thank you for giving me my life back.
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