What was life like before NWYAS?

Before I gained housing with NWYAS my life was very unstable where accommodation and family life was concerned. I had unstable accommodation on and off since I was 17 due to violence in my family home and unsafe living conditions. After I became a new mum, I felt scared all the time and was always unsure of how long I had where I was staying. I felt so alone and didn’t trust anyone.

In trying to parent my son I felt like I was walking blind sighted. Parenting was all new for me and I found it difficult to parent while living under a house. I felt like I knew how I wanted to parent but didn’t know how I could provide the best for my son living in the conditions I was living in, along with all the stress and pressure I felt. I felt so lost and didn’t know who to turn to or what to do. I didn’t have the confidence in myself. I felt really depressed and anxious all of the time and this really affected my  life.

What is life like now?

I have stable accommodation and family relationships are a lot stronger now after working through things in my life and having the right support. I feel like I have direction in my life now, I’m a lot less stressed and I’ve learnt how to forgive people who have hurt me. It has been difficult but I feel like I have turned a corner in my life. I don’t feel like I have to hide away anymore as a person because I feel more confident and am learning to trust people again.

My son has a much less depressed and anxious mum now, which is great. I know I can get the support I need and that I even deserve support. I didn’t ever really feel like I deserve anything before.

How did NWYAS help you?

NWYAS gave me the support I needed at a really important time in my life, which allowed me to learn to put trust in others. It was the first time I felt safe enough to start taking the steps I needed to heal the hurt in my life. It provided me with the foundation for my future and it was the first time I felt like people were understanding me. Now I know I won’t be homeless again. I have a home, a safe place to be. I know that I won’t have to leave at any minute because it is my place.

I feel more confident. Recently I moved into my own private rental property. Being told that I was the successful applicant, and knowing that I have learned the skills to get any future rentals has made me feel  very proud. I feel like I matter as a person, that I am important enough to deserve housing and that I was accepted into the community as me. NWYAS was there to support me through all of this.

I feel like I can now parent my son how I want and am able to provide him with what he needs. Having a home means that now I can focus on other things like getting speech therapy for my son, work on my son’s development and accessing counselling for myself. Everything has just fallen into place for me.

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