Lyn had a mental health crisis due to being hit by two highly stressful life events – a divorce and a family betrayal. This led to severe anxiety and depression, which culminated in an episode. Lynn was taken to the hospital and diagnosed with schizophrenia and immediately put on medication. She chose to self-isolate due to social anxiety and the side effects of the meds.
Six months into self-isolation, she was approached by a Well-You co-founder at the church who listened to her stories and empathised with her difficulties. A leaf of hope was extended to support her with the practical aspects of her life, which had been abandoned, such as no self-care, a disorganised home and missed medical appointments.
As a result of our support for 18 months, Lyn recently graduated from a university master’s degree programme and is currently job-hunting. She has overcome social anxiety, is well-presented, is much more organised at home, and exudes confidence. She is a peer mentor, giving other service users hope of an eventual recovery.
Shanaya was hit with a divorce and the risk of losing her kids- she literally went off the rails and suffered from insomnia, severe panic attacks, and hallucinations. She was immediately signed off work by her GP.
A Well-You co-founder chaperoned her to her GP and requested a mental health re-assessment as the symptoms presented appeared to be beyond her current diagnosis of anxiety and depression, plus the prescribed medications were ineffective. It took a private appointment to obtain a detailed assessment, which resulted in a serious mental illness diagnosis. The immediate change in medication allowed Shanaya to bring calm into her life, allowing her to manage her symptoms better.
Now, she copes better with day-to-day living and has returned to self-employment, working from home as a virtual PA. She plans to rent office space in the future to expand her business.
Jay worked part-time via an agency and had a house full of children and grandchildren with mental and behavioural issues.
Having chatted a couple of times with our Well-Champion, she was empowered to follow the advice of getting her family members re-diagnosed following the templates and advocacy guidance. Jay represented each family and asked the right questions to get them the right help.
With the correct diagnosis, they are now on the correct medication and have started the aim of recovery – symptomatic control. Symptomatic control relieves distressing physical, emotional, social and spiritual symptoms of both patient and family.