“The Keeping Well Service can help people with what they are going through” - says NHS worker

Marcus, an NHS worker shares his experience when he reached out to the Keeping Well NWL service when he had feelings of low self-esteem and confidence.

When Marcus joined the NHS this year and started working in an Early Intervention Service, he never thought about unresolved trauma from his school days.

In his role as a support and recovery worker,  it involves working with people who are experiencing mental health difficulties, specifically children and young people struggling in school.

Although he enjoyed lots of aspects of his job, Marcus started to experience feelings of low self-esteem and confidence, which brought about feelings of his own childhood.

 “I forgot about the trauma of my own experience in school. I had put those memories away and pretended to be ‘normal’ for the past 15 years. My self-esteem and confidence has always been pretty low since childhood and I started to feel like that same boy I once was in school.”

Marcus reached out to the Keeping Well team for help  after being referred to the service by a local Talking Therapies service.

“The Keeping Well service listened to what I was struggling with when I first made contact. I have never done something like this before or ever even had a conversation about my feelings in this way.

My closest friends don’t even really know about what’s going on with me. I didn’t know such services existed but my first contact with [a Keeping Well practitioner] really helped me understand that they can help me. The service can really help people with what they are going through.

I would recommend the Keeping Well service to any of my colleagues if I sensed they are struggling with something or if they spoke to me that they are feeling down.”

The Keeping Well North West London service provide a confidential listening ear over live chat, phone or email. Find contact details on the right hand side. Wellbeing professionals who can offer a flexible and rapid psychological assessment, brief advice and emotional support, signposting and onward referral.