No Health without Mental Health-Support YoungMinds

YoungMinds is delighted to welcome Samira Sidhu, an 18 year old British Asian singer-songwriter as a young Ambassador for YoungMinds, here's her story...

I live at home with my mum, my step-dad and my 3 dogs (Riley, Itzie and Benson)! I’ve just finished a beauty therapy course at college and now I’m busy writing, recording and working on my music. I have a circle of good friends around me and we love having girly nights in, stuffing our faces with chocolate and watching horror movies! Life is good. I’m healthy, I’m happy and it feels like the world is my oyster.

But it hasn’t always been that way.

I was 13 the first time I cut myself. I don’t know why I did it but I remember how horrified I felt at myself afterwards. I didn’t cut myself again until I was 15. I had recently moved schools and was being bullied, my first proper boyfriend had just broken my heart and things at home were difficult too. I felt angry and alone. No-one asked me if I was okay and I didn’t feel comfortable enough to ask for help even though I knew I needed it.

The stigma around mental health and self-harm stopped me from getting the help I needed; resulting in me continuing to cut myself for a number of years and eventually being hospitalised after intentionally taking an overdose.

If I had got help sooner then I probably wouldn’t have ended up in a hospital bed attached to 3 drips with possible damage to my liver and kidneys. I have never openly talked about what I went through. I didn’t want to be judged or treated differently.

That’s the problem though; nobody wants to talk about it.

So I will.

I’m very pleased to announce that I have officially become an ambassador for YoungMinds. I’m looking forward to helping young people feel more comfortable talking about mental health and helping YoungMinds raise awareness of the vital importance of good mental health and access to support when they need it.

Let’s shatter the stigma!

Samira