27-year-old Ashleigh opens up about her PTSD journey, including facial tics and a stammer, and how the Prince's Trust helped her start a mental health business. Fearne and Ashleigh discuss coping with misunderstandings, validation of pain, and the surprise ending of the episode.
Acknowledging personal pain is essential for moving forward in trauma recovery.
The Prince's Trust provided game-changing support for Ashley to start her own mental health business.
Deep dives
Ashley's Mental Health Struggles and Trauma Overcome
Ashley, a young woman, narrates her journey of grappling with mental health struggles, particularly PTSD, leading to anxiety, depression, facial ticks, and a stammer. Facing denial and anger, acceptance became a pivotal yet challenging step for her. Through support groups and therapy, she started addressing her trauma and found solace in the companionship of her dog, Blue.
Turning Trauma into Purpose with The Prince's Trust
Ashley's encounter with The Prince's Trust marked a turning point as she aspired to help others navigate mental health challenges. Encountering the Prince's Trust enterprise program prompted her to launch a mental health business, offering mental health first aid training. The trust's unwavering support and educational opportunities empowered Ashley to realize her dream.
Empowering Others through Mental Health First Aid
Ashley's journey culminated in her becoming a certified mental health first aider, aiming to fill the gap in mental health support. Her passion for aiding others stemmed from recognizing deficiencies in mental health training among frontline responders. Ashley's resilience and dedication led her to envision training opportunities, aiming to make a profound impact on societal mental health support.
Nobody’s worse off than you; everyone just experiences things differently. This is what 27 year old Ashleigh has come to understand about her own trauma. Previously, she minimised her own experiences, thinking it can’t be that bad, but learnt that until she acknowledged her own pain she couldn’t move forward.
In this chat with Fearne, Ashleigh explains how PTSD led her to develop facial tics and a stammer, isolating her personally and professionally. They talk about how to cope when those around you don’t understand what you’re going through, plus, how the Prince’s Trust have given her game-changing support to start her own business helping others with mental health struggles.
Fearne is a Goodwill Ambassador for Mental Health and Wellbeing for The Prince’s Trust. They help support young people aged 11-30, and believe that every single young person should have the chance to succeed, no matter their background, or their personal challenges. They offer support into education, training, and jobs; that’s exactly what they did for Ashleigh.
As well as catching up on Ashleigh’s progress, Fearne has a very special surprise for her at the end of the episode...