In Jigsaw and UCD’s My World Survey in 2012, young people were asked if there was a special adult in their lives they could turn to when they were in need.
71% of young people had at least one adult they could talk to when they needed support. Here we asked Jigsaw Youth Advisory Panel volunteers who their One Good Adult was. Who is your one good adult?
James is 22 and from Kerry.
After he moved out of home, he experienced difficulties with his mental health. Eventually, fed up with staring at the wall, James went to Jigsaw for support. He talks here about his experiences.
James, aged 22, talks about his experience of seeking support for his mental health.
Ricky is 24 and from Sligo.
Following a relationship break up Ricky experienced a dip in his mental health and decided to go to Jigsaw. He still has good days and bad days, but feels he has developed the skills he needs to help him cope. Here Ricky talks about his experience.
Lauren is a 20 year old health and social care student from Clondalkin.
When her anger and anxiety started to impact on her life Lauren decided to go to a Jigsaw service for support. However, she worried what people around her would think. Once she started telling her family and friends about her mental health, Lauren realised ‘it’s not just me’. We all need help and support at different times. Here, Lauren talks about her experience of going to Jigsaw.
When I was in Junior Cert, I felt a bit stressed, but so did everyone else. It wasn’t too bad, but I was looking forward to doing transition year for a bit of a break.
When I started in TY, things began to go downhill. My best friend had gone straight into fifth year and started hanging around with a new group. We weren’t spending as much time with each other and I didn’t feel like going out as much. You’re supposed to really enjoy TY, but I found it hard to get motivated.
It felt like there was no point in going in to school most days. I started having arguments with my mum about homework and getting up in the morning. Everything just felt boring and pointless.
It all came to a head when we were at my Nan’s 80th birthday. All my family were there and usually I’d really enjoy family parties, but I just didn’t feel like I wanted to be there. My aunt came up to me and started asking about school. You can tell when someone is just asking to be polite, but she was genuinely interested.
Friday, 24 April was the first day of Ramadan for me and many other Muslims around the world.
This Ramadan will be different to the many others I’ve experienced, due to the current lockdown situation.
Throughout the month of Ramadan, most Muslims won’t eat or drink between dawn and sunset. This is known as fasting and it is one of the Five Pillars of Islam; alongside Faith, prayer, charity and doing Hajj (a journey to the city of Mecca). Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar. As we use the lunar calendar, its date changes on a yearly basis that is based on the different moon cycles.
