My One Good Adult
My One Good Adult
Thursday, 15 April 2021
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?
Killian's Story
My mam has always been that confidant and voice of reason when I had no one to turn to. In a fixation with isolation, I couldn’t see past my mental distress. I couldn’t imagine a day where I would genuinely experience happiness. To see your child deteriorating in front of your eyes and feeling hopeless, she decided to act.
When I had my breakdown, when she would come in the door every day and not know whether I would be dead or alive, she kept her strength to uplift mine. As a single mother raising two children on her own, her life is her children. To see that one of them has got to this point of isolation where they feel they can’t go on with life must have been incredibly mentally distressing. I know if she hadn’t of intervened when she did, you wouldn’t be reading this piece and I certainly wouldn’t have written it.
Amber's Story
My One Good Adult® is my director from the school I attended. He was able to support me through every decision and path I took. When I was struggling, he was always there with helpful advice and suggestions. There was never judgment from him, nor disrespect, but always needed constructive criticism that has helped me improve who I am.
My director introduced me to Jigsaw and persuaded me to get involved in so many things that have always had great benefits. He guided me and showed me ways to be a better person because there is always room for improvement. Now, I would thank him for always being there and simply being a good person and educating me to be better.
Becky's Story
I have a friend who I met through our mutual love for music. Despite being far apart we would talk about everything under the sun. It felt so nice to have such a constant in my life, someone I knew was truly there for me. Unintentionally, she became my One Good Adult®, without me even knowing it.
Now, nearly four years later, she is still always there for me, and I wouldn’t trade what we have for anything; Leyla, thank you for always making me feel heard, it meant so much more to me than I think you ever knew. To anyone else reading this, making someone feel listened to is a vital step to becoming someone’s One Good Adult®, for someone to know you’re there for them can make the biggest difference.
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