Samantha's story

When my son was around 3 years old, I noticed he was a little different to other children his age. We then spent the next 5 years attending lots of appointments with different clinicians, researching and trying to understand additional learning needs, pushing, chasing and fighting for a diagnosis and finally having an Autism diagnosis when he was 8 years old.

For the past 8 years, I have put myself to the back

It was during that call that I realised that I was a carer. Up until that point, the thought of me being anything other than a mum hadn’t crossed my mind. During the call, I was offered a place on the Carers Respite Programme. I hadn’t done anything like this before so I was a bit nervous but knew I needed to start setting aside a couple of hours each week for myself.

“One month out, I still regularly do the mindfulness exercises and am seeing great results from it. I don’t get as stressed and overwhelmed as I used to and it is having a positive impact on my children and husband too. I am more relaxed and they too are more relaxed.

“This programme has been incredible for my wellbeing. It has allowed me to take time to focus on myself, learn about mind-fullness and do some exercise. Terri and Suzanne have gone above and beyond to make me feel welcome, supported and involved. They have been friendly and approachable and for that I am truly grateful. I have really enjoyed this programme and very grateful to have been given a space on it.