I attended the Blossom project not really knowing what to expect but when I left the first day I felt empowered.  I was told that this program was going to be whatever us women wanted it to be. For once I felt I was being asked my opinion rather than being told what to do. Out in the community there is not much in terms of services or groups for young women going through a mental illness like anxiety or depression, and what strikes me about Blossom is that no matter what your personal story is, it is a place where you can be your own person. I felt a real sense of belonging.

It’s great to come to a place where everyone’s going through the same sort of thing and they can kind of share and it’s ok to have bad days and you can feel like you belong.

Blossomproject has helped in many many ways.

I was forced to come at the start but when I got there I actually enjoyed it and I kept coming back. It’s definitely impacted my self esteem.

I look forward each week to step through the Blossom door I am instantly greeted by the staff and the other girls and I know that they are there not because they have to be but because they want to be. I am so glad that I found out about Blossom and in doing so meeting some very inspirational women.

I came and got greeted with a big smile and it was a nice feeling.

Through all the different activities we did from craft to cooking conversations flowed and a sense of trust was established.

From January to now I am a lot more talkative and I guess getting happier about life itself. Getting that happiness back it’s like you’ve opened up a big world of opportunities and it has made me feel a lot better. Not so many bad days.

Definitely makes a difference. It’s so easy to feel so alone and just restrict yourself to your bedroom all day and having a place where there is other girls it’s like ‘wow ok, I’ll go and connect with them’ and you can help them and they can help you and kinda learn together.

It’s given me a lot to look forward to, a reason to keep coming back because I enjoy it.

They’d say it’s had a big impact. My family have said to me they’ve found me more talkative, more happy, I leave Blossom happy and they’ve noticed how much more enjoyment I am getting out of things. Which is nice to hear.

I really notice it when I remember back to before I started attending Blossom, I notice now I tend to deal with my issues a lot better because I know that there are those support networks there. I know there are people there who can help me address those issues.

It was really great to come into the office and see all the different services Lantern offers so we know that those services are there when the time comes and we may need them.