Greg

*Not real name.

Growing up, Greg often felt isolated and confused. At school, he had difficulty communicating with people; and they had difficulty understanding him. 

Greg first became unwell when he was just 16 years old and subsequently found himself in and out of a children’s ward. His relationship with his mum suffered as a result, and he ended up jumping between hostels, bed and breakfasts, and scatter flats. He was receiving support from the local Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS), but then he turned 18 and it stopped without any notice and Greg had no idea why.

“I was 18, experiencing mental health problems I didn’t understand and couldn’t cope with, and I now know that I’m also autistic. When my CAMHS support was withdrawn I felt completely on my own. It’s only recently that I’ve realised that it stopped because, in their eyes, I was no longer a child.

“I had no idea how to get support for my mental health. I didn’t know where to go for help or how to speak to my doctor about what I was experiencing. On top of that, I didn’t know about things like benefits – how to access them, or even that this was an option for me.”

Things went downhill for Greg, and he ended up spending the next three years in hospital, with a diagnosis of schizophrenia and psychosis.
When he was discharged, he found himself on his own again, and unable to cope. Four years later, he was back in hospital, before finally being admitted to the State Hospital.

This was a turning point for Greg, and this time when he left hospital, he moved into supported accommodation at SAMH’s Fife Support Service.

Since then he’s gone from strength to strength, moving from supported accommodation into the outreach programme, living independently in his own flat with support from SAMH a few times a week. He’s now settled in his flat, is in a long-term relationship, and has been support free for a number of years now.

And he now has a relationship with his mum. Greg understands that she just struggled to cope with him when he was unwell. She cared about him, and he wishes there had been better support for her too. Perhaps then she would have been able to help him and things wouldn’t have got as bad as they did.

Of course, Greg still has to take medication to manage his life appropriately. But he has it back. He loves going to concerts and on holiday. As a child, he always enjoyed being outdoors and working with nature, so he’s recently completed a training course and is hoping to get a volunteering post at a local conservation estate.

“My mental health has improved 10 times more than it ever did when I was in hospital.

“I now have a life I can be happy with, and one that’s not controlled by doctors, or hospitals, but one that’s controlled by me.”