Recovery Story Former Fellow Wanne

“My life before Yes We Can was mostly about survival. Every day I was trying to distract myself from my feelings. If I didn’t, I would always end up feeling awful. I tried everything: different kinds of drugs, escaping into nature, excessive exercise and self-harm. Nothing worked. As soon as I stopped for a moment, the sadness and anger would come flooding back. When I had completely given up hope, I found my way to Yes We Can."

"During my treatment, the youth coaches, therapists, counsellors and other fellows gave me the strength to keep going when I couldn’t do it myself. From the very first moment, I was welcomed with warmth, and I never felt alone. The counsellors made sure I finally started dealing with my problems. It wasn’t always in the way I had hoped, but it was the way that worked. With the coaches, I could laugh, cry and joke around, but also have beautiful, honest conversations. Because of this, I truly felt heard. They listened without judgement and thought along with me about real solutions. In the moments when I couldn’t see a way forward, they gave me hope."

"Thanks to the therapists, I now live the life I have today. From the very beginning, I felt they understood me and could really help. Because of everyone at Yes We Can and their own experiences, I learned how my thoughts and behaviour work – something I am grateful for every single day. Since leaving the clinic, my life has begun to blossom. I can now talk to my parents about my feelings, I can cry with my friends when things get tough, and I can love people wholeheartedly. I’m living the life of my dreams. To future fellows, I want to say that change is possible. It isn’t easy, and it certainly doesn’t happen as quickly as we would like. But as long as you keep going every day, you’ll get there.”