When Naomi gave birth to her second daughter during lockdown, life felt like it was falling apart. With postnatal depression, a long-term health condition, and the end of her marriage, she was struggling to cope. But with the support of a Home-Start volunteer, she found someone to listen. This support helped Naomi rediscover her strength and start building a brighter future.

“After my daughter was born in 2020, I struggled. I experienced postnatal depression and separated from my husband. I was trying to manage everything as a single parent to a baby and a toddler while dealing with Type 1 diabetes. I found it challenging to take care of myself. As a very private person, I always portrayed a perfect image, so nobody realised I needed help.

With the depression, I wasn’t managing my blood glucose very well. Over time, I noticed I was losing weight. I realised that by not taking my insulin, I’d lose even more weight. That’s an eating disorder called diabulimia. I’d heard of diabulimia before, but it wasn’t something I consciously realised I had at the time. I’d always wanted to lose weight, but with the depression, I just didn’t care anymore. For a couple of years, I didn’t feel anything, just total emptiness.

I was having monthly hospital admissions because my glucose levels were so high, and that’s when children’s services got involved. They were concerned because there was no one at home with the kids if I became unwell. They tried to get the mental health team involved, but nobody really knew how to help me.

I was waiting for my CMHT (Community Mental Health Team) to decide what kind of support they’d offer, but everything just took ages. Home-Start Cymru had been mentioned briefly so, I looked online myself, filled out a form, and then within a couple of weeks, I heard from them. They matched me with a volunteer quite quickly.

My volunteer, Hassana, was warm and friendly. She knew when to listen and when to offer advice. She let me dictate what we did and made me feel like she really understood what I was going through. Even though she didn’t have personal experience with diabetes, she made the effort to understand, and that meant the world.

For 12 weeks, I had one-to-one support every week. We’d just go for a walk, or Hassana would come to my house and have a cup of tea. I felt comfortable with her. It was just having that support, somebody listening to me, made all the difference.

Gradually, I started feeling better. Going back to uni was a huge motivation to stay well. I’d left my job in 2021 to focus on my mental health and studies. In September, I returned to uni to continue my second year. I’m doing children’s nursing and I'm halfway through now, with another year to go. When I finish, I want to be a diabetes specialist nurse. I was diagnosed with diabetes at 16 and was pushed straight into adult services with no mental health support. I want to work with people who are transitioning into adult care and make sure they’re supported properly. I want to be the nurse I didn’t get.

I've only realised in the past year just how much talking can truly help. By sharing my story, I can process everything, and I hope it helps others see that they are not alone either.

Home-Start’s support is personalised to you, and they have so many amazing volunteers to match with. Since having their support, I’ve realised how much they do. I’d encourage anybody to reach out for help.”