Dean
Hi my name is Dean Jackman. I'm 52 year's old. I grew up in Peckham South London. I was a drug and alcohol addict for over 20 years and I've been in and out of institutions, prisons and hospitals.
I decided I'd had enough of this lifestyle in 2008 whilst serving a 5 year sentence for street robbery. I was released from prison in 2011, I went to Portsmouth for treatment. I lasted 9 week's then I relapsed, I went back to prison for another year then went back to treatment in Portsmouth. I completed the treatment. I've now been clean and sober for almost 5 years. I work as a support worker in London and Portsmouth.
I started my working life in Poland as a secretary for a family run business, quickly moved on to management and after few years I changed my career path and went into entrepreneurship. In 2004 with a motto ‘new place, new people, new life’ I arrived in London with my teenage daughter. A few months later I joined the corporate world, working for a large international organisation in London. My role was events organisation and catering which involved liaising with multiple departments, it was demanding but also a lot of fun.
Over time, however, responsibilities were taken away from me to the point where I was just moving heavy stock and catering between floors which was tough even when the lift worked; which it frequently didn't.
The demands on my body took their toll when one day I couldn't get out of bed. I began to isolate myself and not knowing what was wrong with me was frightening. It was with a heavy heart that I decided I had to leave my job of 10 years.
After seeing several doctors I was diagnosed with severe anxiety and panic disorder which was bought on by high stress and extreme exhaustion.
In May 2016 I became a Mosaic Clubhouse member, which changed my life. I am amazed by the Clubhouse model and its work and decided to join the board as a Trustee to contribute to the growth of Mosaic in any way possible.
I try to split my time between Mosaic, ESURG and my part time job at Public Health England
Aneta
Gavin
I am passionate about forging the right opportunities for dynamic change, greater awareness and cohesion, both for individuals, organisations and communities. In my volunteering career, I've used education as the driving force for such change, designing and supporting Access programmes to support people with interrupted or negative experiences of education into mainstream opportunities, be it in formal higher education or through informal community partnerships.
I currently work within the voluntary sector mental health field through which I support people's recovery. I believe that the validation of lived experience of psychosis and mental illness is key to the recovery process and that the implicit trauma of mental illness, referred to in some cultures as "awakening", presents opportunities for fundamental change, insight and connectedness from which the individual and the wider community alike can benefit.
To me, neurodiversity is the idea that neurological differences like Autism, ADHD,dyslexia, dyspraxia, dysgraphia are the result of normal, natural variation in the human genome. This represents new and fundamentally different way of looking at conditions and challenges that were traditionally pathologized; it’s a viewpoint that is not universally accepted though it is increasingly supported by science.
Maria
My name is Maria And I'm an ESURG member but also a beneficiary of You First. I have suffered from neurofibromatosis since a young age and have had many operations on my spine. My condition has left me wheelchair bound. At the age of 17 I started to self harm, I was diagnosed with an emotional unstable personality disorder which has been really challenging for me. In 2015 I was referred to the You First team.
During my time with You First, I have become a disability rights campaigner and have appeared in the national news a number of times. I have also helped South Western Railways produce a staff disability training video.
I enjoy taking photos and traveling to different cities and not letting my disability get in my way.
Matthew
I am a mental health service user and ex-offender. My partner of 5 years committed suicide in 2011, The resulting grief and depression caused me to isolate myself.
I was referred by my psychiatrist to Mosaic Clubhouse, a mental health charity in Brixton. The support I received and the friends I made really helped the process of recovery.
I now also involve myself with ESURG supporting people with multiple and complex needs. In my spare time I make promotional films for small charities.
