Success Stories
Here is a collection of heartfelt video interviews with participants from the Cwm Taf Morgannwg community who recently finished their courses at the coach-led Wellness Improvement Service (WISE) and who openly share their remarkable health stories with us.
These individuals show tremendous courage and determination to share their experiences with the public, as they aim to inspire others to embark on their own wellness journeys.
With the ongoing support of trained Wellness Coaches, hear how WISE’s innovative toolbox of strategies empowered them to take control of their personal well-being and instilled a newfound sense of self-worth.
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[Music]
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[Applause]
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thank you
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and we're on a visit to my GP she
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suggested that I join wise and she felt
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I'd be an ideal candidate for it and
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I've been suffering with Stress and
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Anxiety for a number of years and that
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was accompanied by chronic pain in my
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shoulder and neck and pain in my elbows
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pain everywhere and and also constant
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headaches and just sort of lots of
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niggly pains everywhere and despite
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having x-rays scans nothing significant
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has really sort of been been found so
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she suggested wise as being something
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that I could attend to find out whether
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there were different strategies that
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would help me to cope with everyday sort
0:59
of symptoms
1:05
one of my big problems when I started
1:07
why advice
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um was fatigue and brain fog and fatigue
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constantly
1:14
um I was fined and I needed to go to
1:15
sleep nearly every afternoon and not
1:18
just for an hour I could sleep for an
1:20
hour two hours and two and a half hours
1:22
and it was really hard and effect and on
1:25
my my daily life and I do find that
1:29
since doing the wise program we've
1:31
talked about sleep patterns making sure
1:33
that you get the proper amount of sleep
1:36
but not just so many hours of sleep but
1:39
also a deep sleep and I realized that
1:43
probably I wasn't having the amount of
1:46
deep sleep that I needed to function
1:48
daily and so I do feel making myself
1:51
more aware of having a good restful
1:55
night is very important and since I've
1:58
done that I feel as if I'm not having to
2:01
sleep more in the day and I've tried to
2:03
cut that out and get more day the
2:05
activity and and I try to swim every
2:09
morning and during the the week so five
2:12
days a week I swim and I try to walk the
2:15
dog with my husband as well and that has
2:17
helped with my moods
2:24
well I definitely think that I've
2:26
learned a lot about self-care uh and the
2:29
need to look after not just your body
2:30
but your mind as well and we talked a
2:33
lot about different apps
2:35
in the group
2:37
um mindfulness apps that I've used I
2:39
think is called smiling mind
2:41
um and I think our leader Dora sort of
2:44
pointed Us in the right direction to
2:46
make sure that we are finding time in
2:48
the day for ourselves and quiet time not
2:51
just sitting in front of the television
2:53
but also taking ourselves away
2:56
um to the bedroom and sort of you know
2:58
sort of having sort of
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um sort of just sort of time on our own
3:02
away from screens and I know a lot of
3:05
our group did pick up on that the
3:07
importance of not having your phone on
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not watching television and just sort of
3:12
relaxing before you went to bed and
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obviously I've talked about sleep and I
3:17
think that was a really good sort of
3:19
suggestion for me
3:21
um
3:21
I've also used the get fit app
3:24
um to try and improve my fitness level I
3:27
swim every day and five days a week
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which is one thing and I also try to
3:32
walk I'm definitely moving forward I'd
3:36
like to continue with that try to lose
3:38
the weights and use the different
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strategies and the toolbox from Wise to
3:44
move forward and sometimes you tend to
3:47
forget things that you learn on courses
3:49
but on this occasion I do really want to
3:52
make sure that I improve my health and
3:54
and move forward and even though I know
3:58
that the chronic pain is never going to
4:00
go away I do hope that by using all the
4:03
suggestions made to us in ways I can
4:06
improve my daily life and be more
4:08
positive about the future
4:12
yes most definitely I've already spoken
4:15
to a number of my friends who are
4:17
suffering from different sort of
4:18
conditions and they hadn't even heard
4:21
about it and so I definitely think it's
4:24
something that if they go to their gpe
4:26
and they mention that they've heard
4:28
about wise it's definitely something
4:31
perhaps that they could be and sort of
4:33
put put onto a course for them and I
4:37
really do think yes I would recommend it
4:42
foreign
4:47
foreign
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[Music]
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[Applause]
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thank you
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um so I was having some female issues
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um during the covered lockdown
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um that was continuing to happen so I'd
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been sent to the hospital
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um but whilst I was waiting for the
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hospital appointment my GP recommended
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me to have a look at WISE online and to
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see if it's something that I could
0:36
benefit from so I spoke to my husband
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looked online showed him and we both
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agreed that it was worth a go
0:50
it's helped me manage my
0:54
daily life a lot better my medication
0:58
wise
0:59
um one of my tablets I'm on the side
1:02
effect is very drowsy and I take it
1:04
overnight so I was struggling to get up
1:06
and be awake in the morning and talking
1:10
to the group about it in the group
1:12
setting they come up with like um a
1:15
problem-solving skill when they said
1:18
about putting the phone my mobile with
1:20
the alarm on over the other side of the
1:22
room so that I'd have to physically get
1:24
up to turn it off and it's been about
1:27
eight months now and I'm still doing
1:28
that on a daily basis so it's helped my
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mornings start a lot better than what
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they were
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um
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knowing that I'm not alone
1:40
even though we've got a lot of different
1:42
chronic issues
1:45
everybody in this group is understanding
1:47
so it's having that support system of
1:50
people that are going through similar or
1:53
are going through the same as being an
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absolute
1:57
brilliant thing for me
1:59
um it's also made me aware to not be
2:02
ashamed of what I'm going through
2:05
and it's stopping me now from where I
2:09
used to hide away a lot I don't I make
2:12
implants with friends I'm going out a
2:16
lot more since because although I'm not
2:19
working and I'm I am signed off work
2:21
because of my health conditions
2:24
I'm not feeling like I need to just sit
2:27
at home and feel sorry for myself that I
2:30
can still have a life and this group has
2:32
shown me show me that
2:40
so some of the skills that I've learned
2:42
is like the action plans so we write
2:46
down what we want to accomplish how
2:48
confident we are and how we're gonna
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achieve it and day that's helped me a
2:55
lot and I still continue to do that
2:57
um mine and more for for going out
3:00
because I I do struggle with going out
3:02
to a lot of my action plans to try and
3:04
get me out of the house and so far
3:07
that's what I'm using and my mobile
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being the other side of the room I'm
3:13
still using that because it's still
3:15
getting me up in the mornings so I'm not
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feeling like I'm wasting the day
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um
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the group itself the problem solving
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um if I'm stuck and I can't work out
3:28
what to do I message the group chat that
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we've got going on between us
3:33
as a group and they'll bring up ideas
3:36
that I didn't even think of
3:43
I talk about this group all the time
3:45
with how much it's helped me and we
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touch on different things every week so
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even if one week it's not really for you
3:54
the following week it could be something
3:56
that could really help and hearing other
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people's situations in the group you can
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kind of think well actually that's the
4:05
same as me as well and you could take
4:07
things away from that and and the group
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as well the group you're in
4:13
I I can't speak for other groups but our
4:15
group is a very close-knit group and
4:17
we've continued to stay in touch and we
4:20
can will continue to stay in touch
4:23
and so even if you don't really come out
4:27
of any
4:28
skills as such I hope hopefully you'll
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be like me and Come Away with a good
4:33
group of friends
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thank you
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[Music]
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[Applause]
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thank you
0:13
so around 2017 2018 I felt my mental
0:18
health start declining
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um
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was having some issues at home
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a lot of mental and physical issues
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to the point where I started locked
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myself away at the house because I was
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so embarrassed of my
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at the time my my conditioner I wasn't
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aware of
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I suffer with severe sleep you know when
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I was on the verge of dying 40 times an
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hour which means
0:45
my breathing would stop for 10 seconds
0:47
or more in a in a in a period
0:52
that
0:54
deteriorated my mental health and caused
0:57
some psychotic issues
1:00
I tried the sweet brand of the carpet
1:04
for as long as possible but it's only so
1:06
long you can sweep it under before your
1:07
trip
1:09
I tripped very bad
1:12
like I said I was locking myself away my
1:14
friend would call me and say all right
1:16
you're coming out and I know myself I've
1:19
been going out I had no intentions of
1:21
going out but I'd say yes they'd come
1:23
and knock the door he wouldn't answer I
1:24
wouldn't answer the phone
1:27
it became a very very
1:30
um
1:30
not a nice person to be around and
1:34
had a near Miss at home when I fell
1:39
asleep with the frying pan on and I fell
1:42
asleep behind the wheel the car so I
1:45
thought right I have to do something
1:46
about this I went to the doctors and
1:50
they diagnosed me with severe sleep
1:51
apnea in March 2022
1:54
so I had neon a year off work
1:58
they took my driving license off me
2:02
and I needed to sleep with a CPAP
2:05
machine which was forcing oxygen don't
2:06
need to make into my lens
2:09
to help with my breathing because my
2:12
heart was working 10 times harder so I
2:15
was putting stress on my heart making me
2:16
more prone to heart attacks
2:20
yeah it was quite scary and yeah I just
2:24
self-destructed
2:26
so I I had to
2:29
do with the issues I knew was going on
2:31
then once I'd been diagnosed I said I
2:33
needed help from somewhere and I was
2:36
recommended wise so here I am today
2:42
it brought me out to my shell so I'm
2:45
more I'm back to be well close to being
2:48
the person I once was before I had my
2:51
health condition it's help mentally and
2:55
physically because now I'm out and about
2:57
from a house I'm not so anxious about
2:59
going out and being embarrassed of would
3:01
I fall asleep here or fall asleep there
3:03
and have people watching me
3:06
it's give me the tools that I need to
3:08
help cope with stressful situations
3:11
breathing mechanisms
3:14
yeah it's it's
3:16
really got me back up to my shell and
3:20
seeing other people as well for there
3:22
are also here for the same reasons is
3:26
it's nice so it's helped a lot
3:34
well they've helped with Understanding
3:38
Nutrition better which can be also a
3:41
massive factor in improving your
3:43
well-being there's this the breathing
3:47
mechanisms about taking your time to
3:49
think about what you're saying how you
3:52
um
3:53
how you communicate with other people
3:56
yeah I think um
4:02
definitely
4:04
brought me back up my shell to be so I'm
4:07
near enough to be in the personal
4:08
everyone as well as again
4:14
oh definitely 100 percent
4:16
as blokes Were Meant To Be these strong
4:18
you know providers and what have you I
4:22
was one of those I thought I didn't need
4:24
the help and that's probably where why I
4:27
got the point of
4:29
if I didn't come on on the course I
4:31
don't know where I'd be right now if
4:33
anything I'm
4:35
I'm an example a good example of how
4:39
it's helped
4:41
I'm probably one of the youngest well I
4:43
am the youngest bloke in in the group
4:46
and
4:48
it's it's a sad thing it's not more
4:51
bloke young blocks here but I guess
4:55
I want to give something back now to to
4:57
wise and help promote the courses to
5:00
help bring
5:01
not just blogs but yeah like younger
5:05
youngsters back into if they do require
5:08
the help
5:09
take you know to take a step forward and
5:12
come but then that's when you're
5:15
you know
5:17
you'll move on you realize
5:19
how beneficial this program is
[Music]
0:03
[Applause]
0:13
I sort advertised on um the internet and
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my interest was sparked I
0:20
recently um was recovering from a cardia
0:23
procedure and had just been diagnosed
0:26
the LI Disorder so I was looking for
0:29
something that was going to help me
0:30
manage multiple health problems cuz I
0:33
was feeling overwhelmed and I just
0:36
needed something to sort of set me back
0:38
on the track of yeah okay this it is
0:41
possible to sort move forward um from
0:44
there and I
0:46
found the internet information about
0:49
wise which meant I could make a self Ral
0:51
which is
0:57
great on a personal level while wise is
1:00
introducing tools and techniques that
1:02
have really helped me um manage on a
1:06
day-to-day basis and recognizing that
1:09
actually the power is within me so I
1:12
think what wise did for is is empowered
1:15
me to be able to use the tools uh that
1:18
they are offering as part of the course
1:20
content um and it's a holistic approach
1:24
um so it's not just about medication it
1:27
is about what I can do and take
1:29
responsibility for
1:36
myself so going forward um I think the
1:40
the sort of key thing that I've taken
1:42
away is one of
1:44
self-awareness so having sort of gained
1:47
the knowledge of how important it for
1:49
example sleep is what I've gained is
1:52
actually recognizing how if I've not had
1:56
a good night's sleep how it impacts me
2:00
and then what I learned from Wise is the
2:02
sort of techniques I could use in
2:05
preparing an evening routine that would
2:08
make um sink better um so it is really
2:12
one of
2:13
self-awareness um so not only sleep it's
2:16
things like hydration I recognize now
2:19
the impact if I haven't had enough water
2:22
to drink so it help me set targets for
2:25
the amount of hydration I need during a
2:28
day um and the same with you it's it's
2:31
really sort of given me that sort of
2:35
boost um to use my own self-awareness to
2:39
S of design then what it is that's can
2:42
help me going
2:48
forward yes I would definitely recommend
2:51
wise to friends and family because it's
2:54
got so many different facets would help
2:58
everybody um in some way shape or form
3:01
so include people that weren't feeling
3:04
totally overwhelmed they there is stuff
3:07
within the content of wise that's there
3:10
that is beneficial and helpful to
3:12
everyone so I will definitely recommend
3:28
it
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[Music]
0:03
[Applause]
0:14
uh to me was was in a lot of uh pain and
0:17
a lot of trouble with mental health and
0:21
I um was really ill this one day and the
0:24
wife said look you've got to see the
0:27
doctor now they they've got to do
0:29
something for
0:30
you and when anyway event you got to see
0:35
a doctor cuz you had the phone and
0:37
everything like and um it got to see the
0:41
doctor and we were discussing stuff
0:44
because my blood pressure was going up
0:46
more time and other things so I had that
0:49
more blood tests and all that well I
0:53
have these injections because I've got
0:57
um a three dist for body so he said look
1:02
I you I said oh is there any chance
1:05
because I've been to a pain clinic
1:06
before and he said yeah I can get in
1:10
contact with this group or something so
1:13
I said yeah cuz great and um I had to
1:17
let that through and I thought to myself
1:20
well let's go and I will go see what
1:24
it's all about and that's why I joined
1:26
the group and I'm very very glad that I
1:30
joined the group to be honest with
1:35
you on a personal level it help me quite
1:39
a bit um I don't I go interactive in the
1:43
group but I take a lot of things on
1:45
board and work out things
1:47
myself and we talking through the group
1:52
and going with the cultures which are
1:55
very I got to say this are very very
1:58
professional and
2:00
we have a laugh on all that but all a
2:03
personal level it's helped me because
2:06
it's
2:07
true um give me back some of the things
2:11
that I didn't have my
2:14
respect um I learned how to do things
2:18
again with
2:19
exercising uh my eat in and I know I got
2:23
a bit of a weight progam but I I'll get
2:26
that I think I some people do like but
2:30
online mental health as well if help me
2:34
to talk
2:36
because I've only got the wife to talk
2:38
to all the daughters or my sons and I
2:41
can't interact with them how I'm feeling
2:44
really but with other people it brings
2:47
out a lot in
2:48
me
2:50
and that's so it's really helped
2:57
me pay l
3:00
I can't get rid of the pain they can't
3:03
get rid of the pain for me but they
3:04
tried to help us to manage the pain um
3:08
like little exercises and talking about
3:12
it like I won't talk to the wife and she
3:15
goes medal at me but it's something I've
3:18
always done I've always camped in but in
3:21
group sessions like this I can let a bit
3:23
of it out and that's what helps me
3:26
because other people are in my situation
3:29
with pain but there's people in my
3:33
situation with mental health which is
3:35
totally different to what pain is and
3:39
when you go through the mental health
3:41
the anxiety and everything this about me
3:45
because it let out stuff that I would
3:47
have let
3:48
out in front of the white ien feel and I
3:52
I'm really deeply feel in and because
3:55
there's been times where I thought like
4:01
I didn't want to be here
4:04
and this about me say like at the end
4:09
said it come on now you know pick
4:11
yourself up but that's where start is
4:13
picked me up a
4:19
bit I put a mask on and a lot of people
4:23
don't realize what I'm like and what
4:27
pain I'm going through what my Al I'm
4:30
going
4:31
through but within this group I got to
4:34
tell people out there that if you ever
4:36
get a chance to come to a group like
4:41
this likewise I would recommend it
4:44
without a doubt I would recommend it
4:47
1,000% because it do help
4:52
people when you first come here you
4:54
might take go no it's St for me it's St
4:56
for me but then if it come to another
5:00
session you can see and build on
5:03
what is happening in your life because
5:07
within your life a lot of people there
5:10
different kinds of lives with them
5:12
people are suffering in different ways
5:14
and in within this group
5:17
and the
5:19
coaches it have help me so much I like
5:23
can't say thank you
5:27
enough if I could give money to the
5:29
group I would but to help I'd rather to
5:34
to help other people and I hope and pray
5:37
that other people can join to help them
5:41
because it help me a lot thank
5:58
you
[Music]
0:03
[Applause]
0:07
thank you
0:13
I joined the wire service because I've
0:16
had a few long-term health conditions
0:19
and unfortunately my mental health
0:22
declined and because of that my health
0:27
issues started taking a toll on my
0:29
day-to-day life and so I reached out for
0:32
help buying my GP
0:34
um and they referred to me to wines
0:37
to try and readjust my life and
0:41
get on a better track
0:43
um
0:44
because it's quite easy to forget how to
0:47
look after yourself when you don't feel
0:52
very confident to do so if you can't
0:55
look after yourself you can't look after
0:56
other people so you forget about
0:58
yourself
0:59
um
1:00
and you just
1:02
push yourself away into a corner and
1:04
forget and it's important because if you
1:08
don't look after yourself
1:10
you know I'm not going to be able to
1:11
look after other people either so you
1:13
gotta put yourself first
1:14
and regardless how you feel and taking
1:18
the first step is really important
1:19
because you'll have a better life
1:22
knowing that you've tried rather than
1:24
sitting there and
1:27
stealing so that's that's why I've come
1:30
to ice and enjoyed the experience
1:38
on a pedestal level it forced me to put
1:42
myself first
1:44
um
1:45
because I'd
1:48
forgotten about myself stopped looking
1:50
after myself maybe as well as
1:53
if someone else was caring for me they
1:55
would have cared me better the more I
1:57
was doing for myself and
2:00
some
2:02
come into this program has helped me
2:06
understand things better what I should
2:09
and shouldn't do
2:10
it's giving me tools to be able to
2:12
navigate around my conditions when
2:16
regardless what they throw at me my
2:18
conditions
2:20
can always be managed and the tools
2:22
they've taught us
2:24
minimizes the impact on my life so it
2:26
means I can lead a more functional
2:29
normal life without having to depend on
2:31
other people and so the healthy eating
2:36
and
2:38
the Sleep hygiene the exercise and I
2:42
know the exercise bit is quite scary
2:44
because if you've got any type of
2:46
chronic pain or fatigue the last thing
2:48
you want to do is move because you
2:50
should want to kill up involved and
2:54
it's what coming here is showing me is
2:56
regardless how small the movement is if
2:59
you do the tiny sub movements every day
3:02
eventually it'll get easier and easier
3:05
and you can get bigger movements and
3:07
it's not so strenuous I mean
3:10
and life is easier and you can breathe
3:13
easier you can walk better you can
3:16
manage your day-to-day life better
3:17
because your building
3:19
the foundation that you can stand on if
3:22
it's not broken it's not Rocky it's
3:25
stable and the tools they give you helps
3:28
you keep it stable for as long as
3:29
possible
3:31
um
3:32
and they help with your mental health as
3:34
well because that's quite important
3:35
because you can get down quite easily if
3:39
you're not kind to yourself
3:40
so the breathing techniques are
3:43
fantastic
3:45
um I find if my cried pain is very high
3:47
if I just stop breathing they hold it's
3:51
not the greatest thing to do because it
3:53
just keeps going up and at that and you
3:55
just eat it
3:56
let it Breeze and eventually
4:00
you'll come back down again and you can
4:02
carry on but I was finding that I was
4:04
holding my breath a lot and I couldn't
4:06
do much and it's just opened up my life
4:10
to a better way of living because
4:13
they've shown me healthy ways to deal
4:16
with things mentally physically
4:19
and socializing it's quite important as
4:21
well
4:22
um because I shut myself away from
4:24
people my family because you guys
4:31
you worried that your family and the
4:33
people around you are sick of hearing it
4:36
so when you get down or see you close
4:41
yourself off and it's not healthy so you
4:44
need to be able to talk to people and
4:45
communicate to people reach out to GP
4:49
um
4:50
your mental health professionals and
4:53
they're all happy to help that's all
4:55
they want to do is help and you've got
4:56
to allow yourself to get the help
4:59
and take the first step
5:01
because otherwise you're just going to
5:02
stay stuck in the same shoe
5:10
that regardless of
5:13
any problems you had you clean
5:16
minimize it by turning in it into
5:18
smaller
5:19
easier to manage chunks it's not a big
5:22
mountain it's not hard to clean if you
5:25
could break it down into smaller
5:27
steps
5:30
before you know it you're halfway up
5:32
and it doesn't feel hard either it's not
5:36
sometimes it feels
5:39
pressured but it's only pressure because
5:41
you want to do good for yourself and as
5:44
long as you're kind to yourself
5:46
and you treat yourself right and look
5:49
after you're eating you're sleeping how
5:51
much water you're drinking you can't go
5:54
wrong really as long as you're doing all
5:56
those things
5:58
there's always that opportunities to be
6:01
better and have a better lifestyle and a
6:04
better outcome overall
6:07
um
6:08
so going forward
6:11
and definitely keeping the healthy
6:14
eating it's not perfect there's a lot
6:17
better than what it was and that start
6:21
being drinking water
6:24
and having more energy and I still feel
6:28
the same amount of pain
6:30
but it doesn't upset me as much anymore
6:32
because I could cope a bit better and as
6:35
long as I can cope
6:37
then it's okay
6:39
um and having these tools help me
6:42
makes it just a little bit lighter every
6:44
time I put myself face every time I need
6:48
a little bit more forward life just gets
6:50
lighter
6:51
and hopefully
6:53
if I ever do fall back and I struggle
6:57
and
6:58
need help again I know I've got all
7:01
these toolbox and
7:03
the program to reap back on go over
7:06
again and just readjust my life because
7:09
it's not going to be perfect
7:10
it's always going to have those little
7:12
blips and knowing these programs like
7:15
this around to help will just help you
7:18
re-center and go forward and that's the
7:22
important thing for me
7:26
yeah
7:28
yes everybody
7:31
is a little bit naughty sometimes and
7:34
you eat too many biscuits and rub too
7:37
much alcohol and you don't sleep right
7:40
and you're staying on your phone a
7:42
little bit too long and it all adds up
7:45
and if you feel not quite right coming
7:49
to wise
7:51
help to realize that those little
7:53
naughty habits you're doing
7:56
we'll build a bigger picture and I
7:59
definitely I can see a couple of my
8:01
friends needing
8:02
a little less time on their phone or a
8:04
little less time drinking
8:06
and it just helps you readjust
8:09
so the thing is already new and
8:12
I think it's really useful
8:15
to be in an environment where people
8:17
think like you and feel like you and
8:19
this place definitely it makes them
8:22
produce
8:25
and that's all that matters and it's in
8:28
your own time and in your own space it's
8:31
not forced it's
8:34
free-flowing and
8:36
it's flourishing gives you the
8:38
opportunity first I would recommend as
8:41
many people as I could
[Music]
0:03
[Applause]
0:07
thank you
0:13
for me it was
0:16
um because I suffer with irritable bowel
0:18
syndrome which I've had for for years
0:21
um and I particularly get it at periods
0:24
of high stress
0:26
and I was talking to my GP about it and
0:29
asking if there was anything cows that
0:33
could happen far from the medication
0:34
that I was taking
0:36
um and and they suggested
0:38
um this this wise course so I got into
0:41
contact with them have I assessment done
0:43
and and then and then got on the Sigmund
0:46
program
0:52
for me personally it's it's really
0:55
helped in in the sense that we've been
0:58
able to set action plans each week which
1:01
have been sort of like little goals and
1:04
that you set yourself and that you're
1:07
able to then work towards during the
1:09
week before the next session
1:12
um and those little action goals those
1:16
little action points so that there's a
1:18
really helped sort of
1:20
um feeding new habits for me
1:22
um healthy habits so things like going
1:25
for a walk by the Sea
1:28
um or
1:30
um writing little affirmations and
1:33
sticking them in a jar so that at the
1:34
end of the year I can open that jar and
1:36
have a look and see what I've written
1:37
and it just really sort of like focusing
1:40
on the positives of of life and
1:44
um really getting sort of
1:49
for me back to one with nature that
1:51
that's been the most important thing for
1:53
me
1:54
um but because as a whole has been
1:56
really good because there's
1:59
so much information out there and the
2:01
stuff that's taught on the course is no
2:04
different from the information that's
2:05
out there but what it does is that it
2:07
brings it all into one place into one
2:09
space
2:10
in a very safe space
2:13
um that that's created every week
2:15
um by the by the mentors
2:18
um and it's also been really good
2:19
because
2:21
um we've been working as a group and I
2:23
know that group work can sort of sound a
2:26
bit scary and can be can can put off
2:28
some people and I was a little bit um
2:30
unsure about it at the very beginning
2:34
but actually it's been one of the best
2:36
things ever is to is to work with people
2:39
who are from different backgrounds they
2:42
bring different ideas and thoughts you
2:45
share as much as you want to share or as
2:47
little as you want to share it's
2:48
entirely up to you and but to get
2:51
information and and ideas and feedback
2:54
from other people has been absolutely
2:56
invaluable and and that's what I would
3:00
um personally recommend to anybody who
3:02
was considering coming on the wise
3:03
course
3:05
um you really do you really do help
3:08
support each other and there's a lot of
3:10
camaraderie and friendships have been
3:13
created as well
3:14
um which has been which has been really
3:16
good
3:17
um
3:18
and I just think that uh
3:22
in terms of creating a safe space and
3:25
and and an environment where people can
3:28
feel supported
3:31
for me personally I've been able to
3:35
take less medication I've been feeling
3:38
less stressed about things I've had a
3:41
lot of
3:42
um
3:43
quite deep personal things happen during
3:46
the six months course you know in in my
3:49
own life and I think that I would have
3:53
handled differently
3:55
um if I hadn't been on this course this
3:57
course has really taught me how to how
3:59
to deal with
4:01
um
4:02
challenging events
4:04
um in my own personal life
4:06
and I think that's been down to setting
4:09
these action lines each week and and
4:12
just adhering to those and and having
4:15
the support from everybody else
4:19
well
4:24
one of the things that the the course
4:26
teaches you is
4:28
um a whole load of a whole load of tools
4:31
in a tool kit and so there's lots of
4:33
things in there that that you can take
4:35
with you such as
4:37
um meditation
4:39
um you know to
4:42
their various things but one of the
4:44
things I'm going to take is that is is
4:46
making the action plans so
4:50
each week
4:52
however I'm feeling
4:54
I've now got a whole series of actual
4:57
plans and action points that I can that
4:59
I can use in my own life
5:02
um in order to sort of
5:04
um relieve those appearance of stress so
5:07
that's what I'm going to take forward
5:10
um other tools that I've learned
5:13
from that toolkit
5:20
absolutely 100
5:23
um
5:24
you know it's not only beneficial for
5:26
all the things I've said before but also
5:28
as well it helps to reduce the strain on
5:32
the NHS I've been going to the GP less
5:36
um for me I've been able to take less
5:37
medication which has been fantastic so
5:40
I'm saving the NHS time and money and it
5:44
also
5:45
um benefits benefits me as well
5:49
um so definitely I definitely recommend
5:51
it to anybody who's thinking about it
5:53
and just
5:54
even if you're unsure all I will say is
5:57
just give it a go
5:59
there's no harm in coming on trying it
6:02
and and if it doesn't work for you
6:04
that's fine at least you're giving it a
6:06
go but just give it a go
[Music]
0:03
[Applause]
0:07
thank you
0:13
so it was something that was recommended
0:16
to me by the chiropractor because they
0:19
knew that I'd been having some issues
0:22
with regards to pain and how I was
0:25
feeling mentally so I was on mental
0:27
health issues as well and you know just
0:30
dealing
0:32
maybe you knew that that sort of sense
0:35
of community so that's what I was that's
0:38
why I joined I thought actually and
0:40
maybe good to meet people who are of a
0:43
similar
0:44
you know cine group or feeling similar
0:47
to me because obviously I think the
0:49
chronic illness journey is very lonely
0:53
um and I definitely from my experience
0:56
felt that so being able to speak to
0:59
others who felt the same and met people
1:02
from all over you know the county
1:07
um from different backgrounds different
1:09
ages you know is
1:11
from every Walk of Life really so it's
1:13
been really good to sort of integrate
1:16
myself and have that sort of looking
1:19
forward to every week or week
1:21
fortnightly to be able to speak to
1:24
someone and um but also learn new things
1:27
of how to cope with pain as well
1:35
so on a personal level it's been a
1:37
really beneficial uh Endeavor for me I
1:41
think
1:43
um I'm really thankful for the NHS for
1:45
suggesting it to me because
1:47
I'm a bit reluctant just because you
1:50
know even though I wanted that community
1:51
and being with others
1:54
there's also as well as a little bit
1:56
worried about over sharing and being a
1:58
burden on people and things like that
2:01
um but I think that's because I just
2:04
felt that in my personal life as well
2:07
um so for me on a personal level after
2:11
I've come from the sessions I felt
2:13
really good so I felt you know positive
2:17
that you know I've learned something new
2:21
um each session uh Cass and Deborah have
2:24
been really really good
2:26
um you know providing information and
2:28
talking to all the best equally so
2:30
there's no
2:31
you know there's no discrepancies or
2:33
anything between anyone
2:35
um you know we're all treated really
2:37
equal which I lie
2:39
um but there's also the level of like
2:41
empathy and compassion as well which I
2:43
really appreciate from personal
2:45
perspective
2:47
um because obviously I feel like
2:48
especially hidden disabilities like I've
2:51
got quite a few conditions
2:53
people tend to judge
2:55
me based on how I look on the outside
2:58
and I don't like looking ill I've never
3:01
like looking out I always
3:03
maybe it'll take me forever to get out
3:06
of bed because I'm in pain but I'll um
3:09
you know I'll put makeup on put a bit of
3:12
a mask on and a brave face and just you
3:14
know go oh yeah I'm okay
3:16
but um you know it's sort of uh become
3:21
into that sort of realization after this
3:23
sort of thing of like
3:24
everyone's a stacked to a certain degree
3:26
where they mask how they feel
3:28
but it's actually okay to be vulnerable
3:31
and even though many people will
3:33
understand there is actually quite a lot
3:35
of people overwhelmed and defies and be
3:37
compassionate towards you as well
3:40
so yeah so I've had that sort of
3:43
feeling integrated feeling hurts
3:47
um
3:48
but also feel like I'm helping others as
3:50
well so like
3:52
in in the sessions the confidential so
3:55
nothing goes out of the room
3:56
uh you know and we all respect each
3:59
other like no one will talk about other
4:01
people it's just whilst in the room
4:04
stays in the room
4:05
and so it feels a very safe environment
4:08
which I like
4:09
and
4:11
um
4:11
for me as well I think
4:14
when I'm able to then maybe I've come
4:17
across something of like oh I used to
4:19
have this actually that's really helped
4:20
me
4:21
and then I've been able to provide some
4:23
advice or personal perspective on
4:26
something backed up by you know what cat
4:29
and uh Dead videos talking about as well
4:33
um it's been really beneficial for the
4:36
other person as well to hear from other
4:38
people's perspective along with myself
4:40
so there's that sense of feeling Health
4:43
but also feeling helpful so it's like a
4:46
two-way exchange which is really nice
4:49
foreign
4:57
so
5:02
things like back to sleep and sleep
5:04
hygiene you know doing things like you
5:06
know not having
5:08
um Electronics before beds you know more
5:11
of a uh you know maybe a shower in the
5:14
night exercise
5:18
was a thing that you could do but
5:21
um you know which would be helpful but
5:23
you know things like that so
5:26
um yeah so things like Betsy be healthy
5:29
eaten and also how to communicate with
5:32
family
5:34
um you know your feelings
5:37
um you know in a healthy way especially
5:40
if you're feeling like a burden or
5:42
you're scared to make and worry all
5:44
their reactions
5:45
there was a very good discussion and
5:48
sort of
5:49
oh well yeah open discussion amongst us
5:52
all about how we would
5:54
um approach family members and how we
5:58
could help them sort of not understand
6:00
because obviously they may not be going
6:02
through what we're going through but to
6:04
at least help them
6:06
look at our perspective in a bit more of
6:10
a open-minded way and compassionately
6:13
and then approaching a subject more
6:15
sense today so I really appreciated that
6:18
as well
6:19
and also as well I think
6:21
the fact that I've actually linked
6:23
friends so the fact I create friends not
6:26
just in the session and then when we've
6:28
come up with session is just go home to
6:30
our lines and everything it's like no we
6:32
actually want to be there for each other
6:35
uh meet up for coffees meet up and check
6:38
in on how would each other's do it and
6:40
there's friendship just built which I
6:43
think is really nice
6:44
and you know and I've made friends with
6:47
people of all different ages which is
6:50
really really nice and also as well
6:53
there's someone voices like a concern or
6:56
a problem they've got or the Hat feeling
6:59
bad will jump to the support I think
7:04
that's a really beautiful thing to
7:05
witness
7:07
um so yeah for me that is the things
7:09
I'll take away mainly and just how I'm
7:11
thankful
7:13
that this is a free service as well like
7:16
I'm just so happy for the NHS and you
7:19
know that this is available I feel very
7:21
lucky
7:22
um in that regards
7:24
um but yeah so then underneath these
7:32
definitely would recommend why you serve
7:35
friends and family even strangers I'd be
7:37
like if you're ill and go go and see
7:39
wise but joking aside no I definitely
7:41
would
7:42
um icing
7:44
if you're looking for
7:47
sort of like a sense of kinship and
7:49
camaraderie you know that you're not in
7:51
this alone
7:52
effect for that
7:56
thank you