Make a Difference this Christmas
This Christmas we are asking you for your support so that we can help the hundreds of thousands of children and young people in the UK suffering from a mental health problem. Whether you are a parent, a young person, a professional or simply someone who knows how tough it can be, supporting our Christmas Appeal will make a real difference to someone's life.
Please DONATE just £2 this Christmas – or more if you can afford it. You can make a difference.
- Three children in every classroom have a diagnosable mental health problem.
- One in five young adults show signs of an eating disorder.
- One in 12 deliberately self-harm.
Those are the statistics but do they fully get across the unhappiness, isolation, embarrassment and shame felt?
Perhaps it’s better to point you to the REAL LIFE STORIES young people have written for us. Kate says: "My eating disorder became everything. It was my best friend, my confidante, my harshest critic, yet my most loyal companion. I ruined actual human relationships in favour of anorexia. I pushed people away."
Or read Tamsin’s story: "Even though the bullying had stopped I had started believing what the boy had been saying. Believing I was fat and ugly. Eventually it became too much for me. I became really depressed and was having suicidal thoughts almost every day. This went on for about three months and just after my 14th birthday I started cutting myself."
The point is that there are real people behind these statistics. Real people who need our support.
Our Parents’ Helpline received nearly 7,500 calls last year from distressed parents worried about the wellbeing of a child or young person. One mother told us: "My 15-year-old daughter tried to kill herself last month. She accumulated 30 paracetamol over a period of time, and ended up in hospital. It was clearly a calculated decision."
We also get calls about children and young people who are victims of abuse and rape, neglect, violence/physical assault and bullying. We are a trusted, all-embracing, non-judgemental service.
But does the Helpline work? We recently heard from a mum of a 15-year-old who told us: "Following a call to YoungMinds Parents’ Helpline I received a call back from a professional which was literally a lifesaver. The insight and guidance offered helped me to respond appropriately to my daughters attempted suicide just one week later. That one hour was the most singularly important part of this intense experience."
Every year the Helpline sees a substantial increase in demand. We are a charity and need your help to answer every call from distraught parents.
Please DONATE just £2 this Christmas – or more if you can afford it. You can make a difference.