Saphrone's Story

Saphrone's Story: Developing Confidence

Saphrone was referred to the service in October 2018.  At that point Saphrone  had recently left school, she had been unable to complete her 5th year. Saphrone had been diagnosed with mental health issues.  She struggled with confidence issues and self-esteem and although her great ambition was to work in childcare, the idea of going to college worried her a lot.

Working with Saphrone, required a lot of work in building up a trusting relationship and sowing the seeds of healthy self-esteem. Initially she brought her mum along with her when she came to appointments, gradually, however her confidence increased and she was able to come alone which was a massive step forward. 

The next step was to build up Saphrone’s confidence in her abilities in an area of her interest. It was arranged for Saphrone to volunteer in the nursery near her home village, an environment with which she was familiar. The nursery was small and friendly and Saphrone blossomed there. Saphrone’s ability to work well with the children was recognised and acknowledged there and this was crucial in improving her confidence and her belief in what she could achieve. 

Attending college now began to seem like a real possibility and we had in-depth discussions on future planning with Saphrone now having the confidence to believe she could cope at college – particularly as her volunteering had convinced her that childcare was what she really wanted to do. Saphrone also developed a friendship with one of the other young people supported by the service and as she had applied to college as well, the knowledge of having a friend to go with, really helped Saphrone. 

Saphrone received an unconditional offer from Dumfries and Galloway college of a place on a childcare course starting in the autumn. She is delighted and we are beginning planning for the next stage in her life and ensuring she has a network of support when she starts college.  Saphrone is moving forward in her life and her level of confidence is very different from what it was when she first recieved support from the service.