Ken's story

Ken age 53 years from Gateshead

“Two years ago my wife passed away in her sleep unexpectedly aged just 49. It was such a shock. She was everything to me, my best friend, and we’d been together for 35 years. I tried to put a brave face on it and get on with things after the funeral but to be honest I took it very badly. Work became a struggle, I decided after 7 years there to move to another company but it turned out that it wasn’t the job, it was me. I took some time off for a couple of months but I was drinking too much, my money I’d saved started to run out, I just went into a massive depression spiral. There seemed to be no other option other than to take my own life. I made a plan and was waiting for the right opportunity to make an attempt, I was about to do it and my daughter called me out of the blue which interrupted me. I’d been seeing the GP fairly regularly and I went back to talk to them and just broke down and confessed what had happened. I was referred to the crisis team who I saw for a bit, I tried group therapy but that wasn’t for me, I needed help rather than to listen to other people’s problems. I didn’t want to talk to my family and friends, they would have got worried about me – and then I got referred to James’ Place.

My experience at James’ Place was really exceptional. My therapist was fantastic, she immediately put me at ease and I was able to open up and express my feelings for the first time. I think I was in tears for the first three sessions. Having someone there who was qualified to deal with my situation made me feel very comfortable and safe. Over seven sessions of therapy, I really changed. I stopped drinking, my mind became sharper and less foggy, I felt better in myself. I’m just on a different path now where I am more positive about the future and getting myself ready to go back to work. I’m trying to help other people going through a difficult time with what I’ve learnt. It’s been such an education that sharing your feelings and opening up is so worthwhile and does really help. I just want to let everyone know to embrace any help that’s offered to you, things are never as bad as you think, you just need to learn to stop beating yourself up. James’ Place helped to open my eyes that my life was worth fighting for.”

To make a donation to help men like Ken click here