Isle Lose it goes to school....literally!

So this morning I took myself right out of my comfort zone and headed into South Axholme Academy to talk about all things health to the Year 10's.

To say I was nervous was an understatement, but thankfully no one fell asleep and I didn't get heckled!

As a child growing up I faced more than my fair share of issues regarding body image; my Mum died when I was 6. My Dad was an alcoholic and as a result I was passed between Grandparents, Godparents and neighbors.  

It was an extremely unsettling time. 

By the time I was 11 I had started to self-harm. On top of problems at home I was bullied at school for being so skinny. Unlike the other 13/14 year old girls who were developing breasts, I was completely flat chested and stick thin - I guess an easy target. 

By the time I was 15 I was already displaying symptoms of the eating disorder Bulimia and things went downhill from there. 

It wasn't until I was almost 30 years old that I started to turn things around for myself. 

That's a long time to wait to 'get well'. 

Children nowadays are under so much pressure, not least from social media; bombarded with images of 'perfection' that for some, may lead to them feeling totally inadequate, fat and ugly and extremely self-conscious.   

Not only that, but they are under pressure from a whole host of other areas and lets face it, have a lot to deal with. 

They may not be dealing with exactly what I dealt with BUT the symptoms could well be the same. 

And that is why I am volunteering to take Isle Lose It into school; to try to show the children that need it there is a different way, and there are people out there who 'get it' and who can help. 

I will be facing the Year 9's on Friday then starting my sessions with them the week after every Tuesday straight after school. 

I hope they will turn up and give the sessions a try. 

If there had been someone like me to talk to back when I was struggling then maybe things would have been different for me, who knows?

I definitely don't have all the answers, but I do have some. 

Wish me luck!