Youth2Youth: Will you help a troubled teenager wake up smiling once again?

Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog on Youth2Youth, a helpline run by teenagers themselves aiming to provide support and advice for people aged 11 to 19 who are suffering in silence. Many teens find it easier to talk to people their own age, but they do not know anyone that they trust enough to confide in, due to the fact that most are unaware that trained teenager volunteers are always only a phone call or an email away.

1 in 5 teenagers will experience depression before they reach adulthood. However, less than 33% of those suffering will receive the right kind of support.

No one should have to spend endless days with only the silence of their bedroom for company, dreading the next time they must face the world.

In such an isolated environment, many give up on their lives. Some decide to relieve themselves from their pains through self harming, and are often not helped soon enough.

A donation of as little as £10 can help train a volunteer, which will then be able to prevent the constant tears which fill many teenage eyes.

Lucy was a victim of cyber bulling:
"When I started secondary school, I was nervous but excited at the same time. In less than a month, my best friend and I were hanging around with two other girls. We were constantly together.

My friend Becky walked to school with a girl in our year. We were introduced but straight away I knew that she wasn’t my type of girl, and I didn’t make much of an effort to be involved.

Like most I spent a lot of time on Facebook, and one night very upsetting comment appeared on my page. I just deleted it and logged of, but more kept appearing. I was really hurt and decided to close down my account. Soon after I created a new one, with all privacy settings on. When I received a request from Becky’s friend, I accepted it straight away. The horrid comments again. I became quiet at school and lied to my friends when they questioned my behaviour. When walking past Becky’s friend in the corridor I heard a "Waddle, waddle, eat, eat." which I knew was aimed at me. I decided to keep everything to myself. I started missing school and hardly saw my friends. One night after an argument with my mum I started self-harming. My mum screamed when she saw, so I broke down and told her everything. First thing the next day she took me to see my teacher and I told her too. It felt great to share what I had been bottling up."

Lucy was very fortunate. What if her mum hadn’t walked in at that moment? What if it had all carried on? Lucy might not be here today to share her story. Please help Youth2 Youth make sure that every victim like Lucy gets a fresh start in life. Visit www.youth2youth.co.uk for additional information and to offer that life changing donation.

 Are you now more informed about the suffering teenagers and Youth2Youth?
 Has my blog persuaded you to donate to the charity?
 Would you be prepared to try out as a volunteer in the future?
I would be extremely grateful if you could post a reply including answers to the questions above, as well as your hometown and country (if not UK.)

Thank you very much once again,

Julia.