My close friends make me really happy. They're very supportive of me.
I first became homeless when I had to leave my parents' house because of a domestic violence issue. I was then housed in the hotels by the Council throughout most of the pandemic. I'm now in a privately rented place. Beam was going to originally help me with housing, but I was able to sort this out independently. They've been good enough to support me with some housing essentials as I've newly moved in and don't have the things I need to make this house a home yet.
The biggest obstacle I've overcome was probably the effects that living at one of the hotels had on me. I really struggled when I was there. While I'm grateful that I had accommodation and could feel safe, it was really really hard being in that environment and it spoke to a lot of the fears that I had about being potentially homeless for a long time. I was also learning to live without my family and that was hard.
I want to become a carer because I love caring for people. I do it naturally anyway, so it seems like a great job to start doing. I also have a bit of experience. I was looking after my grandma for the weeks before she passed away. It was difficult to have to do that, but I'm really grateful that I could make the last few weeks of her life as comfortable as possible. I think I could help to make sure people maintain their independence, and if it came to it, ensure that they're as comfortable and happy as possible towards the end of their life.
My dream in life is to own my own house. I'd even love to get involved in real estate one day. I know what homelessness feels like now and I'd like to see if I could do something with affordable housing. My dad is actually a landlord and growing up I saw a lot of his work which inspired me.
I love the feeling of having people behind me who want to support me. I went through such a dark time of feeling alone and confused, and generally not knowing my rights when I was homeless. I've now come across genuinely nice and caring people working at Beam.
Knowing that I'm taking the next steps to where I want to be is so exciting! I'm learning to get more comfortable with asking for help and learning to accept it. I think this is a great opportunity to do just that.