Testimonials

I attended one of the workshops and learnt more in 2 hours that I had in the year I have vbeen trying to get help for my sone

Parent of ASD teenager, November 2023

“Your work with my daughter was truly amazing. I watched her skip out of the room with a smile that I had not seen for a long time.  Thank you”

Parent of an 8-year-old female.  March 2023

“I knew I needed support again with my mental health and the only place I wanted to come back and that was back to you”

Young adult, aged 18, February 2023

 

“My son has been accessing support from professionals and mental health workers for years.  You are the only person he has every trusted and fully engaged with. I wish I had been referred to you before as I believe things could have been so different”

Parent of a 15-year-old male.  January 2023

“Being a man it is really hard trying to get the courage to ask for help and admit you need counselling.  Your approach to me was so good and I felt you understood my mental health and how hard it was to be a man in society, you just got it.  I have told so many of my male friends about you.  I will be forever grateful for what you did for me, but also for what you have done for my family by helping me”

Male adult client aged 31. September 2022

“I never realised until I met you how much support I really needed.  I wish I had done this many years before instead of just pushing it down and ignoring it

Female adult client aged 59.  August 2022

“I will never be able to put into words what you have done for my daughter.  I have been sent to so many services for help and never got the support she needed.  You lived up to everything you said and she has not tried to take her life by suicide since seeing you”

Parent of a 15-year female.  July 2022

“I can 100% say from the bottom of my heart that if I never met Lesley my hopes and dreams of Xxxx going back into school for the last year would NEVER have happened. The way Lesley works with Xxxx is remarkable she listens understands but takes control of ever situation I’ve never seen this before she is excellent at what she does.

With lesley’s intervention I now feel that Xxxx has more of a future in progressing into college and further into the work place environment. I feel that none of this would have been possible without out the help from lesley and her team . I would like to thank everyone from STRENGTH  IN MIND because that’s exactly what the have given my son Xxxx”

Parent of a 15-year-old boy.  Non-attendance 3 years due to mental health and Anxiety.  July 2022

“A man coming to counselling is against all we are told as boys and men.  It is not okay for men to ask for help.  The counsellor made me feel so relaxed on the initial call.  Ask for just 1 session with me and I could walk away.  Once I had that first session, I left feeling so much better and came back week after week”

Male client, aged 45.  June 2022

 

“I had tried to take my life when I met this team.  I did not see this light that supposedly shone at the end of the tunnel.  Mine was just black and a very deep never-ending tunnel.  I am still on a journey but I now know, people do care and it is okay to ask for help”

Male Client, aged 33.  June 2022

“The sessions gave me a space to talk about everything and that made me feel happier.  I was never really able to talk about things to friends or other people but with you I could talk about everything and this has now helped me to now talk to friends when I need help.  The session has normalized things for me. Without this support I would not have continued attending 6th form as I was struggling so much  with the death of my mum”

Female Student – aged 17 years.  March 2022

 

“I understand everything now, you gave me explanations and reasons for all the things I mentioned in sessions and gave me strategies to prevent the way I felt.

Without this support, I would have stopped coming to school and stayed in my room because my anxiety was so bad”

Male student – aged 15 March 2022

“Since coming to you I have felt so much better and not felt that horrible feeling I was getting before.  I wish I had taken the plunge and done this years ago instead of waiting.  It’s like the bloke rule – we don’t talk about our feelings and stuff and that is so wrong”

Adult male – aged 22 – December 2021

“I have never been able to talk about my dad dying, I think this is the first time I have spoken about how I really feel”

Young boy – aged 11 – November 2021

“I have seen so many different counsellors and never really like it or really liked them.  You have really have been the best and I really love coming”

Teenage Girl – aged 16.  November 2021

“This has meant a lot to me, I’ve never had a therapist actually listen and care about me before. I used to feel like suicide was the only option I was so overwhelmed with everything even little things and I felt it was the only solution. but being able to have someone to listen and work with me has helped me a lot even if I’ve got a long way to go still, it’s helped me unpack a lot of things and become less emotionally explosive and I’m much better than I was before, I’m in a much better place and suicide doesn’t feel like the only option I can actually semi function now, I’m looking after myself more than before, I’m even picking up hobbies Both old and new and I’m making changes in my life I need, it feels like I’m an actual person again”

Transgender student – aged 16. July 2021

“No one listened to me or believed me.  You were the first person that acknowledged how hard this was for me and did not tell me I would be okay”

A teenage girl – aged 17 April 2021

“I was worried about coming but I really enjoyed the session.  You made counselling fun and I have learnt so much about how to stop the anxiety from taking over”

John Warner Student, aged 15
January 2021

“Thank you for your contribution to my healing from my trauma and grief, which is obviously working progress. You offered a safe and warm environment for me to reflect and just rant which I will forever be grateful for. One thing I have learned from our sessions is to stay in touch with myself and how I feel. Let it all go! This is something I’m still working on!

I will continue to use the many tools shared in our sessions in order to stay in touch with my mental and emotional well being.
You are a light in the midst of darkness for many. Never underestimate your presence in someone’s life.  I will never forget you ❤❤ I wish you every success”😘

Family Member Murdered. Female, age 40
December 2020

“I would tell everyone not to wait.  I wanted more sessions but I only had so many part-funded and could not afford to continue, but the 15 I had were very positive for me”

Female, relationship breakdown aged 32
May 2020

“Leigh was the only person I would talk with.  Trusted her so much”

Student. Male aged 17

“This ended up being one of the most positive experiences.  I was not open to therapy, but what I thought therapy was and what I had with Leigh was so different.  Life-changing”

Man with trauma.  April 2020

‘The tragic and unexpected death of my son in 2015 shattered my family’s world. It left us all consumed by guilt and grief. The fact that he had taken his own life meant we felt unable to discuss our feelings for fear of upsetting each other. So we existed in our own isolated bubbles. After the funeral and the first painful anniversaries, I felt unable to speak about my son as I was haunted by the events of that dreadful day but also feared forgetting his voice and what made him so special. As a mother, I began to question my judgement as a parent. 

The support I have received from Lesley has had a dramatic impact on me and my family. Initially, the focus was very much on managing my grief, acknowledging that I needed to talk and cry. I was constantly bottling up my feelings. I was also encouraged to talk about my son and my memories of him so that I was not fixated on that tragic day. This intensive support gave me the courage and confidence to celebrate my son’s life rather than be obsessed with the endless unhelpful questions which had fueled my guilt.

I am not saying that everything in my life has been resolved but I feel I have been given the tools of how to manage and feel empowered whereas previously I was broken’.

Mother and child bereavement. 2020
(abstract of letter)

‘Leigh, You have helped me through one of the worst times of my life.  Thank you for your ongoing support’

A parent struggling with separation. 2020

Lesley has supported me emotionally going threw my illness with cancer. Also helping find the best support for our child with additional needs who has ASD/ADHD with Dyspraxia. She really is passionate about finding ways to really understand what a family needs or is going threw.  You can tell she is passionate about her job.  At times when things have been a bit overwhelming, she has helped other family members understand the situation. To anyone who needs this kind of support, you couldn’t get a more passionate, skilled worker who wants the best outcome for who she works with. 

Mother with terminal cancer. 2020

Lesley supported me through the most hideous time of my life.  I would not be in this place without her support, it really was amazing….she was amazing and so easy to speak with.  

A client with a family bereavement. 2019

Thank you for everything you have supported me with.  I don’t think you realise how amazing you are at your job.

Adult with extreme anxiety. 2019

I have never spoken or trusted anyone as I did to you.

A teenage client with depression and self-harm. 2019

Lesley, Thank you so much for all your wise word, tips and support.  It will help as we walk this path!

Love St. Albans Flash Mums XXX. 2019
(More feedback from each parent on programmes page)