My name is William*. I was born into a large family who always struggled with money. When I became an adult, I married and started a family of my own, raising three children. In my thirties, my father passed away from lung disease. This took a massive toll on me, as did my broken relationship with my mother who very quickly remarried and moved away after my father’s death. I was also a carer for my wife who had severe physical needs, so I couldn’t work.

The pressure weighed down on me, and in my forties I was diagnosed with depression and COPD. In desperation I turned to alcohol to cope with my panic attacks and low self esteem, but this drove my family deeper into financial difficulty, until one day my wife left me and I found myself at the Ferry Project’s door, desperate for help.

I had been planning how to end my life and had written a number of suicide notes. My anxiety meant I slept less than three hours a night. I was drinking at least 24 cans of lager a week, and I was £17,000 in debt. My situation was dire.

But Ferry Project didn’t give up on me.

I began to engage with the mental health team, finding support after struggling for so long. I went to grief counselling and began to process my father’s death. I successfully applied for benefits and began to pay off my debts, joined a gym, and took on voluntary work around the hostel, completing odd jobs and helping to cook the clients’ Sunday roast each week. My self confidence grew which affecred every area of my life in amazing ways.

After six months at the Ferry Project, I returned to my family, ready to rebuild my marriage and restore my relationships with my children.

*Name changed for anonymity