We have long championed and valued co-production across our services, using the voices, views and insight from service users to provide the very highest standards of care. Our Experts by Experience (EbyE) help ensure the opinions of service users are heard and considered across the organisation and that feedback is actioned upon to improve our services.
In our latest blog, we hear from one of our new Experts by Experience, Euan Atkinson, a former service user at Cygnet Hospital Wyke in Bradford. He talks about his own mental health battles and the value he hopes to bring to Cygnet, and those we care for, through the EbyE role.
My mental health struggles
I’ve been in hospital twice, once in 2022 and then again in 2023. Both times going in I had become engrossed in my own world, I couldn’t think rationally.
I was in a disconnected state where what I thought was happening and what was really happening were completely different. I was in a really volatile frame of mind and had a dangerous sense of self-confidence.
My mental health journey
My problems started in 2019 when my relationship broke down. I became very depressed and attempted suicide. My mum supported me and I was helped by an early intervention service. My community care wasn’t enough and I was admitted into hospital, though after five weeks I was discharged.
Following a trip to Asia with my dad, I became paranoid and my mental health relapsed. I was admitted into Cygnet Hospital Wyke where I initially struggled to settle but the staff put the time and effort in to reassure me and build our rapport. This then gave me the comfort and confidence to grow and learn, helping me become the person I am today.
It was the unwavering support and dedication of the staff on the ward that allowed me to take control of the turbulent journey of life and make better choices. Their guidance gave me the strength to maintain a healthy mindset and lifestyle. Without the people who cared for me and wanted the best for me, even when I didn’t know what that was, I would not be in the position I am today.
Becoming an Expert by Experience
Whilst I was in Cygnet Hospital Wyke, I was given the opportunity to fill in an application form. A year after discharge, I had just finished a course in Railway Engineering however because of my medication, I was not allowed to do safety critical work.
I received an email asking if I was still interested and it came at just the right time, when I wasn’t sure what would be open to me. I was given training and then I was given the green light to become an EbyE.
Now I go to Cygnet Hospital Wyke and Cygnet Fountains once a week and I am really enjoying the role and feel I am making a difference already.
My Priorities
My main priority as an EbE is making sure that the service users are comfortable in the service because we cannot be expected to grow and recover in unfavorable conditions. I want to enforce safeguarding, reduce restrictive practice and make the hospital as homely as possible.
I have been involved with a couple of projects already to help achieve this. At Wyke and Fountains, I have been part of the team putting together the social hubs, a homely environment away from the clinical atmosphere on the wards. This has been the ‘brain child’ and passion project of our company Expert by Experience Lead, Raf Hamaizia. These rooms have so many amazing facilities and it enables service users to have FIFA tournaments or movie nights as well as providing a welcoming fun space for group therapies or one to one sessions.
I have also taken part in a safeguarding charter, working with the service users to understand what safeguarding means to them and how staff can best meet their needs. I then take that feedback back to the hospital managers to make sure things are the way they need to be to keep the service users safe, but to also give them the best chance for their recovery.
In our daily battles to improve our positivity and diminish our troubles, it is the collective effort of everyone involved that makes a difference. From the cleaning lady’s cheerful “good morning” to the doctors “see you later” while on their way out, every action is aimed at aiding those who need it most. Service users are people who, through no fault of their own, require help to find balance and stability.
I want to help them seize opportunities and create better lives for themselves.
Why EbyEs are so important
What Experts by Experience contribute is the lived experience of being in hospital and improving our own mental health.
We know what it’s like to be in that position more importantly we know what it takes to get better. With the common goal of finding and remaining in a healthy place mentally means we connect and relate to service users making it easier to support them in their recovery.
I also think it’s hard to take advice and guidance from someone who doesn’t understand the culture and lifestyle around substance abuse as they cannot speak from experience of getting sober.
In my short time as an EbyE, I have been told several times ‘it’s good that you’re here because you know what it’s like to go through the highs and the lows of drug induced illness’.
That common experience goes a long way to helping someone through their darkest days, when they see that recovery is possible.
Looking back
It’s absolutely unbelievable to have gone from the place I was in to where I am now. Eighteen months ago, I was still having irrational thoughts and was in a bad place.
Now I have my head screwed on and I’m feeling better than I have done in a long while.
In fact, I was so honoured to help open one of Cygnet’s new services this year; Cygnet Hospital Wolverhampton. This service will heal homes, restore faith to families, and generate more sustainable futures. I am confident that this place will be a turning point for many families, households and communities, offering hope and transformation.
It helped me to realise myself how far I had come in my own journey. The site is remarkable and I know it will have a profound impact on countless lives and create a brighter, healthier future for everyone who walks through the doors.
I want to use my recovery to support people who are in the place I once was, that is why I am so passionate about the EbyE role and the difference it can make.