For Alfie, school was a daily ordeal. The death of his father at 14 devastated him and he soon became a target for bullying. “People would randomly punch me and push me around,” he said. “They taunted me and made jokes about my dad dying. At 15, I had a mental breakdown and began misusing drugs to self-medicate. By 17, I was admitted to CAMHS [Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service] inpatient unit.”
Eryn had a similarly painful start. After losing her grandfather and dealing with significant challenges at home, she was diagnosed with social anxiety and depression. “I was on high-dosage medication and struggled to attend lessons,” she said. “I was very quiet and couldn’t handle being around other children, so the school put me in a room on my own.
