Is put to positive use

Initiative will help people overcome their own issues

ERIN Schepers has vivid memories of being taken into a corner at school and beaten up by people she thought were her friends.

Her school days were a misery due to constant bullying by her peers.

Poor mental and physical health has also taken its toll on Erin and she had to face the trauma caused by the suicide of her beloved grandfather.

But now the 27-year-old has decided to put these experiences to good use and help others to break down the stigma attached to suicide and mental health.

As part of the Foolish Optimism project – a ground-breaking mental health film and national roadshow launched in Dundee last year – she helped set up, Erin has taken the decision to shine a light on her past, with World Suicide Prevention Day next week and World Mental Health Awareness Day next month.

She said: “Foolish Optimism has encouraged me to face many issues in my life, including the suicide of my grandfather.

“Through the project I was able to finally grieve for my grandad.

“I understood his actions and his reasoning but had buried my hurt and upset for nearly a year.

“Foolish Optimism really encouraged me to face it, to allow the grieving process to happen.

“It also gave me a chance to reflect with others who have been suicidal about the aftermath as someone who has been through the experience.

“I decided that if so many other people had been brave enough to speak out then I should too.”

Last year the project featured a film telling the stories of young people with mental health challenges.

It also involved a roadshow that toured almost 30 locations across Scotland focusing on the harsh realities of mental health.

This year six mini-films will be created, concentrating on the same subjects. The films will be released once a week, culminating on World Mental Health Day on October 10.

Erin said: “I was born in Dundee to a single parent mum, grew up on benefits and, while financially poor, I was blessed with a mother who managed to get me involved with as many various activities as possible while I was a kid.

“However, both primary and high school were tough for me. During those years I struggled socially to survive.

“Academically I was always in the top classes, received high grades and generally that area was successful. It was socially where things were not successful.”

Erin said she misread social cues and didn’t understand how to make or maintain friends.

“I was an easy target for bullying because I couldn’t read body language.

“I misread situations as people being friendly but I hadn’t realised it was actually the opposite,” she said.

“This led to me going off to meet a group of ‘friends’ only to be lured into a corner at school and beaten up.”

She would not come to understand her problems socialising until years later.

It wasn’t until she went to university in 2011 that she discovered she had Asperger’s syndrome and her time at school began to make more sense for the first time.

“It was a relief to get the diagnoses and many things fell into place.

“I hope Foolish Optimism helps others who are struggling with all these issues,” she added.