‘When I was taken into care, I felt angry and confused’
Homeless charity Llamau is raising money to create the first out-of-hours helpline for young homeless people in Wales. Here, Damien, who was made homeless at the age of 19, tells his story...
WHEN Damien was six he was taken into foster care. He had three care placements between then and 17.
At the age of nine, he found out he had Type 1 diabetes and was told by a doctor that if he hadn’t gone to A&E that night, he would have died.
He was homeless at 19. Now he is backing calls for a helpline to be set up to help young people who find themselves on the streets.
“When I was first taken into care aged six, I felt confused and angry. Sometimes I used to head-butt the walls as a way of coping with the way I was feeling.”
Damien was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes aged nine, after his foster carer noticed some concerning symptoms.
“I was taken to my GP and told to come back the next day. My foster carer took me to the A&E department at the Heath hospital that night, where the doctor said if I hadn’t come in that evening I would probably have died.
“At first, when I found out I had Type 1 diabetes, I actually thought it was a joke. I was only nine at the time and I didn’t really understand.
“It wasn’t until I was about 17 that I really understood the seriousness of my illness and that I would have to manage my diabetes for the rest of my life.”
He found moving between multiple care placements and social workers while dealing with his chronic illness incredibly difficult.
But he still managed to attend school and pass his GCSEs.
“I’d never felt that encouraged to do well in school, but I was determined to go to school and earn my GCSEs for myself.
“It wasn’t easy. I struggled with ADHD between Year One and Year Nine, but as I grew older I became more able to manage my ADHD and became more focused at school.”
He lived in a hostel in Cardiff for a year when he was 17, moving back into his parents’ house temporarily