Emma’s Journey
Content warning:
This story contains references to domestic violence, which some readers may find distressing. Please take care while reading.
I was sleeping with my four kids in my car. I was fleeing domestic violence. A car is a good weapon to have – it’s steel. You can lock the doors. But it’s not a liveable thing.
It wasn’t easy for the kids. I just made sure they were fed, bathed, clothed, and warm.
I’d work as a nurse while the kids were at school. But I was in fight-or-flight mode, every minute of every hour of every day. Until I got paid, then I’d get us a hotel for three days. It felt like Christmas every time.
I ended up in the hospital being treated for grief and bipolar. It was then that I was visited by someone from Uniting’s team.
One day, Uniting took me to see a house. I assumed the housing was only temporary. But they told me it was my forever home. That changed everything.
Two weeks later, the NDIS rang me. You are eligible for NDIS funding, and I said, “What’s NDIS?”
Uniting explained to me what the NDIS was and how it would support me.
Davina, my support worker, helps me track my progress across different parts of my life. How I feel about the house, the community, myself. What I’ve been doing, where I’m at.
I’m kicking ass.
If I didn’t have Davina from Uniting WA, or one of her colleagues ringing me regularly and touching base, I could easily slip. People like me, living with bipolar or PTSD or other mental health challenges, need that kind of support.
Even just a phone call helps. It’s motivating. It makes me want to get into my craft room and create.
Now, I feel at peace in my forever home. I feel more secure; I sleep at night. I love the stability. I feel like, maybe it’s my time to shine a little bit.
There's more than one way home
You've seen Emma's story - now follow Paul and James as they walk their own paths.
These stories were discovered among others through independent research we commissioned to explore the nuanced, often complex journeys of people building a pathway out of homelessness.
Paul
