Nadine Moodie was a happy child. She had a mother that looked after her really well and had everything she needed. But when the time came for her to go to secondary school, the relationship with her mother broke down.

As time went on, Nadine’s behaviour went from bad to worse. “It got to the stage where I would have physical fights with my mum - cat fights where we used to scratch, kick and punch each other. When the fights were at their worst, we would threaten each other with knives and even the iron. I was about 13 and this went on for 3 years.”

Bullying

Nadine was not only having problems at home however. Because of her attention-seeking behaviour, she unfortunately attracted the wrong sort of attention at school and started to be severely bullied.

“Although I was surrounded by friends, I still felt alone and didn’t really feel that I could talk to anyone. I didn’t value myself anymore and started cutting myself with knives on my arms and thighs. I thought I was ugly and stupid. On top of it all, I also started smoking and sniffing nail polish remover and became really addicted. I would sniff the liquid for one hour straight, several times a day, every day.

“One day, whilst staying with my father for the week, fed up and scared of the bullying I overdosed on paracetemol and vodka. I just wanted to die. I was rushed to hospital in severe agony and was kept there for a few days.

“Even after the suicide attempt, my behaviour didn’t change. By now, my mum had had enough and ordered me to leave the house so I had to stay with a family friend.”

Nadine's Mother started attending the HelpCentre and here life began to turn around. "When I moved back in, I noticed how different she was. My room was clean, she’d run me baths, cook me meals and she would be so nice with me, patient, and didn’t pressure me about anything.

"Sometimes, she’d ask if I wanted to go to the HelpCentre with her and because she was so different, eventually, I said ok.

"When I first went, I spoke to an assistant and she fed me some positive words and encouraged me to continue coming. I wanted the life she was speaking about.”

The first change that Nadine noticed was that she wasn’t afraid to go back to school on Monday. She decided to change her behaviour and began catching up on her schoolwork. “I was changing and because I stopped doing bad things, trouble stopped coming to me,” she said. “The bullying and name-calling stopped, and rumours died down to nothing. I was attending the HelpCentre regularly and received strength to stop smoking and sniffing solvents."

Needless to say Nadine's life took a great turn for the better.

“I wanted to work in a school and help young people reach their full potential because of my awful past. Without the proper qualifications, I applied for jobs in schools regardless. I’m just 20 and am now a teacher’s assistant. I’m really enjoying it and have plans for even bigger things. Watch this space.”

 

Nadine Moodie