Joanne's Story
Joanne’s Story
Joanne moved to Northern Ireland 5 years ago, after living a life where she suffered physical and psychological abuse from her husband. He was a drug dealer, who used their family home where they lived with their 3 children, to supply drugs to other dealers.
Joanne developed anxiety, depression and attempted suicide. She then turned to drugs and alcohol herself before realising that she needed to get out of this downward spiral. She moved to the North Coast, where she had previously visited friends on holiday. However, she continued to take drugs and party.
Until one day she realised that her life needed to change, that she still had family that cared for her and she needed to be there for them too. She had heard about Vineyard Compassion through Causeway Coast Vineyard Church and contact them for help.
Joanne entered the Link project, a supported volunteer program. Through this project Joanne got access to CAP debt Counselling, this gave her a free solution to her debt and she will be debt free by the end of this year. This lifted a worry and stress from Joanne, as she knew she was taking charge of this part of her life. Joanne said “I felt anxious but the team put me at ease by explaining the process to me. The staff and volunteers were friendly, supportive and didn’t judge me”. This meant a lot to her in helping her to move forward.
Joanne also had access to other services such as the Foodbank and our Emergency Essential packs; this helped meet some of her physical needs. After some time it was decided that Joanne would benefit from a residential program, provided by a partner agency. Joanne entered this program for 8 months. This program helped her deal with her anxiety and depression. They also helped her unravel other feelings that were deep inside and this helped her find a freedom.
On return, Joanne felt more able to deal with life situations. She now volunteers in the Donation Centre and Compassion Cafe at the Hope Centre. She says, “I am looking forward to the next part of my journey. My life before Vineyard Compassion and after is like night and day. Old friends say I am a different person, like I feel brand new.”
Joanne’s hope for the future is to help others find freedom from whatever is holding them back; she wants to continue to volunteer within Vineyard Compassion and undertake training in areas that will help her, help others.