Stuart Coulsell was a service user at Tulip mental health day centre when the project decided to participate in an initiative to develop a mental health version of the Outcomes Star. Stuart completed the Star three times as part of the pilot as well as participating in workshops to amend the Star for service users with mental health issues.
Here he describes what it was like to use the Star and how it helped him through his recovery and into work:
Before using the Star the help I received from the project was very responsive.
If I was in crisis the staff would give me support and that was great, but when I wasn’t in a crisis I was left alone.
Because I was calm and settled, I didn’t attract their attention but in fact a lot of the time I was very low.
The Star made a massive difference to me
Because it showed me that there were things I could do to become the person I wanted to be - a more rounded person with a more rounded star.
I had written myself off – I saw myself as a dead man walking, someone going nowhere.
But the Star showed me that there were things that I could do and goals I could achieve.
When you are ill the thought that you can be well seems very daunting but the Star breaks it down into baby steps and you start to feel: Yes, I can do this.
That really built my confidence and gave me hope.
Seen as a whole person
The language is very plain and simple – there was no medical jargon for me to get my head around.
Because it is so visual I could see where I was and where I was going which you just can’t do with a traditional support plan. And whereas before it had felt like the key-worker was telling me what to do, this felt like a joint process.
For the first time it felt like they were seeing me as a person rather than as a problem and that really built my confidence.
The Star as part of Recovery
Now I am working as a support worker in a drop-in centre for people with mental health problems and we are about to start using the Star. Because the Star helped me so much I am really looking forward to using it with the service users here.
In the role of key-worker it will help me to feel more professional in my work.
It will bring a focus and direction to the conversations that I have and I will feel that I am taking part in someone’s recovery rather than just keeping them calm and out of trouble.
To any key-worker who is about to use the Star I would say it’s great.
The language is straightforward, it will help you build a better relationship with your service users and you will see tangible improvements for them.
Go for it!
To any service user who might have the chance to use the Star I would say – go for it.
It can change your life and make you realise that there is a world out there and you can be part of it.