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Essex Young Carers DVD
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Who is a young carer?
Young carers are young people whose lives are in some way different because they provide care, assistance or support to another family member. The person they care for is often a parent but could be a brother, sister, grandparent or other relative.
A young carer may be dealing with a range of situations, such as:
- Disability.
- Chronic illness.
- Mental health difficulties.
- Problems with drugs or alcohol misuse.
What is a young carer? - Video by Barnardo's - the children's charity.
The help a young carer can offer
The help that you give could be as little as assisting with:
- shopping
- cooking
- cleaning
- laundry
- managing the family budget.
You may take on more responsibility and provide nursing care, such as giving medication and helping someone move around the house. Forgetting all else you can spare some of your time to sit with someone to keep them company and listen to their problems.
Are you a young carer?
If you are a young carer it may help to read about the different types of situation young carers in Essex are dealing with every day, how they coped and their thoughts and feelings.
The effects of being a young carer
Caring for other people at home can affect how you feel. You might feel proud of what you do at home or you might feel angry, sad or frustrated, and you may feel all of these things at different times. You might feel that your friends or others don't understand what you're going through. Coping with your feelings on your own can be tough. Being a young carer can affect:
- how much free time you have
- your friendships or cause you trouble at school
- your school or college work
Your feelings
If someone you are close to has an illness, a disability or a problem with drugs/alcohol, you can have a lot of confusing feelings and you can read more in our article about coping with illness. It is important that you:
- take time away from the situation; you can visit our free time section for things to do
- share the care if you can, this will help you keep on top of your school or college work
- talk to someone about how you are feeling, this could be friends, relatives or other carers
Support
Many young people don't see themselves as carers and as a result may miss out on essential parts of their lives, or not realise that there is practical help and emotional support available in Essex. You can talk confidentially to a Connexions Personal Adviser in your nearest Connexions Centre/One Stop Shop. They will listen to you and could put you in touch with support groups that can help.
Help Lines
- Connexions Direct - 080 800 13 2 19
- Childline - 0800 1111
Useful websites
Essex Young Carers
This website has been set up to help assist young carers in their lives and helps them get support.
Include Project
Support for young carers and their family across the UK.
Young Carers
This site has discussion boards where you can talk to people about caring and anything else you're worried about.
Barnardo's
Barnardo's believe in the potential of every child and young person, no matter who they are, what they have done or what they have been through.
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