Natalya’s Story : “I’m much happier than I used to be.”

I joined The Way, Wolverhampton Youth Zone to become a more confident person, to make friends and access support for the things that I want to do when I’m older. 

My first day at The Way was scary. I didn’t really know anyone or who to talk to. The youth workers were really nice and welcoming. I was a bit scared to speak to anyone, but I ended up meeting quite a few people and now they’re friends. I wasn’t that confident a person, coming to The Way really helped with that.  

When I’m at the Youth Zone I go to the gym, play basketball, and music. I’ve always been quite a musical person, and I really like to play the drums. My favourite thing about the Youth Zone is how nice and supportive the youth workers are. It’s quite easy to make friends, you can have a joke with the staff about anything, but they’re also there if you need support, like with your mental health, they’re always there to have a chat.  

Coming to The Way has definitely made me more confident. To be honest, it has helped with my mental health quite a lot too. I’m much happier than I used to be. I’m not as much of an introvert anymore. I’m more confident and I want to talk to people and engaging in different activities. 

I’ve had an interest in joining the army since I was about four years old due to family members being in the army too, so I kind of took quite a big interest. I’ve wanted to be a soldier for a long time, and I’ve tried to get fitness levels up so I can achieve that goal one day. 

Having a gym at The Way has really helped with my fitness, especially with the different sports from football to basketball, to badminton. Everything has really helped me become a fitter person and has made me mentally stronger.