“I never thought it would happen to me”: Vicki’s story

Vicki, then aged 38, lost her job, home and family. She spent years living on the streets and sleeping on sofas.

Porchlight helped Vicki to rebuild her life. Now she works for us, helping people in similar situations to manage their mental health before it pushes them into homelessness.

How mental health problems led to homelessness

Before Vicki became homeless, she was a healthcare worker. Things began to unravel when her long-term relationship ended. Vicki moved out of the family home and into her own flat. She developed anxiety and depression which left her unable to work.

“I was struggling to get out of bed, let alone get to a doctor to get an official sick note,” she says.

“I was eventually sacked by my employer for not handing sick notes in on time. But the ongoing issues with my mental health had run me into the ground. I lost my job and was evicted from the flat I’d been renting.”

Sleeping on the streets

Vicki began sleeping on other people’s sofas. Some turned her onto drugs which she started using as a coping mechanism for mental health. "I was so lonely and thought these people were my friends but they weren't," she says.

Eventually, Vicki ended up on the streets. She spent her first night in a church graveyard.

"I didn't sleep because I thought somebody was going to come for me. I was constantly on high alert. I had worked all my life, paid all my taxes and yet was out on the streets. I couldn't believe it was happening to me. I couldn't believe that a single woman had been left to fend for herself. I was lost, alone, afraid and extremely vulnerable.”

Vicki started living in a tent. It was regularly vandalised and her things were often stolen.

She says: “I had been a professional woman and a good mother, but now all my confidence and self-belief had disappeared. I felt suicidal at one point, if I'm honest."

Giving Vicki somewhere safe to live

When Porchlight met Vicki, she’d been homeless for nearly three years. We gave her a flat in one of our supported living properties. It was somewhere she could finally feel safe and start rebuilding her life.

She says: “I was elated when they showed me my room. At last someone realised I needed support and was willing to help me. It felt great having somewhere I could lock the front door and feel safe, make plans and start building a life for myself.

“I was surrounded by Porchlight staff who cared about my wellbeing. I wasn't seen as a tick box exercise. I was valued and encouraged.”

Over time, Vicki regained her confidence, reconnected with her children and enrolled on a college counselling course. She eventually moved into a place of her own

Rebuilding her life and joining Porchlight

After leaving Porchlight, Vicki began volunteering at a local homelessness shelter and eventually got a job there. When an opportunity to join Porchlight’s mental health team came up, she jumped at it.

"Porchlight does what other services don’t I and wanted to use my experiences to help others in a similar situation to me," she says.

Vicki, now 50, is now a Porchlight mental health worker. She helps people to manage their mental health and also address issues that might be affecting it, such as insecure housing or debt.

"When you're struggling, it can be difficult to do daily tasks like making calls, filling in forms, talking to professionals or even expressing your needs,” she explains.

" I understand what people are going through and can tell them there's hope because I've been there too. A lot of the people I work with do end up feeling hopeful for the future again.”