A core part of our HOPEFUL intervention is our library of real-life hope stories told to us by young people who have experienced mental health or social problems. We call these “lived experience” stories. In these stories, they talk about what hope means to them, how they stay hopeful, and how hope helps them. 

You can watch an example lived experience hope story below and tell us your own story of hope to become part of our hope library, helping to inspire other young people around the country!

Your hope story

If you would like to, you can use the form below to tell us your lived experience story about hope. You might like to tell us:

• what hope means to you, what brings you hope, and what you are hoping for,
• how your hope has changed over time, what challenges your hope, and what helps you stay hopeful during difficult circumstances,
• a message of hope for others.

Please do not include any personal or identifiable details, such as names of people or places. We will share as many of these stories as we can on this website – as quotes and/or animated videos. We may use these stories in the HOPEFUL intervention, on this website, and in future research projects that we do. Sending us your story means that you agree to us sharing your story in these ways. It also means that you understand that we may need to edit the content of your story in doing so. We won’t use your real name – you can pick a pseudonym for yourself or we can pick one for you. A pseudonym means a made up name.