Brave Carer’s Leap Of Faith

When eight-year-old Nicola King learned her mother had multiple sclerosis, she had to grow up quickly and became one of Scotland’s youngest carers. Mum Agnes’ MS soon left her severely disabled and relying on her daughter for personal care and household chores.

Now, years later, Lanarkshire woman Nicola, who has been transformed from a chronically shy teenager with no social life to a confident young woman, is helping raise £500,000 for the children’s charity that taught her “how to live a life of her own.”

Nicola, who has been working part-time with NCH Scotland for four years, plans to undertake a parachute jump to raise funds for the help group. The bubbly 23-year-old said: “When mum was diagnosed, I went from being an eight-year-old to an adult virtually overnight.

“It was school, home, look after Mum,’ each day. I was happy to do it but that became all I knew. If I did go out with pals, I’d feel guilty or worry if Mum was okay.” She soon lost all confidence and Nicola admitted: “At school I’d go to the back of the class, hoping that nobody would talk to me and that the teacher would leave me alone.”

As a teenager at Calderhead High in her home town of Shotts, she found little sympathy and remained anxious and isolated until a support worker recommended Motherwell’s NCH support group for young carers. There she soon found new friends and a lot of new confidence.

Nicola said: “It’s not a formal thing there are lots of activities, like arts and crafts, baking or trips to the cinema and you have time to chat. If you’re a young carer, it’s easy to feel like you’re the only one but as you meet others you realise they go through the same things and you all share how you deal with them.”

Agnes died in 2000, a day before Nicola’s 16th birthday. The loss of her mum hit her hard but Nicola has demonstrated her confidence by addressing meetings of the charity’s trustees and talking on radio about the group.

NCH was today launching its Growing Strong appeal to raise £500,000 to help young people develop confidence and good mental health.

Nicola said: “I know how it feels to be a young carer and I’m really enjoying helping them.”