Marcus says that before Merrimu he pretty much did nothing.
“I was having a go, trying to deal with my anxiety and trying to get better. I did the usual day-to-day stuff like cleaning the house,” he says.
Marcus says that working with his support worker Peter has helped him feel more confident to try new things without feeling anxious. Before he started at Merrimu one of Marcus’ goals was to travel outside of his hometown Ballan.
Since he’s been supported by Enhancing Independence, Merrimu’s 24/7 personal care, Marcus has been out a lot visiting other towns.
“I’ve been here there and everywhere pretty much. At first I found it hard but then it started to pay off slowly.”
Marcus was very happy when he was able to go to Ballarat without feeling anxious. In the past Ballarat was a place that held some painful memories.
“Returning to Ballarat was a big step for me as people that I knew before still live there. I wanted to avoid it but then I weighed up the situation and asked myself what was the possibility of them running into me in a big town like this? I’ve changed, they’ve changed, they probably don’t even know what I look like.”
When he went to Ballarat Marcus was able to face his fears and was even able to get out of the car (something he wasn’t sure he would be able to do).
“Yeah it was fantastic. It was huge, a great day,” Marcus says. Another thing that has made Marcus proud was that he was able to visit his aunt and uncle that he hadn’t seen for years. “I just turned up, spur of the moment and they supported me. My uncle was very excited as it had been three years since I’d last seen him.”
Marcus has four goals that he wants to achieve. He would like to play cricket this summer. He has started attending cricket training which he is enjoying.
The next three goals are to work someday, drive again and volunteer with the CFA. He will be working on these next and is excited about what the future will hold.
Marcus is extremely happy with how it’s all going. He finds things much easier now and says he gets a lot more variety in his day. He likes Merrimu and he likes all the staff because they’re friendly, outgoing and straight down the line.
When asked what he fi nds hard, he says, “Nothing is really hard for me these days. Things are getting better every day.”
This story is from our 2015 Annual Report. You can read more on our Publications page.