Talking to a counsellor helped Reece understand more about their identity and emotions - and steer them away from self-harm.
The conversations within the therapy room in their secondary school and at a charity 鈥� and the coping strategies suggested by their counsellors - have stuck with Reece.
As Reece puts it; the chance to talk through feelings, anxieties and negatives and have someone there to listen have 鈥渉elped me find myself.鈥�
鈥淚 feel comfortable in my own skin and walking outside now.
鈥淚 can open my curtains, look outside, and not feel like everybody鈥檚 staring at me. I鈥檓 not paranoid anymore and I feel like I have friends.鈥�
Reece began to see their school counsellor in year 10, following several years of self-harming, body images issues and difficulties with family relationships.
'I bottled up my emotions'
The teenager identifies as non-binary and came out as gay at school in 2017. They told how they faced a backlash from students because of that.
鈥淚 was the sort of person to bottle my emotions up and I wouldn鈥檛 talk about it,鈥� they said.
鈥淏ut I knew these weren鈥檛 things I could deal with on my own any more. I needed another person for support and to have someone to talk to.鈥�
It was Reece鈥檚 mum who first suggested they visit their school counsellor.
鈥淭he first thing my counsellor did was get me talking about what I thought was wrong and how my only form of expression was self-harm. It was like I was being introduced to myself.
鈥淚 struggled a lot to voice my own opinion as I felt it would constantly be wrong. But my counsellor helped me find a way to voice what I was feeling.
'I could say anything that was on my mind'
They added: 鈥淚 had someone to talk to where I could just say anything that was on my mind that was getting me down.鈥�
Reece also found it helpful that the counsellor was within school. There were regular sessions but was also a drop-in service available.
鈥淚t was easier because the counsellor was always around the school. She was there every day, a friendly face, very consistent.鈥�
And it wasn鈥檛 just about talking, said Reece.
鈥淪ometimes I just did a piece of writing or a drawing to show how I felt. I didn鈥檛 feel pressurised to say those things out loud at that moment, we could just pick it up when I felt ready to talk about it.
Writing things down has helped Reece avoid a negative outlook in many aspects of their life.
鈥淪he suggested that I started writing in a mood diary. Every day I would write in my notebook, and score out of 10 how I felt, what my main emotion was and what caused that feeling.
鈥淲e could see a pattern; what would cause me to have a depressed mood.鈥�
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As well as a school counsellor, Reece also saw a counsellor at Service Six, a charity that provides specialist therapeutic support to young people in Northamptonshire.
鈥淲e looked at my personal issues, my outlets and what was going on.鈥�
Again, the counsellor suggested writing things down.
鈥淚 write any negative things down on a piece of paper and then get rid of it, screw it up or throw it in the bin. It鈥檚 done then. I鈥檝e got it off my chest. It鈥檚 not something I have to worry about. I don鈥檛 have to keep it bottled up anymore.
鈥淚t means I鈥檝e confronted these negatives things myself. I鈥檝e resolved these issues and the baggage I had in my way. Because that bit of paper has gone, I can鈥檛 stumble across it again.
鈥淭his has helped me find a way that I can be independent. I鈥檓 in charge of my own mood.鈥�
The counselling has helped Reece find another outlet for their emotions, other than self-harm.
鈥淢y self-harm is not as bad anymore. If I feel bad, I鈥檝e gone back and thought what鈥檚 the best thing I can do for myself rather than self-harming.
'Counselling helped me find myself'
鈥淐ounselling helped me find myself. I was struggling with my sexual identification, my gender identification.
鈥淚t made me realise who I am and that I can鈥檛 really change it. I shouldn鈥檛 change it. It feels normal.
听鈥淭hat allowed me to not feel ashamed and to go out in public, do events and run clubs in school. It鈥檚 helped me feel like I鈥檓 a normal person.鈥�
Reece has also now found another release 鈥� martial arts.
They have been training in Kata for the past two years.
鈥淚t鈥檚 my form of release. My training has made me more tired. When I鈥檓 lying in bed I don鈥檛 dwell on the hardships of the day, I鈥檓 sleeping a lot easier. I feel less weighted when I go to bed.
鈥淐ompeting in martial arts is the biggest thing I鈥檝e ever done.鈥�
As someone who has benefited from it, Reece is keen to stress the importance of school-based counselling.
鈥淚t felt normal to go and see my school counsellor.
鈥淗aving counsellors in schools would take the pressure off the NHS-provided services. Young people will feel their mental health issues are being recognised, rather than going to extremes.鈥�
And it鈥檚 not just helped them, but inspired Reece鈥檚 future plans.
鈥淚 have a career path planned which is going into counselling and psychiatry. This has been majorly influenced by my counsellor.
鈥淚鈥檝e always had a passion for helping people. Working with my counsellor, I realised that鈥檚 how I want to be. I want to help other people the way my counsellor has helped me.鈥�
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To find a counsellor or psychotherapist听visit our Find A Therapist directory.