Annabeth, 18, Yokine, WA

Hobbies: Singing, dancing, writing, talking, poi, yoga, cooking, reading, anything to do with music!

What was your experience with depression and anxiety?

When I was 14, some major changes occurred in my life and I suddenly felt as though I didn’t know who I was anymore. I acted like everything was fine and nothing had changed, but in reality, I was falling apart.

I was anxious and upset, I felt like crying all the time and I didn’t know how to deal with my problems. I saw my school psychologist who diagnosed depression and an anxiety disorder and referred me to an out of school psychologist for more in-depth counselling.

I saw my psychologist for over a year and though sometimes it was hard to talk about how I felt, it made me feel so much better. These days, I still have my up and down periods like everyone, but in general I’m happy and healthy and when I do feel down I know to ask for help.

What do you think young people need to know about keeping mentally healthy?

Young people need to understand that your mental health is just as important as your physical health and you need to look after all of yourself! It’s normal to feel down sometimes, but if your mood is starting to impact negatively on your life then the best thing you can do is ask for help.

To help keep mentally healthy, talk about how you’re feeling, surround yourself with people you trust and who care about you, get involved in your community, be physically active and find the things you love to do and dedicate yourself to them.

What does the National Youth Week theme ‘Live it Now!’ mean to you?

To me the National Youth Week theme “Live It Now” is all about making the most of every part of your life and yourself - mentally, emotionally, physically and socially. It’s about getting involved and having the opportunity to have a say about what’s important to me personally and having my opinions heard.

It’s about being inspired by other young people’s stories, experiences and opinions and having a chance to meet with other like-minded young people to help plan our future and improve our present. Youth Week gives me an opportunity to reflect on my own goals and get involved in my community while having an awesome time!

What’s the best thing about being a young person?

The best thing about being a young person is the opportunity to get involved and make real, lasting changes to the future. The world is changing so quickly and events that are happening now will have a severe impact on our own futures. Seeing these changes occur and being able to have my own say about them and possibly impact how situations are dealt with is such an amazing feeling.

Being a young person is also just fun! Exploring who I am and what I want to do and planning my future makes me feel so inspired and hopeful, feelings that I hope I will continue to feel throughout my entire life!