Children & Young People’s Stories

The most important part of the work we do at Mosaic is supporting children and young people through difficult times. Our counsellors are a huge help to families going through a bereavement. Here are some stories from families who have benefitted from the services that Mosaic provide.
Please note, some names have been changed to protect children's identity.

Children & Young people Story

Norah's Story

Norah, 13, lives with her brother and parents. She had been referred to Mosaic for bereavement support because her teachers had seen a decline in her behaviour and focus at school following her maternal aunt’s death from heart failure during COVID. Norah was very close to her aunt, and the pandemic restrictions had meant she was unable to visit her in the hospital nor to say goodbye. This led to feelings of frustration, anger, and some self-harm behaviour, which she couldn't express at home for fear of upsetting her mother.
Counselling aimed to help Norah talk about her aunt's death, express her feelings, improve relationships, and address behavioural concerns. Norah engaged well with the sessions, in which the counsellor used creative methods to help her articulate her emotions and identify alternative coping mechanisms. Joint activities with her mum, including sharing memories and feelings of grief, led to an emotional breakthrough and fostered much better communication between the two.
As a result, Norah's behaviour and communication improved both at home and school. She now envisions a more optimistic future with support from her family and teachers.

Children & Young people Story

Lara's Story

Lara was referred to Mosaic when she was eight years old, following the suicide of her uncle. Being younger, counsellors decided to take an alternative method to approaching her counselling through play therapy. Through this technique, Lara was provided with a safe place to allow her to feel listened to and heard when sharing her feelings. She participated in activities such as playing with sand and puppets, drawing, reading stories and getting involved with sensory play. This enabled her to be able to return to a safe space when she was starting to feel uncomfortable talking about her uncle. Some of the most significant things Lara was able to make were the crafts that held a memorable element such as a memory jar or a calendar of ‘forget-me-not’ days as to keep the memory of her uncle alive.
Overall, the sessions had a positive impact on Lara who took away the resources she was provided with at mosaic, such as the memory box, into her future. She continued to attend Mosaic events such as the residential weekend. The memory box Lara created is ongoing she can continue to add memories to the box things memories about her times with her uncle and future activities that she would have like to share with him.

Children & Young people Story

Nick's Story

Nicolas grew up in Dorset and had a happy childhood; he enjoyed family holidays, practicing his skateboarding skills and walking the dog. Nick’s family offered a tightly knit, loving environment, and he shared a particularly close bond with his dad who shared his passion for skateboarding. This all changed in 2013 when his world as a 13-year-old came crashing down on him. His father died in a road traffic accident.
Nick was always a quiet child but he grew even quieter. He began to struggle with his sleep, fearing that someone would break into the house and the family would be attacked. Emotions were hard to express for him as he became particularly withdrawn having not cried since the funeral. He maintained his schoolwork but his relationship with his mum and his sister deteriorated.
His journey with Mosaic began. Working with one of our counsellors (and a push in the right direction from his mother), he agreed to go to our residential camp. He was initially reluctant to get involved but after only an hour got properly involved with a newfound friend who shared a similar experience to him.
Extended help like this allowed for Nick to adjust to his new life: relationships with his mum and sister improved once again, his love for skateboarding persevered with a new group of friends to go along with and he was once again able to communicate his upset and anger.

Children & Young people Story

Gabrielle's Story

Gabrielle is now 19 and started receiving Mosaic support in 2020 at the age of 15. Since 2017, Gabrielle had experienced 4 bereavements including family members and close friends. She then, sadly encountered 2 further bereavements during her time with Mosaic. Life before Mosaic was very difficult as Gabrielle struggled with her emotions and was unable to talk about her grief.
“I hated everything about myself, school and activities I used to love to do. I found it difficult to understand why I was feeling the way I was much of the time and that confusion led to frustration, anger and sadness.” - Gabrielle
Gabrielle had been suffering for around 2 years before being signposted to Mosaic and her counsellor, Rachel. Rachel was able to help Gabrielle to express how she was feeling by engaging in activities including storyboards, drawing, writing and playing games.
“My journey with Mosaic helped me to grow into someone who believes in themself, be positive everyday, take all the time I need in order for me to feel like myself and be happy, learn about who I am and what I am capable of and also realise that I would be okay and I won’t forever feel like I am in a dark place. Mosaic will always be my second family.
I have been fortunate enough to be given the position of Mosaic’s Young Ambassador, which is something I truly appreciate and am very grateful for because I am able to be a part of Mosaic’s wonderful journey of supporting bereaved children and young people and I am able to be a part of making that positive difference to their lives whilst also getting to keep the memories alive of my loved ones who have passed.”