My name is Neil Cox and having recently separated from my wife I found myself living alone for the first time in my life, I missed her and our dogs desperately! Initially I did not cope well and I found comfort in drink and food. Already being overweight this was going to become a major problem. My life felt like it was spiralling downwards but luckily I have a support network of my son Daniel, my mates Martin & Nigel my Dad and my Sister, I realized I needed to make some positive changes to snap out of my situation. I booked a holiday of a lifetime to Niagara Falls & New York as something to focus on and look forward to.
I went back to Slimming World. Luckily for me Danielle who runs the group is a chatty, infectiously positive person and she has helped me to start my self improvement process. I had not shaved for a few days and in discussion with Danielle I decided to do a sponsored slim and to grow a Grizzly Adams style beard and when I have reached my target of losing 4 stones by 15/12/17 to then shave it off, currently I am 1 stone 3lbs lighter which leaves another 2 stone 11lbs to go.
The next thing was to find a charity to do it for, FACES stood out to me immediately as they are set up to help people who have issues not too different to my own.
FACES (Family and Children's Early-help Services) is a well established local charity in the Bedford area where I live, offering practical and emotional support to families under stress. They do this by recruiting and training volunteers who work alongside one of their Practitioners in delivering a unique menu of tailored services directly to a family, in their own home.
FACES aim to support families during difficult periods in their lives, especially where this will contribute to keeping children with their families. Their objectives include working in partnership with parents to promote the well-being of each family as a whole and enabling families to manage their affairs with increased confidence and independence.
