A former Kirklees College student has published her first children’s book during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Katie Ellis, who completed her level 4 Diploma in Therapeutic Counselling this year, was inspired by her training as a counsellor to write a children’s book to help her manage her own and her children’s mental health.
The book is aimed at 6-11-year-olds and touches on the pandemic, issues around the effects of social media and the normality of feeling anxious. Katie is passionate about promoting the message to children that it is normal to worry and talking about our mental health should be normalised from a young age.
Speaking about the inspiration behind her debut book, Katie said:
“The pandemic has obviously been a very worrying time for everyone and I know that my mental health, along with many others, has been affected at different stages. I was thrown into home-schooling my 6-year-old twin daughters and although I was previously a primary school teacher and had the skills necessary to do this, I still found it a challenge.
My daughters adapted well but I started to notice some anxiety. This was common amongst friends too, so I decided to write a poem. Initially it was just for my girls to let them know that it was ok for them to be feeling worried. I was then inspired to turn it into a book that could be used within wellbeing lessons in primary schools and so ‘A Problem Shared’ was created.”
Katie wrote the book whilst studying for her diploma at Kirklees College. Managing her home life with studying was often a challenge but Katie’s message is already resonating with her audiences, she added:
“It was hard work completing a demanding diploma, home-schooling and writing a book but with lots of communication with my family and ensuring that I got some ‘me time’, I made it work. I’m certainly glad I did it and I already have a few schools who would like me to go and do some work with children.”
Having recently qualified, Katie hopes to go on to work as a counsellor within the criminal justice system and also hopes to continue to take her book into schools to inspire positive change around mental health issues.
The book is available to buy on Amazon HERE and can also be purchased at Waterstones for £5.99.
