A CREWKERNE man is reaching out to the public after he turned his life around in a year thanks to the St Margaret's Hospice shop in Chard.

Nathan Harmer-Taylor, 23, was diagnosed with Emotionally Unstable Personality Disorder which meant he was shut away in his house.

Nathan said: "My mental health disability would prevent me from leaving my house because I was so scared.

"I could not go out and and get the essentials that people would normally go out and do. I couldn't possibly do that because of how emotionally down and anxiety induced I was. It wasn't worth me leaving the front door, and I have struggled to feed myself and wash myself," Nathan added.

From 17 until 22 Nathan was homeless, and struggling with life on the streets.

Then, after getting a home, Nathan saw that the St Margaret's Hospice had opened a furniture shop in Chard.

"September last year the furniture shop opened up and I saw online in an article that this brand new shop had opened and I could go in there and volunteer, and I could start off being out the back so I didn't have to face the general public.

"It was a gradual process of gradually leaving the house more and more.

"By December/January sort of time they said why don't you come out onto the shop floor.

"The manager was really encouraging until I got to the point where they could trust me on the floor.

"I felt like I had all my confidence back.

And Nathan didn't stop there. Since his success at the St Margaret's Hospice store he has now gone on to work for the leading mental health charity, Mind.

"I have gone from struggling through 22 years of mental health to now I am a mental health ambassador," Nathan said.

"I am a Time To Change champion, but I still go in to the hospice shop and do charity work.

"In the short space of a year I have turned my life around. On November 8, I had volunteered for the shop for 14 months.

"I helped out with the Great Somerset Walk raising £200, and I will continue to do my best to help those with mental health disability.

"In 15 years time it will get to the stage where mental health disabilities are the leading cause of disability in the UK, and the suicide rate among males is 80 per cent.

"It is just about being there for them."