Emilia, mum & the sofa
In this video, Emilia and her mum, Jenny, talk about how SameYou was founded and about wanting to give something back.
“There was a broken old fashion typist chair in the hospital, it felt very uncomfortable. We immediately said, when we get you out of this and you are all fine, that we had to buy them a sofa… so it all started with a sofa”
Emilia tells her story to the New Yorker
Emilia Clarke, renowned for her role in "Game of Thrones," has bravely shared her personal battle with brain injury. In a poignant article for The New Yorker, Emilia recounted her harrowing experiences with two life-threatening brain aneurysms and the subsequent surgeries she underwent.
Despite the immense physical and emotional challenges, Emilia's resilience and determination have been a source of inspiration. Her journey highlights the critical need for enhanced neurological rehabilitation, which drives her passion for SameYou.
The next steps in the SameYou sofa journey
SameYou is working with Mount Sinai Rehabilitation New York to bridge the gaps in mental and emotional support for survivors and their families through a peer mentoring programme, which incorporates physical spaces for support and shares essential recovery information.
As well as helping to create an elastic workforce, this programme engages the public as volunteers to provide structured mental health support. Mount Sinai Rehabilitation will provide certificated Mental Health First Aider training and pilot this in their hospital.
A research survey conducted as a partnership between SameYou and Mount Sinai, with more than 400 participants with connection to brain injury taking part, revealed their challenges with their recovery experience – with a huge 75% of respondents reporting a lack of emotional support and resources and 64% highlighting a gap with mental health support and resources.
SameYou Recovery Sofas will be the focal point for the volunteers to listen to the issues brain injury survivors and their families are experiencing. They will provide talking therapies and alert Mount Sinai clinicians if an urgent clinical intervention is needed.
The charity is looking for corporate partners to sponsor the pilot. If you are interested in sponsorship opportunities, email: [email protected]