WHAT will, I think, turn out to be the highlight of my week happened to me just about an hour ago. I was just leaving a meeting when I bumped into someone whom I had previously known as a long-term inpatient in a mental health hospital here in Devon.

This smartly dressed young man had a big smile on his face as we greeted each other warmly having not seen each other for well over a year. I hardly needed to ask how he was doing because it was written all over his face. It was completely clear to me that this young gentleman was now thriving and full of self-belief and confidence.

He had in fact returned to the hospital where he had once been an inpatient to run a peer support group for other patients who are still there. He said that with any kind of mental health issue it could sometimes be difficult to believe in a positive future and that he had sometimes struggled to believe this himself.

However, now that he had been able to make positive changes in his own life, he wanted to bring those who were still inpatients a message of hope to remind them that better times were ahead. I asked him what his main pieceof advice was to people who found themselves stuck in that kind of situation.

He said it was to remember to ask for help and then to also accept that help and any support that was offered in order to find ways to move forwards. He said he always told people to concentrate on taking small steps one at a time as eventually they would lead you to where you wanted to be. He added how important it was not to give up hope even when this felt difficult.

Perhaps these are all pieces of advice that are familiar to us. But seeing this young man standing there, so proud of his own journey and also now so determined to help others in their recovery, genuinely brought a tear to my eye.

He was living proof that no matter what situation you are in, there is always a way forward as long as you continue to believe that and are prepared to take the necessary steps towards achieving it.

My own personal heroes have never been the rich or the famous – but people exactly like the man I had standing in front of me. Those who had been through the hardest of times but simply refused to give up. In addition to all of that, was the reminder that we are not alone in our struggles. However tough things might feel at times, there are people out there who will have experienced similar feelings to you and many of them, like this young man, who are more than willing to extend a hand of friendship and hope for the future.

Although we only spoke for a few minutes, I came away from that brief meeting feeling inspired and reinvigorated myself. Given all the challenges that I know this man had faced – if he could rise up from all of that, channel his energies into supporting others and do that with a genuine smile on his face then so could I.

I smiled all the way home. I know that he would join me in saying to you please never to forget that however many challenges you may be facing, and however complicated things might feel right now – there is help out there. There are people prepared to support you and there is a role for you in this world if you just go out and find it. I dedicate this column to the bravery, resilience and positive spirit of that young man and to others like him who are so determined to give something back and to support others however they can.

Thank you for setting us such a positive example and reminding us that no situation is too dark or too hopeless to move on from. A better tomorrow is always possible as long as you keep believing that that is the case.