Hi, my name’s Evan and I’m fourteen, and I’m a young carer.

I care for my mom, who has something called Addison’s Disease, and occasionally help my step dad who has a permanent knee injury.

Most of my every day tasks aren’t too stressful or strenuous. I keep alarms on my watch so I can check my mom has had her tablets so she doesn’t pass out or have a more serious problem. Other little things, such as doing more chores than most of my friends do and getting things around the house when they are needed I have in my everyday routine as well.

As much as these seem like simple tasks, it can make you tired, especially as I have started my GCSEs and I like doing the hobbies I enjoy when I can afford to, both with money, time and energy.

However, the probably most notable thing I have to deal with is if my mom goes into an Addisonian crisis, or if something goes wrong with her medication.

In extreme cases I might have to call an ambulance. The most recent time being this summer when me, a friend and my mom were away camping in Wales, and it took the ambulance four hours to find us. Thankfully, I had given her a dosage of tablets high enough to keep her alive until then.

These crises are very normal for some children and teenagers, and I do mean little children as well. The first time I called an ambulance I was around three or four years old. I still remember it. It has also normalised me to emergencies, and in an emergency I don’t panic, I just deal with it, because I have to.

Even all the little things are things you just have to do. Even if you put it off, if you’re just too tired to deal with it that day, small tasks most people can do but my parents or other people can’t still have to get done, because no one else is going to do them and if you don’t it will only build up later.

Despite any of this, I still think of myself as a very socially active person, but I am very fortunate in that respect. I do miss a chunk of group hang outs and often have to decline an offer because I know it’s a bad day for someone or I know something really needs to get done, but some people don’t get these chances at all. I’m even more lucky that my friends are understanding and will fill me in on stuff I missed. But sometimes I just tell them I’m too tired.

There are many different kinds of young carers, and I hope everyone here takes my case as a fortune one, as many people don’t have a shot at even half the things I have and deserve the support they can get. Whether this be something in school, just taking them out for a walk when so many don’t get family trips out to the park, or if a forum they attend receives enough funding to give them a space to relax for once and not be on edge that someone might need you in a minute.

Many children and carers also care for animals or younger siblings or deal with money management, taking on the roles as a much older person then they are. Any way you are caring for someone, it can make it hard to talk about your emotions and health with them, because of the position you are in of caring for them, not the other way around. This puts young carers at extreme risk of developing mental health issues and disorders from all the anxiety put on them.

We all deserve a childhood where we have a space to be children and teenagers.