A Devon mum has extended her love for wrapping to strangers to help raise money for a mental health charity.
Kirsty said had been wrapping on average 50 presents a day since the beginning of December in the lead up to Christmas, with the help of her eight-year-old daughter, Harper.
The mum-of-two, from Plymouth, said she was raising money for Mind after the charity supported her through her postnatal depression.
Kirsty said she posted on social media asking people to help by delivering the gifts, providing wrapping paper and donating, expecting one response but was surprised when it “blew up”.
She said: “I’m quick at wrapping- I have a system and once you get into the swing of it, it’s quite easy to do it.
“I find it really therapeutic and it’s good to keep busy for my head.”
Kirsty said she experienced postnatal depression after her surprise second pregnancy in 2022.
The NHS website says symptoms include feeling down, tearful or anxious in the first week of giving birth.
Kirsty said she was made to feel as though she was not “bad enough” when she reached out to professionals.
“A lot of people just say it’s ‘baby blues’ and it’ll pass and you start to think there’s something wrong with you,” she said.
“I reached out to the Mind, and it was the first time i felt comfortable enough to go to somebody and say you need to help me now because I’m really struggling.
“All I really needed was someone to talk to and cry on.”
Ian O’Reilly, associate director of public fundraising at Mind, said the charity was “grateful” to Kirsty and Harper for fundraising.
He said: “One in four of us will experience a mental health problem in any given year, and it’s so important that no one has to face this alone.”
Kirsty said on Monday, more than 350 presents had been wrapped, including 250 books from a local nursery and she had raised about £400 so far.
She said Harper was keen to help, adding she was “surprisingly good” at wrapping for her age.
