I'm Kirsty, and this page exists because of where I've been
I'm not a large organisation, and I'm not writing this from a place of theory. I'm a mum and the founder of Verella, and I've lived through some genuinely difficult chapters that shaped why I care about this so much.
At fourteen, I suffered abuse at the hands of a boy I was in a relationship with. I was young, overwhelmed and had no idea how to cope with what was happening or the effect it was having on me. My behaviour became difficult and chaotic, and at sixteen I ran away from home and chose to live in a hostel. I often describe myself as a nightmare child, but underneath that behaviour I was a young person trying to survive something I did not know how to process. I know what it feels like to be scared, lost, unsupported, and unsure if anyone is actually going to help you. I also know what it feels like to slowly, messily, find your way back from that.
Today I'm raising a child with additional needs, navigating my own neurodivergence, and running a business I built from absolutely nothing. None of it has been a straight line. I've had failures along the way that nearly stopped me completely, and somehow I kept going anyway.
I also live with chronic illness every single day. I have endometriosis, adenomyosis, anaemia and Hashimoto's, and I've been through failed IVF. These are battles I carry quietly alongside everything else, and they're a big part of why I understand how heavy it can feel to keep going when your own body is working against you.
I've made a lot of mistakes in my life, and for a long time I lived with so much doubt, wondering how I could have been so lost. But the truth is those chapters are exactly what made me the person I am today. So instead of carrying all of that, I've learned to love everything I've experienced, with no guilt. I've even forgiven the person who abused me, who went to prison. Letting go of that weight is the freest I have ever felt.
This site is me, personally, doing what I can, sharing videos I record myself, guides I've put together, and resources I trust, for any teenager or woman who needs somewhere honest to land. It isn't a registered charity and there's no big team behind it. It's just someone who's been there, trying to make the road a little less lonely for the next person walking it.
My ultimate goal goes far beyond this page. I want to build a charitable foundation on the back of Verella, my swim and fashion brand, and use it to raise the funding to provide therapy to young people. I've watched the shortage of this kind of support grow over the years, and we need it now more than ever to help young people navigate everything they're carrying, especially those living through trauma. That is my end goal, and I won't stop until I've achieved it.
Verella is also about lifting women through the power of fashion. I want the brand to offer a genuinely inclusive size range from XS to 3XL and to celebrate real women of every shape, size and age, without unrealistic standards. The swimwear and this support space come from the same belief: every woman deserves to feel visible, confident and included exactly as she is.
