A leading voice on mental health and eating disorder awareness, Hope Virgo previously suffered from personal battles of Anorexia and mental health issues. Having since recovered from her own struggles, Hope has become the author of Stand Tall Little Girl and Hope Through Recovery along with passionately helping others to overcome eating disorders and mental illness. A leading keynote speaker, Hope is booked to cover topics such as managing mental health, recovery, workplace wellbeing, raising awareness and challenging stigma.
As a child, Hope struggled with her emotions and developed an eating disorder aged just 12. Suffering in silence with her mental health and Anorexia for four years, Hope was ultimately admitted to a mental health hospital for recovery in 2007. For the following year, Hope lived in the mental hospital battling for her life on the journey to being well again. Since her recovery, Hope has become an Ambassador of the Shaw Mind Foundation and champions the rights of others battling mental illness.
Amongst her advocacy for mental health and eating disorders, Hope has also been a Corporate Partnership Executive for UNICEF UK and a Stakeholder Relations Officer for the Alzheimer’s Society- further demonstrating her passion for helping others. Over the course of her career, Hope has been sought to speak on various major broadcasts, including for the likes of BBC News, Good Morning Britain, BBC Newsnight and Victoria Derbyshire. She is also widely known for fronting the #DumpTheScales campaign, with which she was able to deliver two government debates at a high level and firmly solidify eating disorder awareness on the Government’s agenda.
Now booked as a keynote speaker for a variety of events, Hope has addressed both corporate and educational clients on the rising epidemic of mental health issues and how crucially important it is to pay attention to them. From schools to businesses and hospitals, there are few organisations that Hope hasn’t spoken to on raising awareness of mental health and breaking the stigma that surrounds the topical subject. Sharing her personal harrowing story of battling Anorexia, Hope advises her audiences on how to support people with eating disorders or mental illness, what to not say to those who are suffering and the skills needed to help prevent mental illness. A fantastic mental health advocate, when looking for a speaker who empowers mental wellbeing look no further than Hope Virgo.
