NICK Elston has made a business out of talking about his anxiety.

The 40-year-old from Yate suffered from obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) as a child. And although he received treatment for it, he was left with a crippling sense of anxiety.

“I would worry, be afraid, sad, upset, angry, feel inferior,” he said.

“But I’d just put a mask on and pretend everything was ok.”

Then one day, Nick took the decision to talk about his anxiety, in public, at a business networking event.

“I felt it was my last option. I stood up - shaking - and delivered my story.

“Harry Potter fans will be familiar with something Harry calls his ‘Boggle in the cupboard’.

“Something he had got shut away that worried him, but that when it was out in the open, it didn’t seem so scary. It was the same for me.

“I felt much better afterwards, and people who had heard me speak said it had helped them too.

“So I did a few more talks and then I took it on the road and talked all over the UK, telling people my story. And in October last year I became a full-time professional motivational speaker.”

Nick now has clients all over the UK, including banks and large brand name businesses.

He gives entertaining, humorous and emotionally charged talks, which audiences can take inspiration, motivation and insight from.

Through his talks, he hopes to help people fight their way to the top, whilst managing their demons.

“I also do presentation coaching and wedding speech coaching - basically helping people step up to speak confidently, authentically and powerfully.

“We all feel scared of being judged, and that’s why people find it hard to open up about feeling anxiety and other mental health issues.

“I’m not offering treatment or advice. I’m not a professionally trained therapist. I’m just sharing my experiences and offering tips and techniques on how to make incremental changes.

“What started out as me talking about my own problems turned into a more purposeful activity, when I found out how it much helped other people.”

For further information visit: nickelston.com