A Girl with Aspergers has been crowned a princess for her top mental health tips after helping her mum through cancer.

Angelina Peoples, 10, was named Mental Health Princess at the Miss Shining Light pageant after sharing her advice in a video.

Her mum Natalie Dickson, who has battled breast cancer, has told of her pride at the brave little girl.

I started crying, said the Co Antrim woman.

She did it to raise awareness for Me 4 Mental - a charity for mental health. I think they raised over 11,000.

The video round was the last one and I just broke into tears for her.

I was delighted for people to understand that she hasnt had it easy and there are kids out there that have no choice but to care for their parents and have their own wee battles.

With me having breast cancer Angelina had been to quite a few groups through Laurel House in Antrim, explained the Larne woman.

It was a course of six weeks, mainly for kids to understand cancer doesnt mean death or the end of the world.

It tries to break it into a simple form for a child that staying positive is the best thing for anything in life.

Over the past year, so much has happened and she has had no choice but to grow up and try to be more mature.

The video to me has a lot of things Angelina wrote herself - things she had learned along the way in different counselling sessions and therapies.

A couple of wee things she has maybe put her own twist on it, she added.

I was really pleased that she got the appreciation for it. She won the title for Miss Mental Health princess 2019.

Natalie said her daughter started doing pageants in 2016 because she really enjoyed them and was diagnosed with Aspergers - an autism spectrum disorder the following year.

Her diagnosis was in June 2017, she added.

She has always been very well spoken and quite intelligent for her age (but) her anxiety levels are through the roof - especially since Ive been sick, with fears of me leaving her or that shell never see me again.

Natalies breast cancer diagnosis in February 2017 - just a month before her daughters eighth birthday - heaped extra pressure on the family.

You just go into survival mode, she continued.

There are a lot of people who dont survive cancer but I have always had a (positive) attitude and would be a bit sarcastic.

I would look for the silver lining and think, maybe Ill lose a wee bit of weight with this chemo.

I was always someone who tried to be strong and at the same time think, theres always worse in the world.

And Natalie said her daughter was a great help through it all.

Whenever I was having treatment, Angelinas younger brother (Craig, six) has autism so he was still in nappies and stuff, she added.

She would do wee things like that, empty the dishwasher, tidied up, changed nappies, bathed her brother because I was lying really ill. She never complained.

I felt that six months of chemo took that childhood away from her, so gradually I have tried to bring it back.

I want her to be a child again and I took them to Disneyland at the end of my treatment.

She carried the worries of the world on her shoulders.

1. Always stay positive

2. Learn from difficult times - they do not last forever

3. Be grateful - gratitude means showing appreciation

4. Focus on what you can control and not what you can't

5. Give yourself credit for what you have done

6. Be kind to yourself

7. Never compare yourself to others

8. Be your own hero

If you feel that you need support, please contact the Samaritans on 116 123 or Lifeline on 0808 808 8000 .

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Watch: 'Mental Health Princess' with Aspergers shares top tips for healthy mind - Belfast Live