BREXIT, for me, was the pivotal point in my journey from No to Yes. I remember waking up to the news we would be leaving the EU the morning after the referendum with a horrible sinking feeling in my heart.

The promise of safeguarding our European citizenship, for me at least, was Better Together’s winning argument, and the main reason I voted No in 2014.

I was born a European, had grown up a European and many of my friends were EU nationals. As a 24-year-old graduate, the prospect of having this, and all the opportunities it represents, stripped from me was wholly terrifying. It wouldn’t be an understatement to say I felt we, the No voters, had been betrayed.

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The main thing I felt when I changed my voting stance was anger. It’s a bitter pill to swallow when you realise that the politicians you had put your faith in – and even campaigned for – have left you high and dry. That’s when it hit me that our lives really mean very little to our Westminster lords and masters.

When I voted No in 2014, I did so out of a deep love for my country; I strongly believed that we would be better protected inside a union, and that independence, at that time, would have been a risk too far. My conversion to Yes is fuelled by that same love for Scotland I felt six years ago, only now with a starker view on the Union, and Scotland’s place in it. A union can only be successful if it’s a true partnership of equals, and since 2016, it has become increasingly clear to me that Scotland’s voice is not valued.

Moreover, as individual countries, our interests are no longer aligned. I feel this disconnect was perfectly illustrated in the General Election result in December.

It seems nonsensical to force nations together in an unhappy marriage, when their paths already seem to be culturally dovetailing.

If I was to say to someone who was thinking about changing from voting No to Yes, I would tell them not to be scared. As the 2014 vote was such an emotionally charged and passionately campaigned referendum, the prospect of being publicly seen to jump ships can seem daunting, especially if you were a vocal No supporter at the time.

The beautiful thing about a democracy, though, is that we have the freedom to change our minds; to consider new information and reassess our position based on new facts and ideas. Politics is fluid, the landscape changes and we have the right to change our minds with it.

If Scotland is ever going to gain its independence, we’ll need to change the minds of a lot of 2014 No voters by making them feel accepted and welcomed and like our voices are important. This requires patience, discussion and acceptance of the fact that No voters are not the ones to blame for the damage that Brexit has caused.

Jenny Constable, 24, from Blantyre