“Baby Reindeer” creator and star Richard Gadd received an Emmy for his screenplay for the hit Netflix series and used his acceptance speech to offer support and solidarity to those going through a difficult time.

Gadd plays troubled comedian Donny Dunn in the series. Dunn is stalked for several years by a woman named Martha (Jessica Gunning) and sexually abused by a writing mentor – a fictionalized account of similar incidents in Gadd’s own life.

“This is the stuff dreams are made of,” said Gadd as he accepted his award. “Look, 10 years ago I was devastated, weren’t I? I never thought I would get my life together. I never thought I would make amends for what happened to me and get back on my feet. And now here I am, a little over a decade later, winning one of the most important awards in television screenwriting.”

“I don’t mean that to sound arrogant,” he continued. “I mean it as an encouragement to anyone who’s going through a difficult time right now to hang on. I don’t know much about this life – I don’t know why we’re here, none of it. But I do know that nothing lasts forever. And no matter how bad it gets, it always gets better. So if you’re struggling, keep going, keep going. And I promise you, everything will be OK.”