{"id":1496,"date":"2018-02-28T14:29:50","date_gmt":"2018-02-28T14:29:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/mental-health\/?p=1496"},"modified":"2018-03-01T08:34:47","modified_gmt":"2018-03-01T08:34:47","slug":"letsshare","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/mental-health\/letsshare\/","title":{"rendered":"#LetsShare"},"content":{"rendered":"

Jo, Wellbeing Practitioner and Time to Change Champion<\/em>, talks about Cardiff University\u2019s new Mental Health Campaign: <\/strong>What\u2019s on your mind?#LetsShare<\/em><\/strong>, encouraging us all to share more when it comes to mental health…<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Mental health problems are common; one in four of us will be affected at some point in our lives. So being able to talk about mental health is something that\u2019s important for us all. However, talking about mental health can feel difficult.<\/p>\n

Whether its fear or awkwardness about talking about your own mental health, or nervousness about speaking to somebody you know about their mental health, being unable to talk isn\u2019t good for anyone.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong>A new Campaign <\/strong>for Cardiff <\/strong><\/p>\n

On 1 February<\/strong> (National Time to Talk Day<\/em><\/a>),<\/em> Cardiff University launched a new Mental Health Campaign for students and staff: What\u2019s on your mind? #LetsShare<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

The Campaign encourages us all to share more about our own mental health and to encourage other people to open up about their mental health, as a way to support ourselves, support others, and to help beat the stigma that still surrounds this area.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s SHARE<\/strong>\u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n

S<\/strong>peak about your own mental health<\/p>\n

The fact that it\u2019s\u00a0sometimes difficult to talk about mental health problems can be one of the hardest parts of having a mental health difficulty; however, many people find that talking about mental health problems \u2013 to friends, family or to professional staff \u2013 is extremely helpful, as well as being one of the best ways to help to end mental health stigma.<\/p>\n

Take up opportunities to talk about mental health openly and honestly; choose a time and place that feels comfortable and don\u2019t be surprised if your honesty encourages other people to talk about their own experiences.<\/p>\n

H<\/strong>elp others to speak about their mental health<\/p>\n

People often avoid bringing up the subject of another person\u2019s mental health due to fear, stigma, or worry about saying the \u2018wrong thing\u2019.<\/p>\n

However, asking somebody directly about their mental health is one of the most helpful things you can do.<\/p>\n

Take the lead; if you know somebody has been struggling (or even if they haven\u2019t), don\u2019t be afraid to ask how they are.\u00a0 Simply listening to what they say, without judgement, can be incredibly helpful.<\/p>\n

A<\/strong>ccess support if you need it and encourage others to do the same<\/p>\n

Seeking professional help is often the first step towards getting and staying well; however it can sometimes be difficult to know where to start or who to turn to.<\/p>\n

It’s common to feel unsure, and to wonder whether you should try to handle things on your own.<\/p>\n

But\u00a0it’s always ok to ask for help<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 even if you’re not sure you are experiencing a specific\u00a0mental health problem<\/a>.<\/p>\n

A wide range of flexible, specialist support services are available at the University for students, at the Student Support and Wellbeing Service<\/a>, and for staff, from the Employee Assistance Programme<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Your doctor can also offer advice, support and treatment (including Emergency Appointments) for mental health, and visiting your GP is also a great first step.<\/p>\n

R<\/strong>ecognise that the language we use is important<\/p>\n

It\u2019s really common for words or phrases relating to mental health to be used in everyday language, for example: \u2018last week was bonkers\u2019,<\/em> or \u2018I\u2019ve had a mental day\u2019.<\/em><\/p>\n

It is also common to use words or phrases relating to mental health when this isn\u2019t really what we mean, for example saying \u2018I\u2019m so depressed\u2019,<\/em> when we really mean \u2018I\u2019m having a bad day\u2019. <\/em><\/p>\n

Although this is commonplace, using jokes, words or phrases relating to mental health about yourself or about somebody else inappropriately \u2013 i.e. when you \/ the other person does not have a mental health condition<\/em> \u2013 can minimise the very real experiences of people who live with mental health difficulties.<\/p>\n

Inappropriate remarks or jokes can also feed mental health stigma, and the common stereotypes, myths and misunderstandings which surround certain mental health conditions.<\/p>\n

Everyone slips up sometimes and says things without thinking, but the important thing is to learn from our mistakes; to challenge ourselves to say what we really mean and to be mindful of the way we talk about mental health.<\/p>\n

E<\/strong>xpect small things to make a big difference<\/p>\n

Sometimes it\u2019s the small things in life that mean the most to us or create the biggest difference: the \u2018Little Big things\u2019.<\/em><\/p>\n

Simple, everyday gestures of support such as: keeping in touch, stopping for a chat, making a meal, inviting somebody to join you for an activity or sending a message, <\/em><\/strong>can make an enormous difference to somebody experiencing a mental health problem. And you don\u2019t need to be a mental health expert to do them!<\/p>\n

There are also \u2018Little Big things\u2019<\/em> we can do to self-care and support our own <\/em>wellbeing, such as having an early night, keeping active, eating a healthy meal, turning off your phone for a few hours, spending time on a hobby and staying connected with friends and family. <\/em><\/p>\n

Consider a small thing you could do today, to help somebody who is struggling with their mental health or to self-care.<\/p>\n

Students and staff share their stories<\/strong><\/p>\n

Watch our #LetsShare video<\/a>, featuring Cardiff University students and staff, who have been brave enough to speak about their own personal experiences of mental health, in support of the #LetsShare<\/strong> Campaign.<\/p>\n

Help end mental health stigma and discrimination<\/strong><\/p>\n

The #LetsShare<\/strong> Campaign has been developed in collaboration with Time to Change<\/em><\/a>, a growing movement of people, working to change how we all think and act about mental health.<\/p>\n

The Time to Change Pledge<\/em><\/a>, signed by Cardiff University in 2014 – and re-signed on 1 February 2018 to demonstrate ongoing commitment to this work – is a public declaration that an organisation wishes to tackle mental health stigma and discrimination.<\/p>\n

You have the power to change behaviours and attitudes.<\/p>\n

Together, we can create a community which is free from mental health stigma, fear and discrimination.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Jo, Wellbeing Practitioner and Time to Change Champion, talks about Cardiff University\u2019s new Mental Health Campaign: What\u2019s on your mind?#LetsShare, encouraging us all to share more when it comes to […]","protected":false},"author":1231,"featured_media":1501,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[10,165],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1496","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-adult-mental-health","category-university-mental-health-day"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7swiU-o8","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":856,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/mental-health\/afterwhitchurch\/","url_meta":{"origin":1496,"position":0},"title":"#AfterWhitchurch","author":"Ben Hannigan","date":"16 November 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"The closure of Whitchurch Hospital to inpatients in spring 2016 provided the backdrop for #AfterWhitchurch, a collaborative Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)\/Cardiff University Festival of Social Science event focusing on the changing system of mental health care hosted at Cardiff\u2019s Chapter Arts on November 10th 2016. 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