Time to talk campaign is all about mental health

When did you last talk to someone about their mental health, or your own? This Thursday it is Time to Talk, a campaign day organised by Time to Change to promote positive attitudes towards mental health. Kate Atkin and her springer spaniel, Poppy, have been helping break down the stigma associated with talking about mental health by speaking to Stephen Perse 6th Formers at their Monday morning assembly.

Talking about menatl health is not the top of everyone's agenda.  But with one in four of us, over our lifetimes, suffering from a diagnosable mental health condition it should be.

It is far easier to elicit sympathy for a broken wrist or sprained ankle than for feelings of depression or anxiety.  Yet the sympathy doesn't help the ankle or wrist to heal, but can have a significant impact on the well-being of someone with a mental health issue.

Professional speaker and training consultant, Kate Atkin, admits she now knows more about depression than she did six years ago.  Her husband Stuart Jessup has waked around England and, more recently, Wales raising awareness of mental health issues, while also finding it a way to deal with his own.  See www.walkingontheedge.org.uk for more details.

It was this walk that led to the recent talk at Stephen Perse 6th Form assembly by Kate Atkin.  Acting Director, Stuart Jack, commented that over the past ten years he has seen an increase in pressure on teenagers.  Having an assembly on the subject of mental health aims to encourage staff and pupils to be more open and the opportunity for Poppy the springer spaniel to break the ice worked extremely well.

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If you are interested in raising awareness of mental health in your workplace, or school, please contact Kate and Poppy by calling 07779 646 976.

Click here for more details on Time to Talk

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