LET'S END MENTAL HEALTH DISCRIMINATION

It's Time to Talk Day, in which we want to encourage you to have conversations with people about mental health and want to share some tips on having those conversations with people. As it is important and beneficial to have conversations with people about mental health.

In England, 1 in 6 people report experiencing a common mental health problem (such as anxiety) in any given week

TIME TO TALK DAY 2020

Here are some tips on starting up a conversation with someone about Mental Health:

Think about the place and time- Sometimes it can be easier to have a conversation side-by-side instead of face-to-face, so why not think about when you want to have that conversation about mental health. For example, you could start the conversation whilst cooking, washing up, going for a walk, etc.
Be non-judgemental & treat them the same- It does not matter what mental health problem a person has they are still the same person and you should still treat them the same. So support them and treat them the same way you would usually treat them.
Don't try and fix it- Learning to manage or recover from a mental health illness can take a long time and so sometimes it can be just as powerful to talk to someone and listen to them instead of trying to offer quick fixes.
Be patient- Everyone is different and so a person may not be ready to talk about what they are experiencing. That’s ok – the fact that you’ve tried to talk to them about it may make it easier for them to open up another time.
And importantly, listen- Try to ask open-ended questions such as 'and how does that affect you', and listen thoroughly to them to get a better understanding of what they are experiencing and support them.

If someone does not want to open up to you and talk to you about what they are experiencing, you can do other things to show that you are there for them and help them in other ways. For example, send them a text message to see how they are doing, do activities together such as going for a walk or gardening. Just being there for someone can make a big difference and help them, and maybe sometime they will open up to you for a conversation. If you would like further information on the Time to Talk Day or Mental Health head over to their website.

DO YOU WANT TO BE TRAINED IN MENTAL HEALTH?

At Staffordshire First Aid Training, we believe a person's mental health is just as important as their physical health and so we offer a range of Mental Health training courses to fulfill your First Aid needs. We have the following three Mental Health courses available:

If you need any help with deciding which course is suitable for you or help with booking on one of our courses, please get in touch with us today.

Safe Haven Training Ltd

Founder Ian Bryan has had an extensive career lasting over 30 years, as an NHS Paramedic, both on the road and for the County Air Ambulance. With a passion for First Aid and Emergency care, Ian went on to build a family run business made up of individuals who are fully trained and experienced in Pre Hospital Emergency Care, First Response and current NHS staff.