This week is Mental Health Awareness Week and the theme for this year is Kindness. Not only are kindness and mental health deeply connected, but research shows that an act of kindness towards someone else can be just as good for our own mental health as theirs:
If you are struggling with your mental health due to issues such as your rent, debt, employment, or hoarding, please do not hesitate to contact us on 0161 448 4200 - our Support and Advice teams will be able to help you. If you feel you need help in improving your wellbeing, our Be Well service may be for you - click here to learn more.
Mental Health Awareness Week Activities
There are lots of events and activities taking place this week that we can do from our homes and workplaces, to help look after our own and others' mental health. See our pick of the best of these below:
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Events
Join a virtual session from Manchester Mind
Manchester Mind are running weekly wellness classes to help you look after your mental health and meet new people (if you want to). These sessions include Calming the Nervous System: Mondays 12-12.45pm and Lunchtime Meditation: Wednesdays 12.15-1pm.
Visit the Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival
SMHAF is an exciting cultural event challenging preconceived ideas about mental health. From today, you can watch performances like Electrolyte, a theatre piece that ‘powerfully explores mental health for a contemporary audience’, and watch three short award-winning films exploring the Mental Health Awareness Week theme of Kindness, and informal discussion about these films takes place on Zoom at 8.30pm on Thursday.
See the full festival programme here.
Join BMCA for some fun community activities
More locally, BMCA are holding two virtual events to recognise Mental Health Awareness. If you're missing yuor local community centre, you can connect with others in your neighbourhood in these sessions - Quiz Time 2-3pm on Tuesday, and Bingo 1-2pm on Wednesday.
To join in simply join their new Facebook Gruop BMCA Buddies.
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Activities
Complete Every Mind Matters’ Mind Plan
Every Mind Matters has developed a short interactive quiz to help you create a Mind Plan suited to your life, goals and needs.
Answer their 5 questions and you will receive a personalised Mind Plan to downoad, containing top tips and advice just for you. You could try one tip every day this week.
Colour some special designs for Mental Health Awareness Week
Colouring Heroes have developed some popular colouring sheets recently with designs based on the NHS and key workers. They've now created these Mental Health and Kindness themed colouring sheets, which create a great opportunity to talk about mental health with children whilst enjoying a mindful activity.
If your child finds it difficult to talk about their feelings, here are some conversation starters that you can use from YoungMinds:
Complete the Kindness Challenge
Mental Health UK have developed the theme of kindness into this Kindness Challenge, which you could try to complete yourself, or with your family, over the week. To do the challenge:
- Save the kindness bingo grid to your mobile or computer.
- Highlight each task as you complete it (by editing the image on your social media app or on an editing tool like Paint)
- Share it on social media alongside pictures of you completing the tasks to show others how they can spread kindness too:
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Resources
Greater Manchester Mental Health Services’ Self Help Resources
If you like to self-help when it comes to your mental health, this website has advice and guidance on a huge variety of topics, from Addiction, PTSD, Suicide and Self Harm, to coping with Change, building Resilience and tackling Unhelpful Thinking.
Every Mind Matters by the NHS
Every Mind Matters has some really useful and relevent advice on topics such as 7 simple ideas to tackle working from home and 10 tips to help if you're worried about coronavirus.
Silver Cloud
Silver Cloud is a brand new service and platform offering numerous online programmes to help ease stress levels, improve sleep or build resilience. Each programme uses proven methods, including cognitive behavioural therapy, and all information entered is anonymous, confidential and secure.
Find out more and register here.
SHOUT (over 16s)
SHOUT is a new confidential 24/7 text service for people aged 16+ that offers advice on a range of issues. Here’s how to contact the service:
Kooth Online Counselling (11-18s)
The pandemic has changed our lives. Because it's a stressful time for many people aged 11-18 in Greater Manchester, Kooth offers information and a way to share fears and anxieties with peers.
There's also access to counselling – without leaving the house.
Click here to access the service.
ChatHealth (young people)
A secure and confidential text messaging service for children and young people which allows patients to easily and anonymously get in touch with a healthcare professional for advice and support.
To access, young people can text in to the designated number – 07507330205 – 9am–4pm.