Happy 1st Birthday !!!

So today is our 1st Birthday and I would like to thank all of you beautiful readers for making this so enjoyable. I love being able to share my views and different pieces of advice because it makes me feel like someone out there is getting help from us.

I never thought that my blog would have so many people in so many different places read what I am  writing. I hope you are all loving it as much as I am. So in honour of our 1st Birthday I would like to share some of my favourite pictures, quotes or tweets from the past 12 months. I hope you enjoy!!!

We love you all so very much. 

Thank you.

Love from Emily and Louise xx

Mental Health Awareness Week

Many of you know that we are strong supporters of recovery for any kind of mental illness, we believe it is just as important as any other kind of physical illness and yet it does not get the same kind of acceptance from the public. What very few of you will probably know is that this week is actually Mental Health Awareness Week.

Just like last weeks post, we wanted to hopefully make you feel a little less alone if you do suffer with one. One way to do this is for us to showcase just HOW common it is and maybe even educate you all so that you understand, even briefly, about some of the illnesses. I speak from experience when I say that people very rarely can fully understand just how you feel and so I have found that the more they know about my situation, the better it is for me. People cannot support you if they do not understand what is going on, which is another reason why I am such a big advocate for recovery!

Louise's Story

I remember when I first got my diagnosis' back in 2013 and I had no idea what the heck the doctors were talking about. There was a lot of jargon and I was being labelled under all of these things but it was never actually explained to me what they meant...so I had to do my own research. One of the first places I ended up going to was the site for renowned charity Mind, and what made things even more perfect is that they had classifications for all of the different types of Mental Health problems. It is most likely the one site that you can use to find out pretty much anything about a MHP. 

Emily's Story
I remember always being anxious about such simple social things and I was down all of the time. So I took to the internet and typed in what my symptoms were e.g. Withdrawal from friends, fear of talking to strangers, terrified of eating in public and I soon found out about social anxiety and depression. I didn't need a diagnosis from a doctor to know what was wrong with me. I had depression for many years and still get the odd outburst of it today and I live everyday with Anxiety but I don't stop fighting. As Louise said I ended up on Mind, and that gave me all of the information I needed to know what was wrong and how I could use self therapy to help myself. It is not a thing you can do alone. I thought that with self therapy no one needed o know and I could overcome it by myself. That is not the case. I needed the support of my friends and my wonderful boyfriend to help get me through it. It's important not to face these things alone. People will understand and there will always be someone like you going through the same battle. 

Fast facts:

1. 1 in 4 people will experience a mental health problem in any given year
2. you will probably work with someone facing a MH problem (so no we aren't unable to work...although it may be true in some severe cases)
3. 1 in 10 young people will experience a MH problem
4. 9 in 10 people with a mental illness will experience stigma and discrimination
5. nearly 3 in 4 young people fear the reactions of friends when they talk about their mental health problems 

(TimetoChange.org.uk, 2016)

how common are the illnesses?

Depression: 2.6 in 100 people

Anxiety:4.7 in 100 people

Mixed anxiety and depression:9.7 in 100 people

Phobias: 2.6 in 100 people

OCD: 1.3 in 100 people

Panic disorder: 1.2 in 100 people

Post traumatic stress disorder: 3.0 in 100 people

Eating disorders: 1.6 in 100 people

(Mind, 2016)

Male Mental Health is IMPORTANT!

Why is it that men have to fit the stereotypical strong and unbreakable role?

Well this week I have thought a lot about male mental health and just how under spoken about it is. Facing the stigma and issues of a mental health problem is hard enough but we really struggle to understand why it is easier to accept that a female has this issue or that they can speak up about it but a male cannot. Nearly 4 in 5 suicides (78%) are by men and is the biggest cause of death for men under 35 also 12.5% of men in the UK are suffering from one of the common mental health disorders. (Men’s Health Forum, July 2014)

I recently heard on the radio that anorexia in men is not taken serious enough but why is that? Is it because men shouldn’t have such a weakness or is it that they have to fit the persona that is suited to their gender. The stigma that goes with male mental health is huge and also unnecessary.  

So after some research, we found out that 7.7% of children aged 5-10 years have a mental disorder but boys are twice as likely to get these disorders than girls. Yet, from an early age we have always experienced young boys being told to “get over it” or “man up” if they need help or are struggling with something. It might seem insignificant at the time but we are all entitled to support and to feel like we are valued in life and starting this negativity at an early age isn’t healthy

.

One of the things that men have said that they struggle with the most is the stigma. Its very hard for anyone to say that they are struggling and that they need help, but for men it is harder for them to speak out because it is not often talked about and is seen as something that as a male shouldn’t be happening. There is so much stigma to mental health as a whole but for men there seems to be that extra bit of added pressure. Opening up to your family and admitting that there is something wrong and that you are not the strong unbreakable male that you are “supposed” to be must be the worst feeling in the world which is why most men do not speak out and do not tell their families.

When I Googled information on Male mental health statistics I found a lot of sources that were quite literally all about depression and suicide. Now to me that's disgusting because depression is not the only mental health issue a male can have. Anxiety, Eating disorders, Schizophrenia, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder etc. can all be male and female issues.

In today’s world we are so focused on males and females being different that we forget that we are all human. Everyone has their struggles but some need that extra bit of strength to defeat them.

Here to help;

STRIDE 

http://www.digm.org/

Greater Manchesters 10-20 year olds dance project, developed by the Dance Initiative Greater Manchester (DiGM). It is a free project that improves;

• Physical fitness and wellbeing- through regular dance sessions that challenge strength, cardiovascular health, agility and flexibility
• Mental health- through opportunities to develop creative ideas, for self expression, and engagement in a positive environment
• Confidence and self esteem- through challenging participants to step out of their comfort zone and supporting achievement through performance
• Life skills- through providing opportunities to value the importance of teamwork, goal setting, commitment and time management

MEN IN SHEDS 

http://menssheds.org.uk/

This place provides recreational activities for (mainly men go but women are welcome too!) which will help their physical and mental wellbeing. This opportunity is open for men over the age of 55 and quite often just provides a warm emotional atmosphere for individuals to just take their mind off their worries and make some great friends.

CALM (the Campaign Against Living Miserably)

http://thecalmzone.net/

This campaign is targeted at young men aged between 15-35 and offers help, information and advice via a free, anonymous and confidential phone line and web service.

MINDOUT

http://www.mindout.org.uk/

This is an advocacy, advice and information service for anyone in the LGBT community with Mental Health difficulties. It was founded in 1999 after issues relating to homophobic and heteronormative behaviour and attitudes in history from staff and service users.   

MEN GET ED’S TOO 

http://mengetedstoo.co.uk/

This is a peer support group in Brighton and Hove which was made available to men with eating and exercise disorders. The peer support group is for men of all ages, backgrounds and sexualities with the aim to “ease the isolation and secrecy they experience”.