Mental Health Awareness Week is coming to a close, and we wanted to reflect on how we’ve supported it over the past seven days.
In this article, we’re going to recap what Mental Health Awareness Week is about, the theme this year and what our teams have gotten up to.
Created by The Mental Health Foundation, Mental Health Awareness Week (MHAW) runs every year and is the biggest opportunity for the UK to join together to focus on prioritising mental health. The theme this year is “Movement: Moving more for our mental health”.
Movement is essential for our mental health but lots of us struggle to move enough. There are many reasons why people struggle to participate in physical activities, and Mental Health Awareness Week aims to help people find moments for movement in their daily routines.
As well as being great for your physical health, movement is also beneficial for your mental health.
Physical activity releases chemicals (endorphins) in our brains that make us feel good. In turn, this can help boost our self-esteem and increase concentration. Moving more will also generally help us feel better, and even sleep better!
The best thing about movement is that it’s free – anyone can do it.
It’s important to remember that any kind of movement is better than nothing. Look to find a physical activity that you like doing and can do often – the more you enjoy it, the more you’ll want to do it.
But, how does it improve our mental health?
Exercise can be used as a treatment for depression. It tends to be used both on its own and alongside medication or therapy. People may prefer this over taking medication or attending therapy as there isn’t a stigma attached to physical activity.
Exercise has also been proven to reduce anxiety levels in people with mild symptoms – it can also help to treat clinical anxiety.
Click here to read more about how physical activity can help increase well-being and prevent or manage mental health problems, and get more information about how exercise can improve your mental health.
Our services have certainly been busy this year! We set them the task of moving as much as possible for Mental Health Awareness Week.
Radcliffe Lodge, our supported living service in Pudsey, has not stopped moving all week! The team got creative by decorating their space – this included painting boards, updating noticeboards and hanging decorations. They didn’t stop there, the team also updated their wellbeing garden and spent some time gardening. Alongside this, they enjoyed a pamper afternoon and went on plenty of walks.
Montgomery House, our supported living service in Radcliffe, also couldn’t keep still! OTSW Debra made sure the staff and residents kept moving all week with plenty of walks, football and fun. Everyone also participated in Wear It Green Day and made sure to donate to the wonderful cause.
Our Quality and Governance Team provided two training sessions for Mental Health Awareness Week and made sure to include this year’s theme – movement. After the success of our popular Mental Health Awareness training last year, we now provide it as part of our core training offering! The training gives staff a deeper understanding of many mental health conditions, enabling us to provide our residents with the best care possible.
Our Central Office team got dressed up for Wear It Green Day. The office was decorated, green snacks were shared and our three best-dressed team members were crowned.
Keep up with our campaign on social media – you can find us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn or Instagram.
You can see what we got up to last year for MHAW here.
If you need additional support this Mental Health Awareness Week, you can access the below helplines:
https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/our-work/public-engagement/mental-health-awareness-week/boost-your-mental-health-moving-more#:~:text=Even%20a%20short%20burst%20of,help%20us%20to%20sleep%20better.
https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/explore-mental-health/publications/how-look-after-your-mental-health-using-exercise
https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/explore-mental-health/a-z-topics/physical-activity-and-mental-health
