It’s Mental Health Awareness Week this week in the UK (15-21 May 2023), and the focus this year is on anxiety.
While we can all feel anxious at times, it can be short term and manageable for some and really intense and life impacting for others.
In the UK alone, over 8 million people suffer from an anxiety disorder, when anxiety levels are intense and frequent.
That’s 1 in 10 people.
General anxiety disorder is most common in the 35-59 age group, and women are twice as likely to be diagnosed than men. Perhaps because women are more willing to speak up?
The important thing is, if you’re feeling anxious, whether mildly or intensely, to speak to someone you trust, for example a close friend, a family member, a health professional, trusted colleague, coach or mentor.
These days there are plenty of things that trigger or worsen anxiety: financial worries as the cost of living crisis continues, uncertain job opportunities, the news, toxic work environments, climate change…the list goes on.
It’s not always easy to know how to to talk to someone about mental health, or to find the ‘right’ words. We worry we might make things worse. This conversation guide, from Mental Health UK, highlights some really helpful do’s and dont’s, as well as some useful places you can find additional information and support.
So let’s make this a week, and beyond, where we do our best to support each other, where we make an effort to check-in with people to ask how they’re doing, where we are kind and empathetic, and we give everyone a safe space to speak up.
And here’s the link to the original image, for easier reading: https://mhukcdn.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/04131954/Mental-Health-UK-Coversation-Guide-Talking-to-someone-about-mental-health.pdf
