When we hear the words mental health does our mind think happiness, joy and excitement?

The reality is no, out first thoughts are more likely to be sadness, depression and anxiety… and maybe add in suicide, self-harm and psychosis.

We have been conditioned to think about mental illness when we hear the words mental health.

Now, whilst these two things are inter-connected, they are two completely different things. Our narrative around mental health is a reactive one. How people can be helped after they experience a
mental health issue or talking about the frighteningly high number of people that have died by suicide because they didn’t get the help that they need.

If we want to have a hope of saving more lives, decreasing the pressure on mental health services and creating healthier future generations of people we need to shift this narrative around mental health from one of reaction to one of protection.

More mental heath awareness, yes, absolutely, this is always vital to be informed on how to spot signs and symptoms or signpost people when they are in distress, because people will often be in distress. But we need more than that; we need to be better at starting to equip people with the tools and strategies they need to be emotionally fitter and build resilience so when those inevitably difficult things in life do happen, they have the resources and strength to manage and navigate them.

This is where my focus and passion lies; in helping people to help themselves better and create mentally healthy cultures along the way. To help build emotional fitness to protect mental health and prevent potential mental illness… and I hope others will join in this approach of prevention as opposed to only focussing on reaction and relying on our amazing but stretched services to pick up the pieces.

How do we do it? Education, awareness and mostly conversations. Equipping people with a toolkit of small and simple tools and exercises to implement in their everyday lives to help them be more resilient, more empowered, more productive, happier and flourish.

It’s possible, but it will take work and uncomfortable conversations and likely, a lot of resistant. But I’m up for it… and it’s exactly why I’ve created my PERFORM framework; to help support people to support themselves and others and allowing them to PERFORM, whether that’s in their personal or professional lives.

So, I hope you will join me for the conversations, in shifting the narrative and engage in my blogs, books, talks, workshops and more and I would love to be involved in yours too.

Together, let’s start the conversations and start shifting the narrative around mental health.

Much Love
Tabby xxx