Mental Health Awareness Week: How to Protect Your Mental Health- Information for Adults
This week 18th-24th May 2020 is Mental Health Awareness Week in the UK and as we are all aware, it has fallen at a particularly challenging time for everyone. At Fostering Rotherham, we are extremely proud of our in-house Therapeutic Team who you can read more about here. They are there not just here to support the foster children in our network but the adults too and gave us the following to share with you all:
The following information is gathered from the World Health Organisation and Anxiety UK, and it is advice that carers supporting our looked after children may find helpful. Carers, and parents, naturally focus on their children’s emotional wellbeing but sometimes carers and parents forget about themselves, and often not until later in the day they may notice their own anxieties bubbling up. This is quite natural and to be expected, especially right now.
The coronavirus has made many people feel uncertain and with uncertainty comes the need for news and contact. However, this can become overwhelming especially for those people presently living with anxiety but also for those people who have experienced anxiety in the past.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) released advice regarding how people can look after their mental health during this unprecedented time of uncertainty. WHO advised the following:
Avoid watching, reading or listening to news that could cause you to feel anxious or distressed.
Seek information mainly to take practical steps to prepare your plans and protect loved ones
Seek information updates at specific times
Anxiety UK has put out the following advice:
Limit the amount of time you spend reading or watching things which aren’t making you feel better. Perhaps decide on specific time to check in with the news.
There is a lot of misinformation around – stay informed by sticking to trusted sources of information such as government or NHS websites.
Have breaks from social media and mute things that are triggering
Mute key words which can be triggering on Twitter and unfollow or mute accounts.
Mute Whatsapp groups and hide Facebook posts and feeds if you find them too overwhelming
Stay connected with people, agree regular check-in times
If you are self-isolating, strike a balance between having a routine and making sure each day has variety, it might actually feel like a productive two weeks.
Avoid burnout and practice the APPLE technique with anxiety and worries –
Acknowledge – Notice and acknowledge the uncertainty as it comes to mind.
Pause – Don’t react as you normally do. Don’t react at all. Pause and breath.
Pull back -Tell yourself this is just the worry talking. and this apparent need for certainty is not helpful and not necessary. It is only a thought or a feeling. Don’t believe everything you think. Thoughts are not statements or facts.
Let go -Let go of the thoughts or feeling. It will pass. You don’t have to respond to them. You might imagine them floating away in a bubble or cloud.
Explore – Explore the present moment, because right now, in this moment, all is is well. Notice your breathing and the sensation of your breathing. Notice the ground below you. Look around and notice what you see, what you hear, what you can touch, what you can smell. Right now. Then shift your focus of attention on something else – on what you need to do, on what you are doing before you noticed the worry, or something else – mindfully with you full attention.
Make a list of things you find comfort you, and refer to it when you are feeling low or worried.
Remind yourself that this is a ‘pause’ in your regular routine.
Look for ways to have fun with your family, allow yourself to ‘just be’ in the moment.
Take time out for just you – bath time etc.
You will already have many ways to take care of yourself, remember them.
