Blog

Many teachers these days are facing overstuffed workloads and packed diaries, giving them little time to complete tasks and take well-deserved breaks. This pressure, as well as the pressure of being frequently reviewed, can often lead to a decline in teachers’ mental health. Michael tells us of his experience, and why he ended up making the decision to leave teaching.

There’s ways we can support our mental health all year round, but how can we use our current environment and the seasons to tailor how we look after our wellbeing? We’re exploring some tips on how we can use the arrival of spring to boost our mood and connect with the outdoors and others.

There is a mental health crisis facing the education sector. Over the past few years, teachers, team leaders and support staff have seen unprecedented levels of change to their workload. From pivoting lesson plans for online delivery, creating support packages to help students learn remotely, to the recent cost-of-living crisis and budget cuts to the sector – it’s no surprise that education staff are recording persistent, higher levels of stress in their roles. There are calls for the sector to evaluate their support mechanisms for staff, and provide a psychologically safe space for staff to feel valued, and supported to bring their whole selves to work.

Anyone who engages in a sporting activity, whether it be for pleasure or destined for a professional pathway – physical injury is an unavoidable risk. Roughly 48% of youth sport athletes have been found to have at least one injury during an athletic season, (Patel & Nelson, 2000).

With record numbers of people are seeking support from our Mental Health & Money Advice service, the cost-of-living crisis is clearly taking its toll on financial and mental health across the United Kingdom. This makes the need for financial and debt advice more important than ever.  Mental Health UK are thrilled to announce that our Mental Health & Money Advice service is joining the Money Advice Trust’s National Debtline Partnership, providing a telephone casework service to National Debtline clients for the first time.

Exertis UK, industry leading distributor of technology products and specialist services partnered with Mental Health UK in 2022, with the mindset that they were here to ‘end the taboo surrounding mental health problems’. Since the launch of their partnership, Exertis UK have dived straight in, raising awareness about mental health and raising vital funds that will support the nation’s mental health. Find out more about what they’ve been up to so far.

Christmas is the time of year when we’re expected to be our merriest and most joyful. There are friends and family to see, and a wealth of opportunities to have fun and let loose. For some of us, our reality during the festivities is far from this. It can be a stressful time of year with family duties, financial strain, pressure to keep to traditions and tricky logistics. It can also bring up some difficult emotional experiences, such as trauma and grief. So, how can we navigate these challenges and protect our mental health?

For many workers, Christmas is a time of year for rest and annual leave. However, for people supporting those living with mental illness or experiencing mental health problems, this isn’t always the case, and in fact it can be the festive period where support is required the most. We spoke to Cathal, Beth and Monika, Rethink Mental Illness mental health recovery workers, about the impact of their work at this time of year.

Christian was born with facial differences known as severe craniofacial anomalies. Growing up, he had over fifty reconstructive surgeries to transform his appearance and improve his confidence and life outcomes. Opening up to the people he loved is what helped Christian change how he thinks and feels about himself physically, which in turn eased his mental health difficulties.