In today's fast paced world, it's easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of everyday life and forget to take care of ourselves. But just like physical health, mental health is crucial to our over all well-being.

Attitudes and awareness have improved vastly in recent years but there is still a lot of unanswered questions and general misundertanding when it comes to mental health.

In this podcast Andrew and Louise chat with Mary Watkins, a local mental health counsellor. We find out some personal issues Andrew and Louise have with their mental health. Talking and discussing it you realise that we all suffer sometimes with our mental health and by supporting each other we help cope with our feelings and improve our mental well-being.

0:52 Mental health - what it is, and what it isn’t  - Misconceptions about mental health – the causes and the misconception that something awful must happen before its real

3:01 Factors - So many factors which can affect we’d be here all night trying to cover them all, and sometimes no obvious reason at all – are there any very common causes? 

3:41 Do you think genetics plays a part in it?  

6:52 Lets talk about the stigma around mental health issues – what forms can this take and how is this making the issue worse? 

8:43 Warning signs/signals – why do we ignore these? Can we prevent things from spiralling/escalating? 

10:17 Do you think poor/ill mental health is preventable? How can we prevent it?

13:03 Therapeutic effects of creativity – how does this work? 

15:47 Managing your stress and mental health as a business owner/self employed 

25:45 Anxiety – a form of illness – different for everyone?

28:14 Caring for someone struggling with their mental health 

29:43 How do you approach the issue if the person hasn’t asked for help but you’re concerned or worried for them? 

31:32 The role of counselling

32:20 And how do you get help?

Free mental health support - https://www.mind.org.uk/

Understanding Mental Illness - https://www.sane.org.uk/

Here’s why you need to be cultivating 'awe' in your life - https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/may/02/awe-psychology-life-death-dacher-keltner

W. H. DAVIES - Leisure

WHAT is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare?—

No time to stand beneath the boughs,
And stare as long as sheep and cows:

No time to see, when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass:

No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night:

No time to turn at Beauty's glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance:

No time to wait till her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began?

A poor life this if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare

Contact Mary marywatkinscounselling.co.uk

Blackwood Well-being Centre https://www.facebook.com/blackwoodwellbeing

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