Mental health and wellbeing support

Your mental health is just as important as your physical health.

There’s a lot of uncertainty at the moment which could be leading you to feeling stressed, lonely and even having unwanted thoughts. But there are resources here to help and offer free support.

One You have a free online quiz which can guide you towards help dealing with stress and anxiety, improve your sleep, boost your mood and feel more in control.

Click here to take the quiz. 

We've put together a few simple things you can do daily to help keep your mental health in check.

Stay active

Each day, take a break from your technology and step outside. According to the NHS;

Being active is not only great for your physical health and fitness. Evidence also shows it can also improve your mental wellbeing by:

• raising your self-esteem
• helping you to set goals or challenges and achieve them
• causing chemical changes in your brain which can help to positively change your mood

So take time out of your busy schedule, switch off from technology and take a breath of fresh air and explore your local area.

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/stress-anxiety-depression/improve-mental-wellbeing/

Stay connected

It can be quite lonely without being able to see your friends and family at the moment. If you’re working from home it can even feel isolating being by yourself all day. But it’s important to keep connections with your friends, family and colleagues. Here’s a few things you can do to stay connected:

• Plan a time in your day to call a friend, family member or even colleagues.

• If you’re working from home, keep in regular contact with your colleagues

• Connect with someone everyday, over text, phone etc.

Don’t be afraid to express how you’re feeling to someone, they can be there to offer support and a friendly voice.

You can find more advice here on the NHS website here: https://www.nhs.uk/oneyou/ever...

Sleep schedule

Having a sleeping schedule can help you create a healthy day-to-day routine. A lack of sleep can lead to tiredness, low self-esteem, feelings of worry and difficulty coping with life. 

When your mental health slips, it's common for your sleep schedule to become irregular too. 

Read a few top tips below to help you get a restful night sleep... 

• Aim to get to bed at the same time everyday
• Create a peaceful, restful environment to sleep in
• Turn off technology an hour before you go to sleep 
• Exercise during the day 
• Cut down on caffeine and alcohol 
• Write down any worries you have instead of keeping them bottled up in your head 

You can find more help and advice on the One You website here: https://www.nhs.uk/oneyou/ever...