Time to Talk Day 2020
February 6 marks “Time to Talk Day”, one of the biggest annual days for mental health awareness.
Issues such as depression, anxiety or stress can affect anyone at any time, but can be particularly common during winter due to factors such as the weather and financial worries after the festive period.
This makes it all the more important to look out for one another and to simply talk about how we’re feeling, the goal being to encourage everyone to be more open about how their feeling rather than feel isolated.
See Me, who lead the campaign in Scotland, have announced the theme for this year is “Would you rather?” based on the popular game.
The game is a great way to break the ice when starting a conversation, shyness is one of the most common barriers for those in need.
In Moray, between 2014 and 2018, 73 people took their own lives. Per 100,000, Moray had the 8th highest suicide rate in Scotland (figures from Scottish Public Health Observatory).
If you feel unable to talk to your friends or colleagues, but still feel something isn’t quite right, other support is available, whether from charities such as Mind or Penumbra, or from the Employee Assistance Programme.
Remember, mental health affects us all, and issues can arise for any number of reasons. If you, or someone you know, is in need then don’t try to ignore it or them.
We all need a hand from time to time, and simply talking can do help more than you might think.