It feels bittersweet that the partnership between Time to Change Wales and EYST has come to an end. After two years, we have come to reflect how timely this project is, particularly in the context of world affairs, local affairs and of course, the pandemic itself for which most of the two years took place in. With many public services taking a big hit during this time, along with the onset of the cost-of-living crisis, it was made clear how important this partnership was. Not least in considering how we might manage our mental health better, but to also consider ways to open up conversations about mental health.
To introduce my role a bit more, I am a Marketing and Communications Officer and so I have experience in creating, organising, and delivering campaigns as well as communicating with stakeholders across different levels. Through this project, I was given the opportunity to interview participants on their lived experiences and produce a write-up. This is not a small task. It can even be quite daunting, after all, you’re trying to capture someone’s story as best as possible. This experience however taught me the power of listening, empathy and that we’re not on our own with our problems. Of course, no case is the same but being able to express your problems provides such freedom – I saw that. Seeing the Champions offering to share their stories showed me a side of resilience I’ve not seen before. It was inspiring but also humbling to hear their story and be willing to share it with me directly. That’s huge and takes a lot of trust. So, if you were to ask me how we go about beating mental health stigma and discrimination, we must first build trust and a place for comfortably sharing without judgement. This must be the first step otherwise people will not share. Also – we must be willing to listen.
Despite this partnership ending, I know it will have a lasting effect on how I approach the subject personally and professionally. In my working role, naturally I will check on stakeholders and tend to their needs. However more recently, I’ve been putting in the effort to check in with my fellow colleagues too. The workplace can be seen as the wrong place to share but giving that chance for someone to express how they feel opens a window. I’ve learnt that while someone may not share instantly, there are actions you can take to not stigmatise mental health such as offering a listening ear or even performing small gestures like making a cup of tea when you can sense someone is going through a difficult time. These things help. Being kind helps.
The project has provided me with a new lens. There are so many sides to mental health and stigma, some that I had not considered before. For instance, the word ‘stigma’ itself may not be in someone’s daily vocabulary, and it’s even rarer in other languages. We were working out other ways to describe stigma to involve minority ethnic communities into our work more effectively. In another example, I know that mental health is becoming a known and understood term in the West, however there are many countries in which mental health still isn’t an open subject, so we must keep that in mind. Time to Change Wales now have their leaflets translated into various languages. This is good to see to help get the positive messaging across, and I hope Time to Change Wales continue to approach those communities whether it’s in their meet-up spots or local club.
At EYST, we are a warm group. Once you are a part of us, you are a part of what we call the EYST Family. The culture is really built on being friendly, accepting, and willing to help. There is no hierarchy, and everyone is made to feel welcome. However, due to the nature of our work – particularly when we are helping others, it’s hard to put ourselves first or to even consider our needs. This is true of the charity sector in general, so we always allow our colleagues the chance to debrief at meetings, especially if they are client-based as some of the cases they face are heavy. In the past few years, we’ve taken to campaigning during mental health awareness weeks and involving our colleagues, volunteers, and clients where possible. In other cases, we know that senior management are aware of the mental health challenges that come before us – this is true for anyone. Any supervisions or check-ins from team leads will always involve our wellbeing and asking how we are doing – not just professionally but overall. It is encouraging to see this taking place and I would argue that it’s made us more comfortable to talk about how we feel in general.
Moving forward, we want to continue the work we do. We are aware that at times, we are literally someone’s last lifeline, and we don’t take that lightly. It is usually because of stigma that people have taken to seeking help from us. Now with the cost-of-living crisis still affecting many as well as the rights of migrants being affected, we know how important it is to look after ourselves so that we can do our best to look after others and champion their right to a healthy life.