Think about the people you’re with right now at least one of them will have experienced a mental health crisis or are currently in crisis, or perhaps you have experienced a mental health crisis at some point in your own life and struggled in silence ashamed to tell anyone.

So, what can you do to better understand or support someone in crisis so that they don’t have to feel alone or ashamed?

Our mental health is just as important as our physical health, yet whilst we know how to take care of our own or others’ physical health, many of us do not know how to support relatives, friends and even colleagues who are experiencing poor mental health or even spot the signs or symptoms of someone experiencing a mental health crisis. Perhaps you’re struggling with your work tasks when they weren’t a struggle before or facing your colleagues in the morning with a fake smile is becoming too much for you to bare, well you’re not alone.

According to the HSE annual report on work-related ill health and workplace injuries, an estimated 17 million people took time off work due to stress and anxiety which they stress is currently the number-one cause of work-related absence.

By developing a greater understanding of common mental health issues that all of us may face at some point in our lives, as well as how best to support and guide someone to professional help, you can help further reduce the stigma associated with mental health in the UK. We will all have a first aider in the workplace if we physically injure ourselves ready with the first aid box in hand, but how many of us will have a mental health first aider with their own first aid toolkit ready to support or listen to us when we need it?

Don’t ignore this important role and become a mental health first aider.

SHARE is running a Mental Health First Aid Qualification in March. To book click HERE