Mental health has never been so talked about as it is now, however, much more still needs to be done from a government, societal and individual point of view to make sure it gets the attention it deserves.
October is Mental Health Month in New South Wales, and their theme this year is ‘Tune In’. This refers to being present and being aware of what’s happening within you as well as the world around you. As the Mental Health Month website says, this includes:
- Tune In to you senses: what can you sense right now? What can you feel?
- Tune In to your communities: what’s happening that you can be part of, or that you can help others be part of?
- Tune In to stigma: how do attitudes and understandings of mental health and wellbeing impact people’s ability to live the lives they want?
Essentially, taking time to ‘Tune In’ can calm down your mind and allow it to focus, helping you to understand what’s going on for yourself and as well for others. This practice of tuning in can help you to reflect and be present, and therefore find a new perspective.
Doing so has been shown to assist in building self-awareness, help make effective choices, reduce the impact of worrying, as well as building positive connections. Even if you don’t suffer from mental health issues yourself, tuning in to communities and the impact of mental health stigma can help ensure that people who need support can find a safe place to talk about their experiences and seek help.
You may be thinking that this is all very well, ‘but how can I put this into action?’ There are several resources available to help shine a light on mental health this month and make it more of a focus for yourself, your friends or colleagues.
- This Tips to Tune In at work calendar provides a month’s worth of things you can do by yourself, with your team or your organisation to be more mindful and tune in. It also has exercises to reduce stigma.
- These downloadable conversation cards help start what can sometimes be an awkward or uncomfortable dialogue by providing guidance to help you and your colleagues tune in. These can be used at any time or perhaps during a team meeting, a morning tea or even at home around the dinner table with your family.
- Mental Health Month trivia: Everyone loves a trivia session. Whether it involves hosting a quiz night or just introducing some short questions into a meeting, it can help to start the conversation and get people thinking about their and other people’s mental health.
- Workplace Stress Less Tips: These handy tips can be downloaded in a variety of formats; including a poster, a postcard and desktop background. Alternatively, you can visit the tips website.
Other resources and more information can be found at the Mental Health Month website.
If you’re looking for tips to assist improving your mental health, check out our recent blog about prioritising your mental health. Remember, if you need to talk to a professional, seek out a visit to your GP to discuss options or talk to LifeLine Australia or New Zealand.
