Lifeways wears green for World Mental Health Day!
Did you know today, Monday 10 October, is World Mental Health Day?
To mark the day, many of the nearly 5,000 people we support at Lifeways, alongside our 11,000 colleagues, will be wearing a green item of clothing to show their support.
In the photo above, that's Karen Roberts, Group Head of Health and Clinical Governance, Registered Learning Disabilities Nurse, Queen’s Nurse, wearing green for the day, alongside her dog!
This year, we’ve also shared with colleagues our traffic-light themed wellness programme, which contains three simple steps to boost your mental health – and get you from red to green.
- Red: Keep active – You can go to the gym, a run or even for a walk. Exercise releases endorphins which helps boost your mood!
- Amber: Eat well – Our diet has an incredible impact on our mind, body, and soul. Balance your diet so you are eating fruit and vegetables in addition to sweets and treats. Eating fresh, healthy food will help you feel less tired and lethargic, which in turn will help how you’re feeling.
- Green: Get better sleep – Sleep is the pillar of health. And when it’s not of a good quality, your physical, emotional, and mental wellbeing can suffer. You can improve your quality of sleep by keeping your evenings technology free, avoid alcohol within a few hours of going bed and try not to have caffeine after 2pm.
As with other changes in lifestyle, talk to your GP if you’re experiencing problems with your mental health. Your GP may be able to signpost you to a specialist.
What is World Mental Health Day – and why does it matter?
For the past three decades, the World Health Organisation, which is part of the United Nations, recognises World Mental Health Day on 10 October every year.
This year’s theme is ‘make mental health and wellbeing for all a global priority.’
World Mental Health Day is also a chance to talk about mental health in general.
And as around one in four people in the UK experience a mental health problem each year, according to Mind, the charity, there’s never a bad time to talk about mental health!
As the UK’s largest team of professionals supporting adults to live in the community, Lifeways takes mental health very, very seriously.
This summer, we launched our Health and Wellbeing Strategy 2022-2025, which sets out our vision, shared ambitions, principles, and actions we will take over the next three years to support individuals to improve their health and wellbeing and to reduce health inequalities.
SIL, our specialist mental health provider operates 24 supported living services across the country, supporting individuals to live lives beyond mental illness.
Additionally, many Lifeways services support individuals who have mental health needs, alongside autism, learning disabilities, acquired brain injuries, physical disabilities, and other needs.
We also support the mental health and wellbeing of our colleagues. Everyone who works at Lifeways has access to a dedicated assistance hotline, if they need support.
What’s more, every colleague has access to an online wellbeing centre, which is a hub of content and resources that you can use to help you manage your physical, mental and financial wellbeing.
About Lifeways:
Lifeways is the UK’s largest team of support professionals providing support for adults in the community.
We support adults with diverse and complex needs, including learning disabilities, autism, physical disabilities, acquired brain injuries, and mental health conditions.
As the supported living sector’s largest team of professionals, Lifeways’ extensive experience and national reach mean we deliver extraordinary support to adults, enabling them to live fulfilling and independent lives in the community.
Our 11,000 colleagues currently support almost 5,000 individuals who live in our 1,500 supported living and residential services across England, Scotland, and Wales.
Find out more about how we change people's lives at: www.lifeways.co.uk
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