Mental Health Awareness Week 2023
This week is Mental Health Awareness Week 2023. To mark the occasion, we asked some members of our lived experience advisory board how they manage their mental health alongside the everyday challenges of life as a disabled person or carer.
This year’s theme for #MentalHealthAwarenessWeek is Anxiety, at the end of this page you'll find links to some useful advice and information from some amazing mental health organisations.
We know that starting something new can be a challenge and getting active is no exception, especially when you add in the realities of dealing with the day-to-day grind of being a disabled person alongside all of modern life's other challenges, but getting active in a way that works for you can be totally worth overcoming those initial hurdles. There are lots of ways to move and build in more physical activity to your day-to-day life either at home, outdoors, down your local club or with your friends and family. The most important thing is to find something that you enjoy!
Here's how some of our lived experience advisory board members find being active supports their mental health...
What helps you to manage your mental health?
Samantha
Over the years I’ve found ways that help me to manage my mental health, One of them is mindfulness which has helped me take a different outlook on life, Being mindful helps me to process challenging situations. Taking part in sport plays a role in managing my mental health keeping me busy and active when times get a bit rough.
Stephen
I make sure I prioritise taking care of both my mental and physical health and find the two go hand in hand. I have a few habits to stay positive and proactive, they include meditation and visualisation, I was introduced to these by one of my first coaches down at my local club. These techniques have helped me in both my personal and professional life. Meditation helps me to clear my mind and engage in the present, while visualisation is a bit like training my mind which I have found can build confidence. I also keep a journal to record and process my thoughts, I plan, schedule and track my actions so I keep making progress towards my goals. I try to stay focussed on one thing at a time and make sure I get plenty of rest. I try to keep positive and give myself plenty of opportunities to learn and be challenged in different ways and keep things light and fun.
Lorna
To manage my mental health which often results in feeling stressed and anxious, I try a few different methods to ensure I am able to manage, these include making sure to eat as well as I can, I take part in the sessions I deliver through my community interest company Freedom Activities. Getting enough sleep is also important to help manage my stress levels. I find talking to other people is helpful and try to do this regularly. I can find myself worrying unnecessarily about many aspects of life and have learnt to manage this as best as possible. I try to use reflection to assess what I need to do and how I can manage my stress effectively. By breaking down each situation into smaller pieces and taking things one step at a time instead of trying to do too much, I am able to prevent myself from feeling overwhelmed.
How has physical activity / sport played a role in supporting your social and mental wellbeing?
Lorna
I play sports on a regular basis and take part in all the activities I run for others. I find this very therapeutic and when I am having a particularly stressful time this does alleviate overwhelming feelings. As for my son who is disabled, he is very sporty and loves to play football at school during lunchtime and within PE. He always feels better about himself after a game. He enjoys the social side and loves the competitive element of the game. If he had a choice, he would choose to play sport all day rather than take part in the academic lessons. His love of sport and taking part makes him feel included, and no different to his non-disabled friends.
Stephen
Massively! Health and fitness are central to my wellbeing. Being active has huge mental health benefits, helps us to feel better about ourselves. Through participating in sport, I learned to accept myself and love myself, but I also learned that by taking positive action day by day you can create big changes within yourself. Sport and activity have helped me to be independent, to manage and reduce the impact of my disability. It gave me the confidence to strive and be ambitious. I've also met incredible people and formed amazing relationships through sport which helps with my mental wellbeing.
Samantha
I am always happy to talk to others about my mental health as being an upcoming athlete I can help people to know it’s OK to not be OK.
Anything else you feel relevant you’d like to share with regards to mental health or anxiety?
Stephen
My passion for sport and mental/physical health led to the creation of SMILE Through Sport, a charity based in the North East that helps disabled people gain access to sporting activities, and also educates people on how best to support and include disabled people.
I am also a keen advocate for mental health, I am a keynote speaker and coach on positive thinking, I run sessions for teams and individuals on harnessing the power of a positive mindset so know the value of positively managing your mental health.
Samantha
I am always happy to talk to others about my mental health as being an upcoming athlete I can help people to know it’s OK to not be OK.
Lorna
I find myself on many occasions feeling stressed and anxious. Many things contribute to this from running my CIC and all the work that enables me to provide physical activity opportunities for those with and without disabilities to take part in. To being a parent of a child with complex disabilities, and my constant worry for his well-being and ongoing issues at school. I think being open and talking about mental health is key, and things like Mental Health Awareness Week are a great way to prompt positive conversations and reduce the stigma around this really important subject.
If you think sport or being more active could help you to manage your mental health. Take a look at some of the great options in your local area on our activity finder to help you get started.