Mental Health Awareness Week 2017 - in Knighton

Yesterday Phil and I set up an information stand in Knighton Library to coincide with Mental Health Awareness Week 8 – 14 May. The annual awareness week has been hosted by the charity the Mental Health Foundation since 2000 and previous themes have included relationships, mindfulness and sleep deprivation. This year’s theme is Surviving or Thriving?

“We all have mental health. Good mental health is an asset that helps us to thrive. This is not just the absence of a mental health problem, but having the ability to think, feel and act in a way that allows us to enjoy life and deal with the challenges it presents. Yet it can be easy to assume that ongoing stress is the price we have to pay to keep our lives on track. It is time to challenge that assumption”.

Following the sad loss late last year of a young man to suicide in the Knighton area, local people have been keen to raise awareness of the support that is available to people experiencing emotional distress of any sort and for any reason. Carla Rosenthal, who was at that time a Participation Officer in our team, and lives in the area, has been working closely with local organisations such as Knighton & District Community Support, Volunteering on Prescription and KINDA (Knighton Initiative for Dementia Action), along with the people of Knighton, to help organise activities:

“Events through MHAW aim to unite the community in Knighton through music, socialising and TALKING! Many local businesses are to host events but are relying on as many people to come and support them and raise awareness for a cause that's affected everybody”.

Carla suggested our team set up an information display in Knighton Library for the week alongside one from the mental health charity Mid Powys Mind. MPM holds Outreach Sessions in Knighton every Friday, 1 – 3pm, at St Edwards Community Room, St Edwards Close, Knighton. Doreen wrote about the group in October last year in Thank goodness it’s Friday in Knighton!

As the theme for this year’s Mental Health Awareness Week is Surviving or Thriving? we decided to ask visitors to the library to tell us what helps them to thrive. People of all ages engaged in a conversation about emotional wellbeing, describing what helped them feel better, and some common themes soon emerged!

Finding paid work was one person's answer to thriving better emotionally. Another woman told us that her dogs made her happy: "They need us and we need them." She went on to describe the great impact Nature has on her wellbeing and recommended reading a book called "Walden" by Henry David Thoreau. Published in 1854 it documents the American's experience of immersing himself in the natural world whilst living simply in a small cabin for 2 years, 2 months and 2 days in Massachusetts. Thoreau observed: “Happiness is like a butterfly, the more you chase it, the more it will evade you, but if you notice the other things around you, it will gently come and sit on your shoulder.”

In fact, books were a common theme in boosting emotional wellbeing in the people we talked to - perhaps not unsurprising considering we had based ourselves at the local library! More in-depth conversations with people revealed an uneasiness with the way that the language of "illness" is used to describe those experiencing distress. One woman said: "Nothing is black and white. There is a spectrum of greyness." We discussed a recent BBC Horizon programme - "Why did I go mad?" in which Jacqui Dillon speaks about the traumatic incidents in her childhood which led her to experience hearing voices. Our library visitor had found the programme fascinating, particularly the Nature-Nuture debate. She said: "Even if 10% of people are predisposed to experience distress - they still need to be in the right, rather the wrong situation, for it to actually happen." 

Other visitors to the library told us how "mind over matter" - the sheer determination to "keep going" - helped them to maintain high spirits. Life could throw all kinds of obstacles at us. There could be challenges to our physical health, or withdrawal of local services due to cuts, but going out into the community and talking to others - getting on with life - really seemed to help.

Gardening cropped up regularly when we asked people what helped them thrive. But Carla had taken one step further, and celebrated World Naked Gardening Day last Sunday 7 May! She had planted rocket, lettuce, climbing beans and watered tomatoes - lucky for her the weather had been gorgeous that day!

Not naked at Knighton Library however! Carla is actually shown wearing one of the T-shirts funded by Knighton & District Community Support Project which were circulated to help raise awareness.

Two live music events have been organised in Knighton to take place this weekend to coincide with Mental Health Awareness Week:

Saturday 13 May

The Barebacks at The Horse & Jockey Inn, 10pm - 12am

Sunday 14 May

Open Mic Night George & Dragon Inn 8pm - 10pm

Thank goodness it's Friday in Knighton!

This week's guest post is by Doreen Matthews - a member of the thriving Knighton Mid Powys Mind Friday group. It was written at the height of summer 2016.

I love Fridays. So say the members of Knighton Friday Group.

We meet as friends, share stories and experiences of our lives and talk of what our week has been like. The group is so important to us. Life for most of us is not easy, events may have happened to us which cause anxiety and depression, but one of the big things in life is loneliness.

I met a friend who I have known for many years, and I was asked to have coffee. I was in a hurry, but I did stop and we talked about many things. The comment was: “My world has got smaller; I seem to have lost confidence, so find it hard to live my life, and feel rather worthless.” This person has tried to find help but does not like groups and when seeking help it has not really worked. I could not find answers, but I did listen and give gentle understanding. As we parted the remark from this friend was: “I feel so much better now that I have met you today. I always feel better when I meet you.”

The comment: “My world has gotten smaller” has stayed with me. I thought my world had gotten smaller too since my husband died. I have lost so much confidence, and if I did not make the effort to go out and meet people I would end up a very lonely person.

Friday Group has been so important and good for me, and I have been a member of Mid Powys Mind for 15 years and I have learnt so much from the activities. Doing a craft and being creative is so good for the brain. I feel more relaxed and my spirits uplifted. It takes me out of my casual domestic world.

Over the years I have seen members come and go. We have had our highs and our lows, sometimes despairing as to whether we can go on. Something always happens. A new member comes along - a new friend and we feel encouraged. I do wish people would realise how special and important they are to the group - I always like to see who is coming in through the door.

When someone comes along for the first time we know how hard it is for them to walk into the room. First impressions count and we can make or break at that first meeting, so we have to be careful how we deal with this. When people ask us “how are you?” the usual answer is to say “I am fine, very well”. The truth is in many cases they are not fine and sometimes want to talk. We must remember to give them the chance to talk, but with our own busy lives we tend to just hurry along. A nice smile can do wonders; a cheerful considerate person can make a difference. A nasty remark will put people down for hours.

Earlier this year we were told there would have to be a cutback due to lack of funding. We took on the running of the group ourselves straight away, with involvement from Mid Powys Mind. We all put a little extra money in to give us a working fund, and the Rotary Club gave us a generous donation to keep us going. We used some of the money to buy season tickets to The Whimble Nursery Garden. The tickets allow a member to visit the garden whenever they want. It is a place of beauty which is a natural therapy to make us feel better. We are using the gardens for some of our meetings and our next visit will be reading poetry and taking in the scents and colours of this lovely garden. We will have tea and cake and perhaps buy a plant. Walking through the wild flower meadow on our last visit with friends made us feel we were in another world. We had a visit to Monkland Cheese, of course we all now know how to make cheese, but we haven’t got a cow so we will leave it to the experts!

Some of our activities this year have included: chalk painted wooden spoons, making pretty boxes, woofing down homemade rhubarb and strawberry crumble, and cream gateau, and last week we made raffia mats which resembled Hobnob biscuits. Oh yes, we love our crafts. We really enjoyed “Havin’ A Laugh” with the comedians, they found us very comical; we ladies taught them a lot about life.

We felt, as a group, that we would like to reach out to others and it was decided we would make little posies for the Queen's 90th birthday. The result was breathtaking when we looked. Our work, arranged in baskets, was then taken to Cottage View Residential Home. The shades and perfumes of roses and sweet williams just gave off a feeling of joy and happiness. We had collected so many flowers and the happy “buzz” of busy bees being creative made me just stop and listen to our ladies. I thought of how happy everyone sounded, we were friends together, so contented in one another’s company. We all went up to Cottage View Residential Home and presented each resident with a dainty bouquet as we all sang Happy Birthday to the Queen. The feedback from the home let us know how glad they were to have us there, and we hope to return again.

The group has become very strong and we are getting new members. Everyone is so enthusiastic, putting in an effort to make things work. “We make our motto, we can achieve anything”. I think we can be proud of ourselves, and we are becoming noticed in Knighton.

We are now looking forward to an afternoon picnic at Aston-on-Clun on a member's lawn. Then we will be dancing with Powys Dance, we just love that! Our imagination makes us swans, sugar plum fairies, salsa dancers, fashion models or whatever we want to be.

The great thing about our group is that we are friends who care about one another, friends who laugh and have fun.

The Knighton Friday Group meets every Friday 1 - 3 pm at St Edwards Community Room, St Edwards Close, Knighton. 

If you would like to find out more about the group, which is supported by Mid Powys Mind, please ring 01597 824411, or contact Nic Williams by emailing: vo@midpowysmind.org.uk