Staff at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust have participated in a national campaign to support mental health and wellbeing.
RED January is a national campaign which is supported by mental health charity, Mind. The initiative was introduced to encourage people to do something active every single day throughout the month of January to support positive mental health.
Staff at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals joined together to support this campaign throughout January and were able to make a tremendous effort participating through various activities.
The RED January campaign aimed to empower people to start the year as they mean to go on; and celebrate all achievements, whether a short walk, a gym session, or a marathon!
Sarah Cullen, Deputy Director of Nursing, Midwifery and Allied Health Professionals at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals, kick started the campaign across the hospitals by rallying people on social media. Sarah said: “I signed up for RED January and was able to get active every day, to beat the blues away. I wanted to try to get as many of my colleagues as possible involved so that we could motivate each other and help each other along the way. I’m so pleased with the response by our fantastic teams who are always keen to help these great causes and take on a challenge!”
Today also marks Time to Talk Day which is all about bringing people together to have conversations about mental health. Mental health problems affect one in four of us, yet people are often afraid to talk about it. Time to Talk Day encourages everyone to talk about mental health.
Liz Tallentire, Clinical Psychologist at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals, said: “Talking to a friend or colleague can be one of the most valuable avenues of support for our mental health and it’s often underestimated. We may be reluctant to talk due to worries about the impact on the other person, which in fact can often be positive. It can feel good to be there for someone else and it opens up opportunity for the other person to talk too.”
“It’s important not to underestimate the power of listening to others, for many people being listened to is all they need to stay psychologically healthy. If we do need professional support or therapy, talking it through with a friend or colleague is an important first step. It is common to find others have had similar experiences.”