Mental health affects us all. Over my life I have lost one of my team through suicide in the most horrible way. The guilt of not having spotted the signs and asking whether I should have done more as a manager and colleague stayed with me for many years. You also become attuned to your own health - and the occasional dark and stressful times when you question yourself and you feel disconnected from the world around you. In those times you come to realise how much loved ones matter - and the light they can bring if you let them into your darkness.

I suddenly lost a very close friend of mine in a car accident whilst he was on tour with his band Viola Beach when I was 19. It was very well publicised in the mainstream media and there was a lot of speculation as to who was driving the car, were they drunk, were they on drugs etc… I bottled up my feelings, didn’t speak or open up to my family and friends on how I was struggling to deal with it all. I just got on with things as normal until it all got too much and ended up having a break down and going through a rough patch in my early 20s. I was always in the mindset that someone or something worse was happening to someone somewhere and I just needed to ‘man up’. It wasn’t until I opened up I realised the importance of sharing how you feel with the people closest to you and that it’s ‘ok not to be ok’. That’s why I support the work of Mind, giving people a safe space to open up and their mission to help people fight mental health issues.

It is alright, not to be alright” in my experience it happens to all of us at some time; it certainly has for me. Having organisations such as Mind is essential to our individual and collective wellbeing, so we have the capacity and opportunity to flourish.

At some point in most of our lives we’ll go through struggles – I know I have. Having seen my nephews lose their dad at 9 and 5 years old to suicide, my cousin take her own life as a young adult, I understand the devastating impact mental health can have on us, and our loved ones. They felt that was their only option to end their battle. Things need to change, mental health awareness and support is getting better, but there’s still so much more to be done – that’s why I support Mind. It’s alright not to be alright.

Mind’s resources have helped and supported me professionally to advise and signpost 100s of people experiencing a wide range of mental health conditions in my previous career as a psychiatric nurse. I recognised the positive impact Mind’s programmes had on the local community and the recovery of individuals. Mind’s resources have also supported me personally when a family member became unwell, utilising the information to support and aid them towards their recovery. Mind provides a wide range of resources from toolkits, activities and information sheets that have been all extremely helpful, from sleep hygiene to coping techniques.