"Even in darkness there is always light" - Mikeysline mark World Mental Health Day
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For World Mental Health Day, mental health charity, Mikeysline, gathered at Ness bridge in Inverness, lit up with Mikeysline’s colours, and Nancy Pier in Alness, to shine phone lights up into the darkness. This was to symbolise how even when people are in the darkest of places, there is always light and hope for the future.
The theme for this year’s World Mental Health Day was ‘Make Mental Health a Global Priority’, which Mikeysline feels is absolutely essential given the impact of the last few years on people’s mental health and wellbeing.
Mikeysline was originally set up as a suicide prevention charity, but has now expanded into mental health support and awareness, and early intervention.
In addition to their one-to-one support options, Mikeysline also offers group support sessions for those who would prefer talking about mental health in a more general group setting. Group sessions are held weekly at the Muir of Ord Hub on Tuesdays, and at Merkinch Community Centre in Inverness on Thursdays, as well as a men's monthly group session at the Inverness Hive on Wednesday evenings. Dates for these group sessions and to book an appointment at any of the Hives for 1:1 face to face support in Inverness, Nairn, Alness or Tain can be found on their website, or email enquiries@mikeysline.co.uk
Mikeysline is holding different events to raise funds and wider awareness of the support provided, including an upcoming Burns Supper at the Kingsmills Hotel on 25 January and a Golf Day at the Royal Dornoch Golf Course on April 14.
Emily Stokes, CEO said, “We as a charity were formed as a result of tragedy to offer hope to local people. That’s what our light display “Where there’s night, there’s light” was about. It is a symbol to reach out for a way forward, to the future and a better place mentally. Life never stays static and no-one should be alone with difficult thoughts and feelings.”
Mikeysline are always interested in building partnerships with businesses and groups to advance their work further and would love to hear from anyone who has an interest in working with the charity or fundraising for Mikeysline. If interested, contact enquiries@mikeysline.co.uk
Reaching out for support can be one of the hardest parts of feeling mentally unwell or hopeless. This is why ongoing work in raising awareness of mental health issues, suicide prevention, and breaking down barriers in terms of stigma or fear of judgment is an essential component of the work that Mikeysline do. It can also encourage others to look out for the people around them and help signpost them to support services.
Mikeysline is available and provides support for people living in Highland and Moray, of all ages, all genders and from all backgrounds of life. MikeysLine offers this support every evening of the week, through it’s digital text-based support options. It does not matter where you live to access support; online face to face support can be offered for those living outwith the areas with a MikeysLine Hive. One of the main concerns for Mikeysline is the impact of the cost of living crisis, on individuals and families. Many more people will encounter financial hardship and housing concerns, which in turn impacts on people’s health and wellbeing. So it is more important than ever that people know they have somewhere to reach out to for support.
As part of their work in raising awareness of mental health and suicide prevention and how to access support, Mikeysline CEO, Emily Stokes said: "We have been working with a range of organisations and groups since the end of the last lockdown to keep conversations and awareness going about the importance for everyone of talking about their emotions, feelings, mental health and the topic of suicide. Our crucial message is “it’s ok not to be ok” it is really important to reach out and talk to someone you trust if you are not ok. It is also important to encourage others to reach out to family members, friends, colleagues if you have any concerns about them or are not sure how they are doing.”
This awareness work has seen a growing number of partnerships between Mikeysline and local businesses, sports clubs, schools and colleges across in Highland and Moray. With the appointment of Marina Finalyson, Development Manager, last Autumn, Mikeysline has been able to extend it’s reach in Secondary schools. Since the start of this year Mikeysline has been in primary schools, children are encouraged to talk about emotions and feelings, and how to deal with them. A more in depth awareness of mental health and suicide prevention is raised in secondary schools.
Given the impact of the lockdown on young people, Mikeysline sees this work as crucial and part of their additional support provided to young people. Young people in turn, have embraced the work with the charity, with over 90 MikeysLine Youth Champions, who ensure that mental health and suicide prevention stays high on the agenda in their schools, Youth Champions have training and resources provided for them to help them in their role, enabling them to signpost any peers who are struggling to support, through school guidance staff, or to Mikeysline. The Mikeysline Champion role has also been extended to work in local job centres.
