" Hi , I ' m Jon , thanks for coming over for dinner ," Jon May says on TikTok every day as he prepares a delicious home-cooked meal for himself and the viewer . Jon began his journey into wellbeing activism during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns in the UK , when he was " going through a bit of a tough time " because he " couldn ' t have friends over for dinner ." To deal with this , he created his TikTok channel ' DinnerWithJon ,' which became a place where he " felt people had come over for dinner ." Jon now has a caring community of over 350,000 followers who tune in every day to get the homecooked food experience .

It was Mary Berry who said , “ Cooking and baking is both physical and mental therapy ,” which rings true alongside the ethos of Jons channel . Jon believes it does not have to be “ particularly complex ” as any sort of cooking “ helps you disengage your brain , especially for those of us in office-based roles ” who “ otherwise would not use their hands for manual dexterity .” He adds , cooking “ allows your brain to switch off and do something else .”

Cooking does not have to be fancy or well presented , beans on toast remains a

brilliant option , but adding some extra seasoning , broccoli and a mountain of cheese will bring that “ sense of achievement even if you have done nothing else that day ,” adds Jon . Perhaps after a bad day , follow the wise advice of Jon while needing dough , and “ punch the bread a bit harder .” Although punching bread is not advised , the premise remains .

In every video , Jon asks the question “ what was the highlight of your day ?” As simple as it may sound , Jons signature phrase holds a much deeper meaning . He explained that in your day , “ someone could give you a

free coffee , but then if a car splashes you with water , you ’ ll remember that more than the free coffee ,” so by thinking of the highlights , the viewer will “ focus more on the positives .” Many of Jons viewers reply with their highlights in the comment section which adds to the community surrounding his videos that he strived for when creating his channel

He added that the phrasing of the question helps when “ sometimes people do go through tough times and when you are at work or the shops ” and someone asks how you are , “ and you don ’ t want to unload onto somebody ,” however by

focussing on the positives it can help “ people to answer it in a way that ’ s more genuine ,” while also framing it in a more positive light . on also has other methods of improving his mental health . He chuckled as he admitted that when he goes through a tough time , he “ wants a beer ,” however he also volunteers at Food Cycle soup kitchen in Glouster and has recently taken up a new journey to become a pilot . Jon ’ s company is based in Edinburgh , so he has taken on an impressive measure to improve his commute .

Jon finished with the words of advice he would give to someone struggling with their mental health . “ As cliché as it sounds , it will get better .” He added that “ everything will be okay in the end and if it ' s not okay , it is not the end .” Like a boat in choppy waters , “ eventually it will come out on the other side .”

TikTok : DinnerWithJon

Instagram : dinnerwithjon

Jon ' s cookbook and happy spoon can be purchased at www . dinnerwithjon . com

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