ILLUSTRATION — EVA ENNALS
even an eating disorder.
Yet talking to my mum about how I was feeling, what was worrying me, what things filled me with dread, helped more than I can put into words. My mum in some way was my therapist, only she prescribed cups of tea and a good gossip. She understood that talking about my mental health was extremely important and looking after it was a priority. She wanted me to take ‘ownership’ of it and not be embarrassed about my illnesses and encouraged me to talk about it. It was this family heirloom of speech that honestly helped me in my own recovery and I cannot thank my mum enough.
1 in 4 people suffer from mental health problems yet we still don’t talk about it enough. This taboo around the subject is something that can prevent someone getting the help they need. Communication is something that brings us all together and helps us form relationships, so why should this stop over the subject of mental health. I urge everyone to pass down the ‘heirloom’ of speech, to reach out and just talk to someone, whether they are struggling or you are. Through my experience of mental health I've discovered that discussion is key in recovery: it helps you to not feel so isolated and trapped in a disorder, it makes you realise how much people care, and, in some circumstances, that people have been through what you are going through. It can honestly help save lives.