There has been a great deal of talk about mental health in the last few years or so. I am sure we’ve all seen campaigns on the TV such as ‘Get Britain Talking’ and ‘Heads Together’. These are all designed to get people talking about mental health and try to reduce the stigma around mental health issues.
We all have mental health just as we all have physical health, we can have bad days and good days for both.
Mental Health issues are classified as illnesses, you will have heard of some of them Anxiety and depression, schizophrenia, Bi-Polar Disorder and many others.
Anxiety and Depression are by far the most common. Anyone can develop General Anxiety Disorder or a Depressive Disorder, none of us are immune. 1 in 4 of us are diagnosed each year. Worryingly men do not often seek help. 75% of people diagnosed are women. That is not because women are more susceptible but more that men are told to ‘Man Up’ which perpetuates the stigma. This is reflected when I work on set with women far more willing to open up and discuss what is causing their issues than men.
This can and does lead to serious issues in men. Unfortunately, 75% of the people who take their own lives are men and it is the biggest killer of men under 50, above heart disease or any other cause with 84 men taking their own lives every week in the UK alone.
In 2017 a colleague and friend of mine, who I had worked with on the last Harry Potter films along with World War Z, took his own life. I had been out for a beer with him 4 weeks before and never knew the struggle he was going through. He had sent letters to his loved ones and to the film industry in general citing a lack of support and arduous, stressful working conditions.
This was the catalyst to set up ‘6ft From The Spotlight’ as a non-profit company to help facilitate meaningful change across the creative industries. The idea being to train people to be more aware of mental health issues and hopefully stop anyone else from going through so much pain that they felt there was only one way out.
We help productions to set up a supportive and more psychologically safe environment. One of the main precursors to anxiety and depression is stress which is prevalent on many sets I visit. We can work to prevent issues and there are many studies that show we are far more productive and creative when not stressed. A psychologically safe environment can save money.
Of course, we can’t deal with all the issues that people face but we can let them know that support and help is available and help them to access it.
So what can we all do to help the mental health of ourselves and others?
1. Keep Talking! Check in with your mates regularly, ask if they are OK…twice…. ‘Are you ok? Are you sure you’re ok?’ – text that old friend or colleague or send them a message. We all want to connect.
2. Keep Active! Even a short walk but give yourself a time window to do some exercise every day.
3. Learn a new skill. I’ve been learning the guitar for 30 years and I’m still rubbish but it’s fun and it makes a great noise to annoy my neighbours
4. Give something back. Volunteer to help out somewhere for people who aren’t as fortunate I coach 100 plus 5-8 year olds how to play cricket
5. Work on sleep hygiene. Getting enough sleep is a key element to warding off stress.
6. Have a good laugh or if needed a cry. I support Sheffield United and we have had both of those in the last few months with results and a couple of tragedies off the pitch.
Where can you get support?
The charity ‘Mind’ has loads of great resources at www.mind.org.uk ranging from self help sheets to stress busting ideas.
If you are worried about a young person (under 35) you can call ‘Papyrus’ or visit their website at https://www.papyrus-uk.org/
CALM are at https://www.thecalmzone.net/about-calm/what-is-calm/ they have a webchat and a helpline
The Samaritans are on 116 123 or at www.samaritans.org
The Film and TV Charity offer specific support for film and TV Crew including financial advice, legal advice and dealing with bullying and harassment.
For information on men’s health in general, please see The Men’s Health Forum at https://www.menshealthforum.org.uk/
By Matt Longley, Co-Founder of 6ft From The Spotlight
