A road to better mental health for HGV drivers
There’s a strong association between driving for work and mental health. A 2017 systematic review by the TRL (Transport Research...
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The importance of developing your mental health first aiders
“I feel like I’ve been thrown to the sharks” Those were the words of a mental health first aider I spoke to recently. They’d been on the...
How to make mental health first aid a prized & honoured role
Did you watch the London 2012 Olympics? I don’t know about you, but I was blown away. As a nation we’d expected things to be a bit of...
The power of a proactive approach to mental health first aid
The wise old saying goes, “A penny of prevention is worth a pound of cure”, and when it comes to mental health truer words were never...
Would your mental health first aiders benefit from a buddy?
A few years ago, I attended a Salsa party with intentions of wowing the world with my slick moves. Shock horror, I was absolutely awful...
Why every mental health first aider should have a profile video
Have you ever been in a situation where somebody has totally misinterpreted one of your emails? You know, completely got the wrong end...
The importance of building a mental health first aid community
Watching the New Zealand All blacks Rugby team in action never fails to impress me. They embody the word team. The understanding shared...
Tell staff 'WHY' you're launching mental health first aid
Build it and they ‘might not’ come One of the most recent studies into the usage of EAP’s (Employee Assistance Programmes) was done by...
Screening questions for interviewing mental health first aid candidates
Imagine the following scenario, you’ve put out an advert for staff to volunteer to be Mental Health First Aiders. Amazingly you get...
Should managers focus on mental health labels or people with problems?
Do the following names mean anything to you? · Coniferophyte · Tracheophytes · Sphenophyte · Filicinophyta · Cycads · Angiospermophyta ·...
Why pressure doesn't deserve it's bad name
Karoshi! Pressure kills! We’ve all heard the headlines where individuals have been worked so hard, they’ve dropped dead. Did you know...
Could 'giving up' be the real threat to health?
Does our mood affect our immune system? The short answer to this question appears to be yes. A research paper published in the journal...
Problems with the 'fight or flight' theory of stress
On the run You’re being chased by a sabre tooth tiger, so your 'fight or flight' response kicks in, your pupils dilate, breathing rate...
Why the stress research doesn't stack up (part 3/3)
A close shave In 2020 I started noticing patches of hair loss on my head. Within the space of 6 months, I’d lost 60% of the hair on my...
Why the stress research doesn't add up (part 2/3)
After a period of stress we get ill – everybody knows that It’s written in countless magazines and newspaper articles, so surely it must...
Why the stress research doesn't add up (part 1/3)
Stress or torture? Imagine a rat, immobilised, taped down and injected with substances. Or alternatively, mice, dogs, cats, rabbits, and...
Should GP's be putting 'stress' on a sick note?
Metaphorical not medical Stress isn’t a medical term, it’s a metaphor borrowed from the world of engineering, that was adopted by the...
Are stress risk-assessments & audits a waste of time?
Money well spent? How much money has your organisation spent on stress risk assessments and stress audits? Maybe nothing, or maybe...