Publish date: 2 February 2023
Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust Chief Executive, Karen James OBE, reflects on the importance of Time to Talk Day
Today (Thursday 2 February) is Time to Talk Day, the nation’s biggest mental health conversation. The NHS will join forces with other partner organisations to encourage people to come together to talk, listen and change lives.
The day encourages us to make time for a conversation with friends, family or workmates, to talk, listen and help one another.
It doesn’t have to be in person, it can be on the phone or via video call; as long as you are making the effort to have the conversation, you are playing your part. It could be the conversation you never knew would change everything for someone else.
Research by the charity Mind, suggests a quarter of all people will experience a mental health problem every year. Could you benefit from help? We would urge anyone who needs it to reach out to the recently renamed NHS Talking Therapies for Anxiety and Depression service.
Previously known as Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT), the service launched in 2008 and has helped over 6.5 million people nationally receive help with common mental health problems.
The service helps people with a wide range of issues, including, but not limited to, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), depression, body dysmorphic disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
It’s important to know these problems present themselves in a whole variety of ways in different people. We are all different. The NHS Talking Therapies service is full of skilled staff who can work with you to understand what the best service might be for your needs.
In a mental health crisis, call the crisis line straight away. The number for Tameside & Glossop residents is 0800 014 9995.
If you can, put some time aside and check in on your nearest and dearest.
Remember; a conversation has the power to change lives.