Time to Change objectives are:
- Improving public attitudes and behaviour towards people with mental health problems
- Reducing the amount of discrimination that people with mental health problems report in their personal relationships, their social lives and at work
- Making sure even more people with mental health problems can take action to challenge stigma and discrimination in their communities, in workplaces, in schools and online
- Creating a sustainable campaign that will continue long into the future
In October 2017 the School signed the Time to Change Employer Pledge committing itself to the campaign’s aims of ending mental health stigma and discrimination in the workplace and in public life. Details of the School’s Action Plan to meet the Pledge, and support for mental health well-being can be found on the Staff and Student Intranet pages.
7 February 2019 is Time to Change’s Time to Talk Day, which is all about making time to have a conversation about mental health. They suggest the following tips for talking about mental health:
- Ask questions and listen, give the person space to talk
- Think about the time and place, try and be as natural as possible
- Don’t try and fix things, listening itself can be very powerful
- Treat them the same, they’re still the same person as they were before
- Be patient, it can be hard to talk about a mental health problem, some people might not be ready but they will know you’re there for them when they are
The Library currently has a display in the Reading Room of some books linked to mental health incl. depression, obsessions and compulsions, bipolar disorder, insomnia, body image problems, grief and grieving, low self-esteem, and mindfulness. To find books which might help with mental health issues, a search for ‘student advice’ in Discover will give you details of resources. As a general guide, books on mental health will usually be located under the UJ shelfmark, which can be found in the Barnard Room.
