A mental health charity is campaigning to raise £85,000 in a single week to help those who struggle with their mental health through the festive season.
For many Christmas is traditionally thought to be a time of joy, peace, and goodwill to all men. Yet, for those who suffer with anxiety or depression December can feel the exact opposite.
A study conducted by YouGov found more than two in five British people have felt stressed during the festive season, with one in four dealing with depression and anxiety, and women struggling more than men.
Shout, who have the UK’s only text helpline, has launched their latest initiative in a bid to keep “their lifeline” open over holidays.
Last Christmas they helped 14,000 users, many of which had contacted the helpline feeling suicidal. The money raised from the fundraiser is predicted to help 8,500 people in moments of crisis, with conversations which they say could save their life.
Emma Wilson, fundraising manager for Shout, said: “There’s lots of young people in particular that don’t want to or don’t feel comfortable ringing a traditional support line and so the text part is vital. This is new to mental health support in the UK.
“Other services at Christmas reduce their hours, have to close and they can’t run a full capacity, but we are there.
Shout have a key word for users in Sheffield to text; “Steel” to 85258.
This allows Shout to see if certain issues are more prevailing in one area than another, or if more children are struggling in that area who can then be referred to local services.
“We know that these feelings don’t stop for Christmas. If anything, they’re going to be exacerbated,” said Ms Wilson.
“The pressure of buying presents and keeping the house warm… there’s a lot of people’s plates at the moment and we’re really there for them.”
The fundraiser is matched by the Big Give, which means every pound from donations are doubled, supported by Selfridges and the Monday Charitable Trust.
Ms Wilson, who explained Shout are expecting 20,000 people to use their helpline over that festive period, said: “We also see a peak when kids go back to school in January.
“It’s a really bleak time. People worry about all sorts of things over the Christmas period, so that’s when we see our highest numbers when people are going back to school or back to work.
“We also tend to see the highest numbers around what’s in the news. If the news is really stressful at Christmas, like when Christmas was cancelled three days before in 2020, our numbers massively spiked.”
Ms Wilson explained the cost of living crisis directly correlates to an increase in anxiety, depression, low, mood suicide or thoughts.
She said: “We are seeing around 2000 people every single day, and even if people aren’t directly messaging about those practical issues in their conversations with us, we tend to find we can link back to them.”
“If you feel anxious or low, it’s very normal to feel that way. A lot of people feel pressure to try and make Christmas perfect.”
Depression and anxiety aren’t the only conditions that can be impacted by Christmas.
Francesca Baker, who has experience with an eating disorder, spoke about how the festive season in particular affects her.
“I usually dread Christmas due to anxiety around eating in front of other people due to having severe and enduring anorexia, and trying desperately to recover,” she said.
“There’s so much pressure to eat certain foods and be jolly about it, and I just can’t. It works me up a lot and means I can’t enjoy the family time.
“I have certain foods I will eat, and any deviation really stresses me and makes me very worked up. I hate it because I miss out on so much fun.”
The most commonly recognised eating disorders are Bulimia Nervosa, Binge Eating Disorder and Anorexia Nervosa.
According to the leading UK eating disorder charity, Beat, around 1.25 million people in the UK have an eating disorder, with women in particular affected by eating disorders:
Sheffield Mind are hosting a Christmas event to help those who are struggling locally to cope with the emotional impact of season.
‘Open Minds’ will be held on 9 December at The Wellbeing Centre in Sharrow. It is hoped people can come together and share experiences in an informal, social setting.
Margaret Lewis, CEO of Sheffield Mind, said: “We’re keen to speak to our service users, and other users of mental health services, about their experience of getting support; what works, what doesn’t.
“In that way, we can adapt our approaches if necessary. We’ve decided to do this in a fun and friendly way, at a Christmas social.
“Sometimes New Year is busy, family arguments, isolation at Christmas, money worries, drinking too much, there can be lots of reasons why people might seek help in the New Year.”
The charity’s services begin in 1978, with a group of people who wanted to see changes in the way people with mental health difficulties were treated.
The early aim of the service was to work collaboratively around fundraising and supporting volunteers, to improve community-based services.
If you’re worried about your own or someone else’s mental health, you can contact the following:
–Beat, the UK’s eating disorder charity, on 0808 801 0677.
–Shout on 85258.
–Sheffield Mind 0808 801 0440.
