Mental Health
Awareness Week
This year's theme for Mental Health Awareness Week was Action, and the thinking behind it is one we share. Awareness matters, but it only creates change when something follows it.
Across the week of 11 to 17 May we focused on promoting positive mental health at work, raising awareness of neurodiversity and Huntington's Disease and encouraging the small, practical steps that help people feel supported and included throughout the year, not only when a campaign prompts it.
The week gave us a reason to talk. Our #MHAW Teams backgrounds prompted conversations with clients and across the office, which became a natural way into the two subjects we particularly wanted to support this year: neurodiversity and Huntington's Disease.
The Circyl
Picnic
Midweek we held a Circyl Picnic. The idea was modest: everyone takes an extended lunch, sits together, catches up and eats something good. It worked. Particular thanks go to Alessandra Allen, whose homemade Spanish omelettes and raspberry and white chocolate flapjacks did a great deal for morale.
Small Actions
Really Do Help
Mental health at work can be difficult to manage, and more so for anyone who is neurodivergent. The actions that help are rarely dramatic. Taking regular breaks, setting clear boundaries, checking in with a colleague and asking for clarity when expectations are vague all make a difference, and they do so precisely because they are small enough to repeat. Consistency and intention are what give them weight.
Devan's story:
Living with Huntingdon's Disease
During the week, Mollie Betteridge spoke with her close friend Devan about Huntington's Disease, a genetic condition that affects movement, thinking, behaviour and emotions.
Devan's grandad, uncle and mum were all carriers of the disease, and each of them eventually passed away after years of difficulty. In the first part of their conversation she spoke about what that has meant for her: the importance of patience and understanding from the people around her, the experience of navigating life without her mum, and the beginning of her own testing journey.
In the second part she talked about what Huntington's looks like day to day, for her and for the people she loves. It is a rare condition, with around 7,000 to 8,000 people diagnosed in the UK, and that rarity carries its own difficulty, as the condition is widely misunderstood and the strain this places on families is considerable. Devan cared for her mum for seven years from the age of twelve, and she now shares her experience on social media to help others understand the reality of living with Huntington's, including the reality of possibly being a carrier herself and what that means for her own mental health.
We are grateful to Devan for her honesty, and to Mollie for bringing the conversation to us. If you would like to learn more, the Huntington's Disease Association is a good place to start, at hda.org.uk
Wellbeing matters here every week of the year, not only when the calendar prompts it. If you or someone you know needs support, help is available, and there is no wrong moment to ask for it.
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