Mental Health Awareness Week is about starting conversations around mental health and reminding all of us to focus on achieving good mental health for ourselves and those around us. Last year, we talked about all the things that are OK about our Mental Health. One of the key focuses was that it was OK to feel our feelings, even when they are not happy or positive. We also focussed on it being ok to ask for help, and help others.
This year for Mental Health Awareness week we focused on #Let'sConnect message. Loneliness is something that has a significant impact on our mental health, and we are looking at ways we can connect with others, ourselves and our environment to help. During this week, we encouraged everyone to make a special effort to include others during both class and break times. Reach out to the people around us that appear to be alone and invite them to join you! During the week, there was a #letsconnect photo booth in the Octagon and everyone had a chance to take a funny picture or two with their friends.
At VIS, we foster this commitment by providing counselling services and mental health initiatives to all of our students, staff and teachers. Topics can range from stress in school, anxiety, bullying, all the way to more severe life events. We encourage everyone to seek out help in times of emotional unrest, and although reaching out can be hard sometimes, having resources available and easily accessible is one of the key ways to invite someone to take the first step.