With regards to mental health, a crisis is a situation I'm sure many of us will have experienced - where we suddenly feel unable to cope with or be in control of our current situation. These crises can vary wildly from person to person and even from day to day, some may experience thoughts about suicide or self harm whereas others may experience hallucinations and begin to hear voices.

It is important to know what kind of help is available to anyone experiencing a crisis, as it can be more difficult in the moment to think of a way to get help. This post will list a few resources and places you can contact if you or someone close to you is experiencing a moment of crisis.

As a preface it is very important to note that if anyone is a serious risk to themselves or anyone around them it is imperative that you call 999.

Firstly, Mind have an excellent webpage dedicated to crisis services and planning for a crisis which you can find here - www.mind.org.uk/information-support/guides-to-support-and-se... Which is definitely worth a look.

Secondly, the Samaritans have a free phoneline service if you ever want to talk to someone in confidence, you can reach these on 116 123

Thirdly, you can access NHS resources through calling 111 if the crisis is not life threatening but someone still needs urgent help. Furthermore, you can often book an emergency GP appointment if the surgery is aware that you/someone you know is in crisis and needs urgent help (although this will most likely be a telephone appointment with the current climate!)

In closing I think it is worth noting that mental health crises are a normal part of experiencing mental health difficulties and, unfortunately, there is still a stigma around being in that moment of need. Some may view this as weakness, but I firmly believe that that view is wrong - it is not weakness to need support, it is not weakness to be vulnerable and it is most definitely not weakness to reach out to someone else when you need it the most.

Have you experienced a mental health crisis before? If so what helped you get through it?

#crisis #MentalHealth #ThursdayTalkTime #ABC #letstalk