(My) Mental Health
Discussion
Good on you for sharing, Dibble.
It's only when blokes start talking openly about their mental healt (sic, snigger) that other blokes will join in. But it still seems to me that it's always the ones that have been there and come through it who are willing to talk about it. The ones who are still going through it still seem to hesitate to join the conversation, and that's the bit we need to change. Prevention is better than cure.
So, thanks! A very worthy thread topic!
It's only when blokes start talking openly about their mental healt (sic, snigger) that other blokes will join in. But it still seems to me that it's always the ones that have been there and come through it who are willing to talk about it. The ones who are still going through it still seem to hesitate to join the conversation, and that's the bit we need to change. Prevention is better than cure.
So, thanks! A very worthy thread topic!
Great post dibble and absolute props to you for posting so honestly. Men talking about it is still a massive issue so every frank account such as yours should work wonders. Thank you
Oh, I'm in the military and there was always a massive stigma about being 'weak' or 'mental'. Thank god the MoD are trying to sort it now.
Oh, I'm in the military and there was always a massive stigma about being 'weak' or 'mental'. Thank god the MoD are trying to sort it now.
Edited by selym on Wednesday 22 January 11:21
Great post. I’ve recently been diagnosed as bipolar and suffering from PTSD. I just thought I had a bad temper.
I’ve had more than a few episodes over the years and lived a very reckless life on occasions. It has cost me jobs and friendships and could well have cost me my life and health on several occasions.
My New Years resolution last year was to get help and I did. This was after 6 months out of work and the final straw of ending up surrounded by. city of London police after trying to punch my way out of a taxi after a mild argument with the driver. What was supposed to be a romantic weekend in London nearly ended up with me getting nicked and not for the first time but the first time in the presence of my other half. Patient, very understanding police and a fearsome girlfriend just about prevented that.
GP was my first port of call and the level of help from there has been amazing. I got worse before I got better but I haven’t lost my temper since that taxi ride. Those that are reading Dibble’s post and feel it resonates. Ask for help.
My friends and I are now able to joke that they’d always had a suspicion I was a nutter and now they have the proof. And far from every story has a happy ending but getting help really helps stack the odds in favour of one.
I’ve had more than a few episodes over the years and lived a very reckless life on occasions. It has cost me jobs and friendships and could well have cost me my life and health on several occasions.
My New Years resolution last year was to get help and I did. This was after 6 months out of work and the final straw of ending up surrounded by. city of London police after trying to punch my way out of a taxi after a mild argument with the driver. What was supposed to be a romantic weekend in London nearly ended up with me getting nicked and not for the first time but the first time in the presence of my other half. Patient, very understanding police and a fearsome girlfriend just about prevented that.
GP was my first port of call and the level of help from there has been amazing. I got worse before I got better but I haven’t lost my temper since that taxi ride. Those that are reading Dibble’s post and feel it resonates. Ask for help.
My friends and I are now able to joke that they’d always had a suspicion I was a nutter and now they have the proof. And far from every story has a happy ending but getting help really helps stack the odds in favour of one.
Well done on getting through it AND having the balls to share.
You might find this site useful if you're avocadoing (
) this at work:
https://www.mindsatworkmovement.com/
And
https://www.time-to-change.org.uk/
PS CDO
You might find this site useful if you're avocadoing (
) this at work:https://www.mindsatworkmovement.com/
And
https://www.time-to-change.org.uk/
PS CDO
FocusRS3 said:
Great post Dibble.
I say that as i'm totally hooked on the SAS 'who dares wins' series where 'Foxy', one of the ex SAS instructors has opened up about his PTSD and how it affected him with depression when he was discharged.
All powerful stuff...
Read that book on holiday and just shows you how even the strongest of wills can be effected by mental health. You automatically think to be in the SAS you need to be made of extremely strong stuff (physical and mental), hence it was enlightening to read about his issues and how he has fought to overcome them.I say that as i'm totally hooked on the SAS 'who dares wins' series where 'Foxy', one of the ex SAS instructors has opened up about his PTSD and how it affected him with depression when he was discharged.
All powerful stuff...
I suffered from anxiety for years and couldn't talk about it to mates as they were basically too immature. I mention it from time to time and you can tell they are uneasy about talking about anything to do with it. Funny (and not so funny) thing is their wives tell my wife that some of them are on antidepressants, they just pretend all is good in the world.
Frank Bruno's book is also a good read, when you think of the mental strength you would need to step into a ring with Tyson, again it shows that everyone is vulnerable. I hope that in 5-10 years it will be just as acceptable to talk about this matter as having a cold. I don't care who you are or what you do, nobody is infallible.
and I'm surely not the one who appreciates your openness on matters that are close to your heart.Well said.
There is a common belief that you don't ever get better and you're forever battling it. The former MP who did a TV show on depression stated that it would never get better. In my experience, this is not true. I've overcome the darkest depression and seriously contemplated suicide in the past. Since then, I've come back from the brink and haven't come close to those darkest days. I love life. And I'm not even close to having the success I dream of.
There is a common belief that you don't ever get better and you're forever battling it. The former MP who did a TV show on depression stated that it would never get better. In my experience, this is not true. I've overcome the darkest depression and seriously contemplated suicide in the past. Since then, I've come back from the brink and haven't come close to those darkest days. I love life. And I'm not even close to having the success I dream of.
Dibble said:
Mothersruin said:
Have you had availability to TRiM through work?
This was one I wanted to answer specifically. My force doesn’t use it (and I’ve had a few discussions with my chief constable about why he’s wrong on this one!). That said, he has invested a load of money in staff wellbeing stuff, including funding for mental health nurses and in house psychiatrist/psychologists. None of that is cheap, but from a purely business angle, being able to prevent damage or “repair” people quicker makes financial sense, because you can then get them back to work sooner that waiting for NHS services to deal with them. That’s no criticism of the NHS, they’re just chronically underfunded for emergency MH care. I know from my own experience at work dealing with people in crisis just how difficult it is for people to get help. Me being seen so quickly - and frequently - by the crisis team was a bit of a wake up call of just how ill I actually was...
I think TRiM is bloody fantastic. I know forces which do use it have seen huge improvements in reducing psychological harm in the first place, as well as reducing the amount of time people who do have a meltdown are away for. I keep pushing it with my chief constable and I’ve been to see how it works in other forces all over the country (at my own expense and in my own time - that’s how important it is to me).
Hope you're successful.
Wacky Racer said:
Don't distract him , he'll have a crash!
They're good broadcasts, and good on you for doing the wider work you've been involved with. I spent 33 years in the Army and encountered quite a few mental health 'incidents' and patients, but absolutely recognise that the MOD has significantly improved in the way that it deals with stress over that period.
Intuitively it feels right that talking about these things at the time with peers can help, and this forms the basis of much of the Army's post-tour decompression structures. Interestingly, I read a long time ago that the incidents of suicide amongst the British officers serving in India was much lower than their Indian Civil Service counterparts, and this was attributed in part to the Brits going to the Mess for sundowners and chatting, whilst the ineligible-for-the-Mess Indians took their problems home with them. I've not been able to find the research since and it could be complete rubbish, but the sense that 'talking therapy' at an everyday level can be helfpul chimes with me.
Intuitively it feels right that talking about these things at the time with peers can help, and this forms the basis of much of the Army's post-tour decompression structures. Interestingly, I read a long time ago that the incidents of suicide amongst the British officers serving in India was much lower than their Indian Civil Service counterparts, and this was attributed in part to the Brits going to the Mess for sundowners and chatting, whilst the ineligible-for-the-Mess Indians took their problems home with them. I've not been able to find the research since and it could be complete rubbish, but the sense that 'talking therapy' at an everyday level can be helfpul chimes with me.
Gassing Station | Health Matters | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff