As many of my colleagues at Touchstone will be aware, I am a hugger! Hugging is a way of being human with people; showing empathy, or just sharing a moment of joy. I feel hugging keeps me connected with the people around me but it also allows me to show my emotions and vulnerability – which I think is essential in a mental health and wellbeing charity. I hug when
The 3rd Monday in January is said to be the most depressing day of the year due to the weather, financial pressures and debts accumulated over the holiday season and low motivation levels. Blue Monday was first publicized by Sky Travel in 2005. You can find out more about how it was calculated and the companies who have publicized it here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_Monday_(date) Whether Blue Monday is more PR
Christmas and the New Year Period can be a polarising period of time. For many people this is a time for celebration and enjoyment with friends and family. For many though, this may not be the case. Many services that people rely on shut down over the Christmas period, and it can be a period that can feel very lonely and isolating for many people. With very cold weather and
This month I was fortunate to be offered training with the Black Health Agency’s BHA Skyline Team, who provide a HIV support service in Leeds. BHA was originally set up 28 years ago as a response to the lack of information and services available to Black communities in Manchester around HIV services and they have developed expertise in wider sexual and physical health issues across the North of England. In
White Ribbon UK was founded in 2005 and calls to end male violence against women. You can read more about White Ribbon UK here: https://www.whiteribbon.org.uk/what-we-do/ At Touchstone IAPT the men in the team are wearing white ribbons in support of White Ribbon UK and the 16 Days of Action Against Domestic Violence running from 25th November until 10th December. You can check out more about this campaign here: https://16daysofaction.co.uk/the-campaign/
Following recent shows at the Horsforth Walk of Art and Love Arts Festival, Leeds artist Helen Gibson – professionally known as The Perky Painter – is taking her first solo exhibition on tour to Touchstone IAPT. The exhibition’s title, “It’s OK not to be Perky”, reminds us it's OK not to be OK and that we can share these feelings. Art helps Helen communicate her experiences. She says: “I use painting to express and deal with
THE WELL-BEAN CRISIS CAFÉ – HOPE IN A CRISIS BLOG – November ’18: TWO YEARS OF THE WELL-BEAN CAFÉ: HOPE IN A CRISIS (Written by Matthew Hall – Crisis Support Worker at WBC) On 12 November 2016 the Well-Bean Café (WBC) opened, having our first visitor on that same evening. Now nearly two years on – we have had over 175 individual visitors to the service, and overall visits well
The Touchstone IAPT team have been fortunate to share our offices with the work of Alisia Casper this Summer and Autumn. Alisia is a Leeds based artist who draws on her experiences of long term health conditions (including chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia) when making drawings, paintings, photography, writing and music. As we have begun offering new online treatments for people living with diabetes, heart and lung conditions her work
On Armistice Day I remembered my mum’s dad; a well-read and well-loved man, amateur actor and architect, who ended up spending most of his life in Zambia, Central Africa. He was somewhat of a raconteur; telling tales of joining an army regiment based on which one wore the most eye catching hats on parade and drank at a club for veterans called the MOTH club. The Memorable Order of Tin
For International Stress Awareness Day, Touchstone IAPT have compiled a list of our best stress-busting songs! Here they are in no particular order... Dance With Me - Olly Murs Happy - Pharrell Williams Pata Pata - Miriam Makebe Good Times - Chic Don't Stop Believing - Journey One Day Like This - Elbow Bohemian Like You - The Dandy Warhols Play That Funky Music - Wild Cherry Don’t You Worry 'Bout a