Having struggled with my own mental health this year (see Finally…in Recovery and getting Back to Life), it’s unsurprising that two of my charitable donations have been to mental health charities:
SANE
SANE is a UK mental health charity, which aims to improve the lives of people affected by mental illness.
Mind
Mind is a UK mental health charity that states that it won’t give up until everyone experiencing a mental health problem gets support and respect.
JDRF
I gave another donation to JDRF who are an international charity that fund research into a cure for type 1 diabetes. Currently one of the things they’re funding is smart insulin, which could be life-changing for diabetics.
They have great Christmas cards and wrapping paper in their shop, all the proceeds of which go to them. So I stocked up.
The Brick Project
My final donation was to The Brick Project, which supports homeless people in the Wigan borough (my hometown). Through circumstances and life events anyone could end up homeless. I’d never want to be homeless and like to support any charities that help people to rebuild their lives.
After reading the unique and brilliant novel The Humans by Matt Haig, I decided to Google him to learn more about this extraordinary Author.
I discovered that he had suffered with poor mental health in the past and was releasing Reasons To Stay Alive on the topic of mental health. So I immediately ordered Reasons To Stay Alive to see what he had to say on the subject.
In Reasons To Stay Alive, Haig shares his own experience of anxiety and depression, starting with a note to the reader explaining that these are his experiences and that other people might experience anxiety and depression in differing ways.
His book is split into five sections. His first is Falling where he writes about symptoms, suicide (including some of the reasons why men are more at risk of suicide) and the facts about depression and anxiety.
Throughout Reasons To Stay Alive there are little gems of good advice. In Falling for example, Haig writes about The Bank of Bad Days (see below). I have found having a Bank of Bad Days extremely useful.
Bank of Bad Days
WHEN YOU ARE very depressed or anxious – unable to leave the house, or the sofa, or to think of anything but the depression – it can be unbearably hard. Bad days come in degrees. They are not all equally bad. And the really bad ones, though horrible to live through, are useful for later. You store them up. A bank of bad days. The day you had to run out of the supermarket. The day you were so depressed your tongue wouldn’t move. The day you made your parents cry. The day you nearly threw yourself off a cliff. So you are having another bad day you can say, Well, this feels bad, but there have been worse. And even when you can think of no worse day – when you are living in the very worst there has ever been – you at least know the bank exists and that you have made a deposit.
The second section is Landing where he writes a lot about some of his key experiences, as well as the warning signs of depression and anxiety.
The third section is Rising where Haig covers panic attacks, the importance of love, how to be there for someone with depression or anxiety and famous people that have suffered from depression and anxiety. This entire section aims to tell someone experiencing poor mental health that they are not alone.
Living is the fourth section of the book and focuses on recovery from depression and anxiety. This section covers the importance of slowing down, lists reasons to live, lists things that make Haig’s mental health worse and sometimes better.
Being is the last section of the book and gives forty pieces of advice that Haig feels are helpful.
The presentation of the book is good. It’s a small white hardback book, with small chapters (some only a page long), which because of his writing style as easy-to-read and engaging.
Reasons To Stay Alive is one of the better books written about poor mental health on the market. It is a quick and easy-to-read book that is well worth a read.
I recognise that people visiting this page/post might want to know where they can get support. If you require support around your mental health, addiction or physical health, see this Support page here.
Back in 2008, I wrote a blog post about People that inspire me. I could add so many people to that blog post.
But instead I decided to look at the qualities in people that inspire me. Here’s my list of qualities that those people display:
Accepting.
Authentic.
Balanced in their thinking.
Battle their inner demons.
Believe in fairness and equality.
Brings joy to others.
Can have a presence on entering a room or blend into the background in social situations.
Captivating Story Teller.
Careful in their actions.
Cares about others.
Comfortable with themselves.
Confident yet humble.
Connects emotionally with others.
Creative.
Describes their own thoughts & feelings through words well.
Determined.
Diplomatic.
Dislikes injustice.
Empathetic.
Enthusiastic.
Flawed.
Funny.
Generous.
Good communicator.
Has others following them.
Honesty.
Humorous.
Independent.
Influences others.
Intelligent.
Is a Collaborator.
Is a Doer.
Is a Dreamer.
Is Grateful.
Kindness.
Knows when, who and why to ask for help.
Makes others feel comfortable.
Makes others laugh.
Motivational.
Non-judgemental.
Occasional vulnerable.
One-step ahead of others.
Open minded.
Optimistic.
Passionate.
Patient.
Positive.
Relaxed in new situations.
Self-aware.
Sensitive.
Shares their Knowledge and wisdom.
Sincere.
Stands up for the rights of others.
Supports & helps others.
Unconventional.
Values community.
Vibrant.
Wants a better society for all.
Wants others to reach their potential.
Willing to fight for a cause.
Wise.
Works hard.
I’m sure there’s many other qualities that could be added to the list. I also know that as well as people, many other things inspire me. Things such as music, books, films, paintings, nature, animals and expressions of love to name but a few.
What qualities do you admire in the people that inspire you? Feel free to share by leaving a comment below.
Recently my old iPhone 5 battery started dropping it’s charge. So as a loyal long term Vodafone customer, one that had been with them for years, I decided to speak to them about an early upgrade. They said I could and I opted for Apple’s iPhone 6 Plus (64GB, GOLD) as a new handset, which they said would be delivered the next day.
After three weeks of telephoning Vodafone customer services practically on a daily basis and receiving many broken promises, I still had no new handset. I felt frustrated, that the order was no further forward and like anything that they said to me on the phone would be a lie. Despite how I felt, I always remained pleasant and patient. But I decided to cancel my telephone upgrade order and re-order the upgrade in store.
My local store had Apple iPhone 6 Plus (64GB, GOLD) in stock. Hurray! But wait, I couldn’t have it because of their IT systems still showing the original upgrade order as open – despite me cancelling it and reassurances from Vodafone customer services on the phone that I would be able order in store. I tweeted my frustration to them, not that the staff in store, on the telephone or on twitter seemed to care.
I’d lost my trust in them. A search online revealed that I wasn’t the only one experiencing issues upgrading. Vodafone’s problems seem to be:
Their IT systems. An order gets canceled because they don’t have the handset in stock, but the order still shows as open and gets stuck.
The warehouse stock levels, warehouse management (in terms of ordering more handsets before they run out) and distribution.
No complaints department or way to escalate order issues to get them sorted.
Up until this experience, Vodafone have always been good with me. But this experience felt like a bad joke. I decided to show them what I thought of this experience by walking away and taking my wallet with me.
