Managing your mental health through lockdown
From 18 – 24 May, the UK recognised Mental Health Awareness Week with a specific focus on the theme of kindness.
As the sector navigates its way through the lockdown, music health charities have been actively promoting a number of resources to support those in music who may be experiencing challenges with their health – both physically and mentally. Below is a summary of where a number of helpful guides and initiatives can be found.
BAPAM: Join BAPAM’s weekly online Community Drop In
BAPAM is the British Association for Performing Arts Medicine. It is a healthcare charity giving medical advice to people working and studying in the performing arts. The BAPAM helpline is open from Monday to Friday between 9am and 5pm on 020 7404 8444.
The charity has just launched a weekly Healthy Practice Community Drop In to help you set goals and stick to healthy practice routines. It will include new techniques and strategies to help you keep mentally and physically well now and into the future. Sessions will be held at 3pm on Tuesdays, beginning 2 June and continuing through to the end of August.
Sign up here: BAPAM Community Drop In
Help Musicians: Music Minds Matter helpline
Help Musicians is the leading UK charity for musicians of all genres, from those starting out through to those in retirement. They appreciate that this is an extremely challenging time for musicians and those working in the industry and wish to ensure that now more than ever, mental health support is available for people when it is needed most.
The Music Minds Matter helpline is available around the clock as a listening ear for the entire music industry. Any time day or night, there is someone available for you to talk to. Its free and confidential support also offers quick access to counselling for eligible musicians. There is also debt and legal advice available as well as access to Help Musicians grants.
You can contact Music Minds Matter using the details below:
Music Minds Matter
Tel: 0808 802 8008
e: mmm@helpmusicians.org.uk
w: www.musicmindsmatter.org.uk
Music and You
Music and You is a mental health and wellness company. It works with artists, industry professionals and companies, as well as the wider music community, to support and improve the mental health and well-being of individuals, support and enhance existing mental health and wellness programmes within companies, and support and strengthen the mental health and well-being of the wider music community and society.
They have created a number of guides to help support your mental health and well-being, ranging from how to deal with anxiety, staying mentally resilient, ways to reduce stress, how to get a good night’s sleep, and much more. They also have a variety of curated playlists to complement any mood you may find yourself in.
Discover more: http://musicandyou.co.uk/resources/
Music Support
Music Support is a peer-led music industry charity that provides confidential mental health and addiction services. It has recently partnered with Thrive, the UK’s only NHS-approved mental health app, that offers 24/7 support for mental health and wellbeing.
Thrive helps with the early detection, prevention and management of common disorders such as anxiety and depression, as well as building resilience so that users can feel empowered to improve their mental health. Through Music Support, and recent funding from The BRIT Trust, the app will be made available for free for up to 10,000 people.
Download the app: https://www.musicsupport.org/thrive-app
