Below, Alan talks about positive thinking and how you can practice gratitude.
Month: July 2020
Watch: Good days and bad
Ricky is 24 and from Sligo.
Following a relationship break up Ricky experienced a dip in his mental health and decided to go to Jigsaw. He still has good days and bad days, but feels he has developed the skills he needs to help him cope. Here Ricky talks about his experience.
Webinar: My World Survey 2
We recently ran a webinar for teachers, who have taken our online courses.
The webinar was based on the key findings from My World Survey 2, Ireland’s largest national youth mental health study, conducted by UCD School of Psychology and Jigsaw.
This is a recording of the webinar, where the team focused on the data from second level students. They also looked at the risk and protective factors linked to the mental health of adolescents in secondary level schools.
The recording is made up of a 30 minute presentation, followed by a question and answer session with all the participants.
Speakers
Professor Barbara Dooley, School of Psychology, UCD
Associate Professor Amanda Fitzgerald, School of Psychology, UCD
Dr. Aileen O’ Reilly, Research Manager, Jigsaw
Coronavirus and mental health
During this global pandemic the recommendation is social distancing and staying safe. There is also a lot of focus on mental health.
Looking after your mental health is always important. But with Coronavirus spreading, we now face more and different challenges to our wellbeing.
Some of the stressors that we now face include:
- Uncertainty about the future
- Loss of routine
- Fear of catching Coronavirus
- Isolation from social distancing
- Losing loved ones
- Spread of misinformation
- Worry about the actions of others
- Boredom.
It’s unrealistic to think that the current situation won’t affect most of us in some way. We might be experiencing feelings of stress right now, or feel slightly numb or immune to it. However, the more we pay attention to our emotional and psychological needs the easier it will be to get through this turbulent time.
Keep what works
Minding our mental health does not mean we do lots of new stuff. We need to change the things that have worked previously to our new situation. Think about what helped your mental health before. Find ways to incorporate them into your new regime. Watch 5-a-day for mental health here.
Strategies for managing mental health can be adapted for now. Read more about:
Watch: Triple A for emotions
Sinead, Jigsaw clinician, talks about how you can support your difficult emotions and feelings right now by thinking of “Triple A”.
Watch: Managing cabin fever
Tom, Jigsaw clinician, talks about what we can do to manage cabin fever while we’re stuck at home.
Watch: Staying connected in current circumstances
Here Claire, Jigsaw Clinician, talks about connectivity and staying in touch during these new circumstances.
Watch: Social media use during the pandemic
In this video Linda suggests how we can use social media in a way that is less likely to negatively impact our mental health.
Watch: Five-a-day in the time of Coronavirus
Dealing with change
We face many changes throughout our lives.
We might be finishing primary or secondary school, starting college, or getting a new job. Some of us decide to leave home or even move to a new country.
Change can occur within our families, such as separation, divorce, or the death of a family member. The world itself goes through many changes too. The political, environmental, and social environments are always in flux.
It can also be exciting, daunting, or exhausting. No matter what we feel about it, change is inevitable and can’t be avoided. When we’re finding it difficult, often the problem isn’t the change itself, but how we deal with it.