Innovate for Wellbeing Kickstarter
Innovate for Wellbeing Kickstarter
Welcome to the Innovate for Wellbeing Kickstarter page. This is a Jigsaw and Young Social Innovators collaboration for Jigsaw’s One Good School initiative.
The information on this page will help you to understand mental health and wellbeing as you begin your innovation journey.
Watch the following animation, where Ena, a Jigsaw Youth and Community Engagement Worker explains a little more about the project.
The Innovate for Wellbeing Kickstarter covers:
Mental health
Mental health can mean different things to different people. The chances are that if you asked your friends, parents or teachers about it, they may all say different things. This is expected as everyone experiences mental health differently. In Jigsaw, we say that:
We all have mental health – just like physical health, everyone has mental health.
Mental health is like a scale – our mental health does not stay the same; it can go up and down as we experience challenges, stresses, excitement and joy.
There are things that we can do to look after our mental health – just as we take care of our physical health, there are things that we can do to look after our mental health. This can include connecting with a trusted adult and doing things that we enjoy.
Watch this animation, which explains mental health a bit further:
Your voice and mental health
Innovate for Wellbeing is about you and your voice. It will give you an opportunity to participate in a project in a way that enables you to put forward your views and ideas on mental health and wellbeing in your school. We know that getting involved and feeling a part of the decisions that affect us, can have a positive impact on our mental health and wellbeing.
Here are some of the reasons why it is important that you and your classmates have a chance to have a say on mental health and wellbeing in your school:
The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of the Child says that young people have the right to have a say in the decisions that affect them.
In Jigsaw, we believe that young people are the experts on youth mental health. We rely on young people to tell us how life is for them so that we can offer support that is relevant.
Your school cares about you and your mental health, that is why they are doing Innovate for Wellbeing! When young people and teachers share decision making, this is shown to have a positive impact on mental health. Open, respectful conversations create empathy and help us to see the human side of each other.
Your project may involve finding out the views of other young people in your school. In this way, you are making sure that all young people are included in decision-making. Remember, there may be lots of young people in your school who are less able to speak up for whatever reason, so try to include as many voices as possible in your project. Feeling included is a big part of having good mental health.
Listen, while Royanne tells you why she thinks it is important for you to use your voice
Minding your mental health
A challenge
Grab a piece of paper and a pen. Start the timer below and list as many things that you can think of in 60 seconds that help you to look after your mental health. Go!
How did you get on? In Jigsaw, we encourage young people to mind their mental health in a variety of ways.
Three ways you can mind your mental health
1. 5-a-day for mental health– The first is the 5-a- day for mental health. This is 5 things that we can do every day, that help us to look after our mental health.
Watch this short animation for more information.
2. Reach out to your One Good Adult- One Good Adult in the life of a young person is someone who you can talk to about how things are going, the good and the bad. Our research tells us that young people who share their troubles with an adult that they trust have better mental health. We know that it can sometimes be difficult to start the conversation, so try thinking about how you are feeling and what you would like help with. When someone asks how you are, tell them!
3. Reach out to Jigsaw- Jigsaw is here for you. At Jigsaw, we believe that everybody needs a little help from time to time. We have a range of online supports available to all young people. We have a range of online supports available to all young people, including Jigsaw Live Chat, Live Group Chats, Ask Jigsaw anonymous support and a wide range of information and resources. Jigsaw also offers face to face clinical support to young people aged 12-25 (Donegal 16-25). If you would like to find out more about this service or to talk to someone about making an appointment, visit our Jigsaw services page.
Next steps
Ask your teacher for information on the opportunity to participate in a webinar with your local Jigsaw Youth and Community Engagement Worker. This webinar will be a chance to chat further about what you have learned today and to ask questions that you have about the project. If you attend this webinar, it is a good idea to bring your completed Kickstarter worksheet with you