The following is a news story from Hafal’s Big Lottery-funded Young People’s Information Hub. To access the Hub please visit: http://www.hafal.org/hafal/yp_index.php
Research by “See Me”, the campaign in Scotland to end the stigma of mental ill health, has shown that 47% of young people with a serious mental illness prefer their illness to remain a secret.
The survey also found that only 17% of young people with mental ill health believe they will recover.
Following the publication of the figures a fresh campaign, “What’s On Your Mind?” was launched by “See Me”. The aim of the campaign is to try to encourage young people to think about their attitude and behaviour towards people of their age with mental health issues.
“See Me” campaign director Suzie Vestri said: “Research found that there is a lot of confusion, misconception and myth about mental ill health amongst young people and that discourages help-seeking and fuels stigma.
“So ‘What’s On Your Mind?’ aims to provide clarity about mental ill health and to start discussion about how our behaviour affects others. Just listening and being supportive to a young person in trouble can make all the difference, whether you’re a friend, parent or teacher. Only by positively talking about mental health can we end stigma.”
For more information on “See Me” please visit: http://www.seemescotland.org/
To watch a film made by the ‘What’s On Your Mind?’ campaign team please visit: http://www.seemescotland.org/whatsonyourmind/teachers