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“Hello dear reader, 

I understand how pressing these unpresidential times we are currently facing, due to COVID-19 can challenge our well-being and mental health. Thank you for all you are doing to keep our nation safe, especially NHS staff, teachers, local shops and supermarket staff and all key workers. This year’s Mental Health week is especially important. It is my hope you will use this time to reflect, unwind and really be intentional about the state of your mind. Please do have a look through our resources and get involved. Wishing you all a great mental health week. Stay safe and take great care of yourself.”

 Karen Jones – Founder of Bennu & General Practitioner 

This year’s mental health week theme is ‘Kindness’ and with all that we are all facing, both individually and collectively as a nation and world, this topic is so important. Kindness to yourself and others can go such a long way and can be sincerely beneficial to your mental health. In this month’s blog post, we are going to break down our best kindness practices. 

What is Kindness?

Officially, kindness is defined as “the quality of being friendly, generous, and considerate” or “a kind act.” That being said, kindness is ultimately unique to you! Different people will have different interpretations of kindness and how it is shown and received. For example, you may see kindness as keeping the door open for someone after you, however, someone else may consider this to just be good manners and rude otherwise. Or you may think its kind to receive a spontaneous phone call from a loved one saying they are thinking of you, whilst you are at work, whilst others may find this distracting and ill practice. Kindness comes in various shapes and forms however; we all could use some more kindness in our lives. 

Self – Kindness 

Here at Bennu, we put an emphasize on self-kindness. Self-Kindness is when you are friendly, generous and considerate to yourself. It is like giving a random act of kindness to you from you. Self-Kindness is a great mindful practice, as it is you developing a relationship of love, care and trust with yourself. As you are being intentional about taking care of yourself this will have a positive roll on effect to your overall state of mind. 

So how do we show ourselves self-kindness?

As mentioned, self-kindness is unique to everyone. Kindness may be taking time out to unwind, going on a few days break to reflect (of course what covid-19 regulations allow) and this may be taking days break creating you own space at home, playing your favourite game or it could even be starting a course. 

In order to discover what self-kindness looks like for you, we have formed some questions to guide you below. 

• What are some of your favourite things to do? 
• When are you most happy? 
• Are there any hobbies or skills you would like to develop? 
• Are there times you feel yourself needing a break? What would that break consist of?
• What do you wish you had more time for?

We have listed some of our own self-kindness practices for inspiration purposes. 

Mindfulness 

This can be expressed in the form of meditation, yoga or religious practices. Mindfulness is when you focus your mind on a given thought, place or feeling. It is a way to calm your mind whilst elevating positive thoughts. 

Bennu will shortly be releasing a short meditation…click here if you would like it sent directly to you

Shutting off social media 

Turning off your social media post notifications and taking a step back from social media daily, weekly or whenever you feel necessary, can help with anxiety and also aid a better sleep too. Your social media accounts will always be there to sign back into, so do not be afraid to click ‘sign out’. You may find it does you a world of good.

Booking time with family, friends, people you love and can support you.

Self-Kindness can simply be being intentional with who and when you are going to spend time with your loved ones. Even if is a month from now, knowing you are going to see someone you hold dearly, gives you something to look forward to. Be 

sure, to slot out time in your diary for this!

Not taking too much on 

At times, we can take too much on than we can handle and feel overloaded. It may be work, helping family or friends or maybe you have a full schedule that you are finding difficult to keep up with. Go through your schedule and see what you may have to let go of. It can be tricky if you love doing everything on your schedule. Saying ‘no’ is sometimes the best form of self-kindness. ‘Know your limits’.

Just Relax! 

Self-Kindness does not have to be complicated. Simply put, just relax! It may be a bath, a tv show, enjoying your favourite beverage, listening to music, reading or a walk… whatever makes you relax and feel comfortable, providing you with the opportunity to rest your body and your mind…You are on the right path to ‘self-kindness’. 

We hope that this post has been helpful to you. As always, we would love to hear your thoughts in the comment section and our social media platforms listed below. 

For therapy queries please get in touch here. 

We will have useful links and other resources listed below. 

Take great care of yourself

Bennu 

Useful links on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

NHS Information on Coronavirus (COVID-19) – https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/

UK Government Information on Coronavirus (COVID-19) – https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus

Useful Links For Mental Health 

https://www.nhs.uk/using-the-nhs/nhs-services/mental-health-services/

https://www.mind.org.uk

Emergency Mental Health Help 

https://www.samaritans.org

You call UK emergency services by dialling 999 

Do you remember your first day at school? Or maybe even university? Or starting a new job? Going into any new environment, with new people and a handful of experiences waiting for you, is both exciting yet daunting. This is no different for an eleven year old, about to embark on secondary school (or high school).

 Today we want to share with you some advice on how you can be the best support to your child,  and make the process from primary to secondary school as easy as possible. 

Talking with Your Child 

Communication is imperative for building healthy relationships. Creating a safe environment for your child, in order for him/her to feel comfortable to speak to you about how they may be feeling about secondary school, is very important.  You can do this by asking them simple, open questions. We have suggested some questions below. A great technique in getting your child to open up is to firstly ask them more positive based questions – in order to break the ice and stem them on to talking about any concerns that they may have. (Although they may not have any, as some children are genuinely very excited to start secondary school. However, it is still very important you allow your child the opportunity to express this).

Start off by asking your child some of these questions below, as well as any others that come to mind.  

• What are you most looking forward to?
• What subject are you really excited to be learning? 
• Are there any activities/clubs you hope your school will do? If so, what are they?

After starting with more positive based questions, hopefully an environment will be set whereby your child will feel more comfortable speaking about any concerns they may have on their mind. Here are some useful questions which may prompt them in that direction. 

• So, how are you feeling overall about starting your new school?
• What are you least looking forward to?  (If there is anything)  
• Are there any subjects you aren’t looking forward to? If so what are they and why? 
• Are there any activities you wish you didn’t have to take part in. If so, what are they and why?
• How are you feeling about making new friends?
• How do you think you will spend your break times? (Some children are worried about being lonely and left out of games at school break times) 
• Do you think you will miss primary school at all? If so, why? 

Being There On Their First Day 

On your child’s first day of school it may be useful to make the day extra special. You could do this by making them a special breakfast or dinner. Taking photos of them in their uniform and letting them know how smart they look and how proud you are. 

If you can, taking the day off work may be useful so that you can be there to drop them off (either to the bus stop or the full journey) and pick them up too.  You will be able to have a great chat when they have finished their first day, and look out for any indication of worry. Offering to help your child if they would like, with their homework may be appreciated, and continuing to let them know you are always be there should they ever want to talk to you. 

Follow Up Throughout the Year 

Your child has now started school and will steadily be settling in. Continue to have conversations about how school is going and if there is anything they would like to let you know. The questions listed above can be adapted to create conversation. 

Overall, your child just needs to know and feel that they have your full support. As anything in life, change isn’t always easy however, majority of children transition into secondary school fairly well and have a wonderful time. However, if you do notice that your child may be struggling and need some extra support, do not hesitate to get in contact with one of our qualified therapists at Bennu. We also have other blog posts and resources on our website which may be useful to you – check them out here. 

We hope that you have found this post useful and wish you and your child a delightful school experience.

Bennu  

External Useful links

https://www.mind.org.uk

https://www.samaritans.org

https://www.nhs.uk/using-the-nhs/nhs-services/mental-health-services/

Disclaimer: In some circumstances further action is required. If you are emotionally or mentally struggling and in need of help please do not hesitate to get in contact with one of our therapists. If your enquiry is urgent please contact Samaritans  24  hour service here and refer to further useful links below.

*Not all images are our own, all credit to the original designers 

 

 

Christmas, for a vast amount of people is the most wonderful time of the
year; and we hope that for you it is. Unfortunately for many, however, it isn’t
always this way.

Many have lost loved ones around this time, they experience feelings of
isolation, the absence of being away and missing family, friends and loved
ones. Critically and terminally ill. Homeless and generally not feeling the

Christmas Cheer. If this happens to be you, you are not alone.

We acknowledge and recognise that there are many people, many families
who would much rather avoid, the busyness, the chaos, the expense and
the sometimes false bravado, that people would much rather hide away
and let‘A Merry Christmas’pass them by.

So, we give a thought for those who are not in the best of moods, not
feeling up lifted. We encourage you to look for that support and know that
you do not have to be alone.

We wish you a peaceful Christmas and a happy new year from Bennu.

You may find the following links useful…
https://www.crisis.org.uk/get-help/
https://www.crisis.org.uk/support-crisis-this-christmas/
https://www.mind.org.uk
https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/your-mental-health
https://www.samaritans.org/about-us/our-organisation/national-suicide-
prevention-alliance-nspa

“Well-being” A term many of us are familiar with…but have you ever stoped to consider what it actually means? How to go about it? How well-being is linked to your mental health? In todays blog (and the rest of our well-being series this month) we are going to directly answer these questions and unfold well-being. Hopefully by the end you would have improved your knowledge of it and developed a personal understanding of what well-being  means for you.  One of our biggest passions, here at Bennu!

“I want to personally welcome you to Bennu, I am so proud and excited to be launching our website and sharing with you our involvement in World Mental Health Day.  A celebration to raise awareness about a subject that at times people find difficult to share or talk about.  Here at Bennu we love the arts and music. We are driven by our passion for mental health and well-being.  Especially for children and young people.  I hope you will follow our journey and enjoy the well-being series.” Karen Jones –  Principal Practitioner 

So what is well-being?

In a nutshell well-being is defined by the Oxford English dictionary as “the state of being comfortable, healthy, or happy” or as we like to sometimes define it ‘the art of self-care.’ Doing something today that will add to your overall happiness both now and in the future.  Consciously making the effort to take care of yourself.  Be it by…getting enough rest, detoxing your mind, having a healthy lifestyle, keeping up with relationships, quality time with yourself, hobbies, self reflection and treating yourself! (anything else that you think is beneficial.)

Well-being is personal

What might help one person with their well-being might not work for another and vice versa.  Finding what works for you and making it personal is the key.

Some questions to ask yourself…

• What do you like?
• If you have spare time what are you likely to spend it doing?
• Would you rather be outdoors with others or indoors spending some quality time with yourself?
• Do you currently have a healthy lifestyle or does this area need some improvement?
• Are you getting enough rest?
• When was the last time you treated yourself?
• When was the last time you were honest about your emotions?
• When was the last time you saw your best friend?
• What is your self-care like?
• What does a perfect day look like for you?

How to improve your well-being

Start by giving yourself a score out of 10. (10 being I am doing great with my well-being and 1 being I have really been neglecting this area) Once you have decided that, determine that you are going to look after you! The above questions are a great start for reflection and deciding what you will do moving forward.  Then jot down 3 things you are going to do more of. (For example: take myself to a spa every 3 months, create some quality time for myself, read, visit my friends, meditate)

A Final word on well-being 

We want to encourage you to really take your well-being seriously. If not, it is so easy to become worn out, burnt out, tired, stressed and this may unfortunately lead onto serious conditions.  It may cost you time (and even money at times depending on what you decide to do) However, it is a great decision! Once you have taken care of yourself, you’ll also be more available to help others too, a win – win situation.  Make it a priority. You are worth taking care of!

Bennu – Rise and Shine!

This is part 1 to wider series. Subscribe here to so you never miss out.

 

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