School Matters 36

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SCHOOL COUNSELLORS “Mental health is not a destination, but a process. It’s about how you drive, not where you’re going.” Following the appointment of Rebecca McDonnell and Sarah Webb as the School’s two new counsellors, Yeva Kebabdjian, PVI Editor of the brilliant pupil newspaper The Scoop, interviewed our new duo to welcome them to the IPS community. During the interview, Rebecca and Sarah explained their Top Tips for Mental Health.

SELF-AWARENESS How we talk to ourselves can play a huge role in how we feel. It is quite common to be unaware of our own inner critic and how this impacts us. When the inner critic senses you’ve encountered a situation where you had made a mistake, had a challenging time, or noticed something you don’t like about yourself, it gets its megaphone and beelines for your thoughts to be heard usually hurting your own feelings in the process. These internal negative thoughts often enough can create feelings of shame, anxiety, fear, anger, and loneliness which can create an unconscious and unhealthy dynamic between what you think and how you feel. A key factor in affecting change in this area is just being simply aware, an awareness of the script that occurs when you are under pressure or have felt like you have made a mistake. i.e., What words/phrases do you say to yourself and in what tone of voice? Hearing your own inner script won’t always be comfortable but it is in the inner listening you are made aware of how you truly feel (‘Journal-ing’ can be a helpful tool in supporting this).

SELF–COMPASSION Everyone can develop and practise self-compassion. This is simply the art of being kind to yourself through difficult and frustrating situations by being warm and understanding. A straightforward way of doing this is to imagine what you would say to a good friend who was feeling down, what kind words or actions would you say or do to show them that you cared? Making an active effort in softening the inner critic, can look like this “I know you’re worried about me and feel unsafe, but you are causing me unnecessary pain. Could you let my inner compassionate self say a few words now?” Unfortunately, life can throw up some unpredictable moments that can make us feel unsafe and wobbly, it is through learning to relate to ourselves with a measure of kindness and compassion that will help alleviate the internal suffering.

Some helpful prompts in aiding kinder self-talk:

‘I am good enough’

‘I am intelligent enough’

‘I am beautiful’

‘I am of value’

‘It’s ok that I feel like this’

‘It’s human to make mistakes’

Living a healthy lifestyle helps keep your mind balanced. During our teenage years, things are constantly changing, and we are constantly developing. It is our responsibility to make sure we are making healthy choices with areas such as sleep, nutrition and physical activity. Sticking to a schedule/routine can be helpful, as well as setting yourself realistic goals. And finally, asking for help when dealing with a mental health issue is a sign of strength. Sometimes we are afraid to speak up. We might think we are bothering or becoming a burden for others. We fear that people will think we are weak because we cannot do everything by ourselves. Asking for help takes courage, it will never be a sign of weakness.

You can visit Sarah and Rebecca in Armadillo No 5 , email them at thesoke@ ibtockplaceschool.co.uk or use the booking form on Firefly if you wish to book an appointment. Some further useful resources: Childline 0800 111 Meetoo https://www.meetoo.help/ Young Minds https://www.young-minds.org.uk/

Senior 10 GCSE Dance pupils Charlotte Braithwaite, Rachel Hobson and Maddison Rhodes stepped up brilliantly to help run the workshop, which was held at the Wandsworth Wellbeing Hub, based in Tooting near St George’s Hospital. During their GCSE course, Dance pupils cover issues of mental and physical challenges as part of their syllabus. It was helpful for the pupils to see and learn about the work of the Mind organisation. In the workshop, the benefits of exercise on the body and mind were extolled and an explanation given of the way in which dancing releases endorphins. Endorphins are linked to the ‘feel-good factor’ and, along with dopamine, noradrenaline and serotonin, help regulate our mood. The IPS dancers demonstrated seated and standing exercises, from warm-up to working different muscle groups throughout the body. Squeezy stress balls and Therabands were provided as tactile, fun props, that participants could use themselves to assist with their exercises. Upbeat tunes were selected to get feet tapping and bodies moving. Breathing and calming heartrate strategies were also shown and practised to conclude the workshop. The participants and organisers were most grateful to the young dancers who were involved, and all enjoyed the event.

WORLD MENTAL HEALTH DAY WORKSHOP

Ms Ella Boynton, a Social Inclusion Project Organiser from the mental health charity Mind, contacted IPS to ask for help

in running a workshop that would help motivate and empower people with mental health needs to keep active and use dance to help them reduce stress levels while improving their physical and mental fitness.