Getting support
If you are worried about your own or someone else’s mental health, then the best thing to do is to ask for some help from adults that you know.
Who can you ask for help?
Family and friends
They can be a great source of help and support if you are feeling troubled. Choose someone you trust to share your feelings with. This could be your parents, your carer, brother, sister, grandparents or family friends. Often just talking about how you feel with someone can help you feel better.
School
Sometimes it can be helpful to talk to someone outside of your family. This might be a teacher, your head of year, SENCO (special educational needs co-ordinator), a school counsellor, or a school nurse. They can all help you. If needed, they can help you to speak to others who can give you more help.
Your doctor
A GP, also called your family doctor, can give you information and advice about your wellbeing. You may also get a referral to a specialist services like Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS). They can give you even more support.
Childline
You might prefer to talk to someone on the telephone or online. ChildLine provide a 24 hour confidential helpline for young people on 0800 1111. Calls are free from landlines and mobiles in the UK. They even won’t show up on your phone bill. And don’t worry if you don’t have credit on your mobile phone, you can still call them for free.
For more information, click on these helpful sites:
Childline Support for children and young people.
YoungMinds Lots of information about a range of mental health issues.
Family Lives Help for families who might be struggling.
Kidscape Support for children and young people being bullied.
Papyrus UK Working to stop young people killing themselves.