It’s okay not to be…
The 10th of October was World Mental Health Day. A day that the JK team downed tools for a couple of hours to come together to focus on Mental Health, in combination with BEN’s Big Breakfast.
BEN is a charity that supports anyone in the automotive sector, and their dependents, through any of life’s challenges. Available to support via life coaching, CBT courses, through financial worries, loss, and much more – it’s designed to help with the bumps in the road and keeps a keen eye on the state of general wellbeing within the industry.
So, aided by the smell of sausages and bacon wafting down into the warehouse, with coffee brewing, and fresh fruit and pastries – it wasn’t that hard a sell!
Gemma and Caz (long-term members of the JK Team) are both trained Mental Health First Aiders and are the driving force behind the wellbeing provision here at JK.
They took a moment to explain why they feel like something as simple as a breakfast shared together was so important.
“We’re lucky that we’ve been given scope to train, provide dedicated staff areas – like the Wellbeing Room, where staff can take time out in a quiet space if they need it, a furnished staff room – where even the paint colour was chosen because of the positive effects on the mind, to now having three trained MHFA’s.”
“I think one of the things that stuck with me most, when we did our training, was how easily you can disrupt a negative thought process – just by the smallest interaction. And okay, it may not be enough to change things ultimately, but it could be enough just for that day – and who knows what the next day may bring. That the smallest interaction can make all the difference – just because you never know what’s going on in someone else’s head.”
“Our reason for wanting to host the staff breakfast meet was to get everyone together – de-stigmatise struggles with poor mental health and just embrace the reality, as a team, that life is tough sometimes – it’s something we all experience. It’s universal and has nothing at all to do with how strong you are as a person.”
“It was really good to hear the chatter explode through the room – which had started as slightly nervous silence. We’ll definitely be doing this again!”
If you, or anyone you know is struggling with their mental health, you can access support via:
You can call Samaritans for free, 24 hours a day, on: 116 123.
For more information on BEN and their support of the automotive sector: https://ben.org.uk/