This column is about being human. It’s about you. So this week, I want to start with an email I received from Linda, a reader in her 70s, who wrote to me about mental health in older generations.
“Your article made me think of the thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of people like me, in their 60s and 70s, who have sat quietly as the world around them began to disintegrate. Any medical issue was put on hold as we saw other people’s lives devastated by Covid. We wouldn’t contact the doctor with little problems to add to an overloaded system.
“Those who put aside pain or strange pain now suffer from chronic conditions that can no longer be ignored. My friends and I have accepted that there is no alternative to waiting six to 12 months to have a knee or hip checked, let alone receive treatment. This has created a situation where a new ailment has come to take hands with depression. I have previously seen positive and active people become lethargic, disinterested and imbued with a sense of hopelessness.
“All very small things compared to the lives lost, and the education and opportunities of young people ruined, all important issues that absolutely must be addressed. But it’s heartbreaking to see and hear this from friends who were full of life, but had the padding taken away.”
Oh how this email spoke to me, which came when I wrote last week’s column on childhood anxiety. We care endlessly about the mental health of young people: helplines abound and government task forces are formed, but what about the not insignificant portion of the population that is no longer young, but still has brains?
A dear friend of mine, 71 last month and deeply depressed, recently told me that he feels stuck in his tracks and considers himself “too old” to seek help.
I responded that no one is too old for help, but I acknowledged that it is much easier to ask if you are part of a generation, like me, that has spent much of their lives trying to get a stiff upper lip out. opened.
I called United Kingdom age which, luckily, will publish an investigation this week on the effect of confinement on the mental health of the elderly.
It operates a host of services across the country to improve people’s mental well-being, from Men in Sheds, which brings together older men who want to connect, to counseling, singing lessons and exercise. You can call their national helpline on 0800 678 1602, 8 am to 7 pm, every day of the year, to find out about activities near you.
Six years ago, I created a peer support group called Mental Health Matesto get out of the house and meet people who had also experienced the debilitating effects of OCD, anxiety and depression.
Since its inception, Mental Health Mates has always attracted people of all ages, but particularly those over 60, and I wanted to mention it here because it’s all over the country, offering like-minded nature walks. You can search for rides near you by going to mentalhealthmates.co.uk/find-a-walk.
Mental wellness is not just a youth game, and I’d love to hear from you about any services or projects you’ve come across that have helped improve your mental health.
Like Linda, you can email me at [email protected] and I’ll do my best to share your thoughts here.
The culture of drinking in the workplace is not just an internal problem of No 10
.
