Working at home

We are encouraged to work from home more and more these days … sounds great. But some times it can feel a bit lonely and things can quickly get on top of you.

Take regular breaks

So we have put together some simple suggestions to keep things on track. mentally and physically.

Take a break, Sounds simple, but i am sure its something we all forget to do … “let me just finish this … then i’ll have a break” Sound familiar? Take a walk around the block, put the telly on for 10 minutes, watch a cat being funny on youtube, stretching exercises … whatever it is … as long as it’s not work and away from your desk.

Coffee Break
Coffee Break

Routine, This one is difficult to stick at i know, but it makes a big difference. Have a start and finish time. Make sure you have a proper lunch break.
Do all those things you would normally do, shower, breakfast loose your door keys (joking)

Breakfast
Breakfast

Desk, Have a work space, a place that feels like a proper work space, rather than laptop on lap sat on the sofa. (as nice as that sounds its hard to get things done) Try and find a decent supportive chair to sit on, good lighting and a window if your lucky enough, plants too.
Can find some stationery bargains in Wilko and Tiger, to make it feel like a real office.

Tidy desk
Beautiful work space

Zoom, We all love zoom. Use it for more than just meetings. try a zoom coffee with a colleague or a mate. Have a natter and a coffee. Maybe facetime is your thing. Whatever you feel comfortable using. Try and keep it a daily thing, so you feel less isolated.

Zoom with a friend
Zoom a friend

Family/Housemates, Try and be flexible and let those who live with you know when you are working. Have a chat and explain your needs and be flexible so it works for everyone. Once you have a few boundaries sorted it should all be a little easier for everyone.

Working Together
Work together

Be kind, … goes without saying but always forgotten. Be kind and patient to yourself. self care is king.

Be Kind
Be Kind

A done list, Something thats good to do … well i find it helpful, is a done list at the end of the day. Often we forget how much we do, and tend to get anxious that we haven’t achieved enough that day. forgetting the 30 emails sent, excel spreadsheet finished and the R&D work done with that new software we got.

a completed today list
Write a done list

Go Home When you should finish work, stop working. shut down and kick back. Easy to say, much harder to do i know.

5 years later

Create4mentalhealth wasn’t started 5 years ago,
But it was 5 years ago this week that i lost my closest friend Keith Clarke. To be fair, he was a bit of an idiot, but he was always funny, daft, charismatic, and kind. He also struggled quite a lot and i guess thats where our story really starts.

Keith Clarke 1979 – 2017

This is Keith …. i think this sums him up rather well. Full of life, fun and a little idiocy. I made this for his funeral … I wanted his family to know he was dearly loved by all his friends. Keith loved movies and always wanted to be help me with filming work. Sadly he never got to see the film he was in, I hope he would have liked it.

Keith was that guy you meet once and thats it … you’re friends. He knew everyone, and everyone knew him. We had our place at the bar, but no one was ever excluded. Its what i liked about him i guess, everyone was welcome. People came and people went, but Keith was a constant in all our lives.

Keith Clarke’s plaque

I always tried to be a good friend to Keith, be there for him, but sometimes i got it wrong, I would get impatient and a little frustrated. Get cross when he didn’t turn up to things he had promised too, be too busy to send him a message or call him up to ask if he fancied a beer.

I just didn’t get that he was struggling, didn’t really know it was a thing. And like most of us, he kept his problems to himself.

He was convinced … (again i know how this feels) that he had no friends, and no one wanted to know him. Nothing could be further from the truth. If only he could have seen the crowds at his funeral … the church was full, every seat taken, and the rest stood in the aisle, and filled the back of the church. I think we all had the same thought, i hope Keith is watching.

We planted a tree next to our local … meet up on his birthday and anniversary to toast him.

Keith Clarke’s tree

But i wanted to do more, I couldn’t shake the thought that there must be thousands of people like me and Keith. Not really understanding what the matter with us with us.
Not knowing that it doesn’t have to be like this, there are things we can do to make us feel better as well as loads of support available if we need something more.

So create4mentalhealth was born. we have created something good in the world thanks to our dear and greatly missed friend. This sounds like a cliche … but there is not a day goes by i don’t think of you, and wonder what you and i would be doing if you were still with us.

So if you are feeling a bit rubbish, or you know someone who is finding things tough right now send a message, it all starts with a message. We all need to know that we have friends around us who care, share a little hope today.

Keith, Happy Anniversary mate.
Our lives will never be the same without you.

Christmas Wishes from us all

Wishing everyone a happy and safe Christmas, not going to bore you with the whole it’s been a tough year bit … cos we all know that. Stay safe … be careful, look our for others and have a great time.

Create4MH- Christams 2021

If you are feel you need a little extra help … here are some useful contacts that are open this Christmas.

Everyone
Samaritans Call 116 123 open 24hrs
Shout Text Shout to 85258 open 24 hrs
Calm Call 0800 58 58 58 open 24 hrs

Under 25’s
Young Minds text YM to 85258 open 24hrs
The Mix Call 0808 808 4994 3pm till 12 am every day
Childline Call 0800 1111 call free and wont show on any phone bill.

And spare a thought for friends and family you haven’t seen in ages. Takes a few seconds to send a text … let someone know you care.

Happy Christmas to one and all.

Self-Care Christmas

I know we all get busy … especially this time of year. Putting everyone else first feels right somehow, but it’s important to remember yourself too. It’s so easy to forget we all need to put a little time aside to look after ourselves. Even if it’s a putting your feet up, sticking on your fave album and relaxing with a cuppa

So here is a list of cheap … I mean really cheap products that encourage a little self care to help promote wellbeing, from herbal tea to comfy socks.

Everything in this list costs around a pound and available from high street stores. Popping out to the shops … with a face mask on of course … it’s also great for wellbeing. Good exercise … releases those endorphins and try something new.

Chamomile tea
Chamomile Tea

Chamomile TeaWaitrose

We start with Chamomile tea … its actually nice … doesn’t taste like tea … but then again … nothing does. And. If its not for you …  offer to friends and sound sophisticated 

Bath Bomb

Bath BombWilko

These are great. Simple relaxation that we are normally too busy to enjoy. Got these little beauties from Wilko

Earphones

Headphones Flying Tiger

Take a short walk, music on feeling better with every step.  They are mini jack, but Flying Tiger sell the adapters cheap too. Cant actually find them on the website but they were in store last time we looked.

Mud Mask

Mud MaskSuperdrug

Clears pours, softens skin and it feels amazing. We recon you can get at least 2 or even 3 sessions from one sachet. Can feel a little bit embarrassing wearing one (talking from experience) maybe something to do when everyone is out.

Coloured Pencils

Coloured Pencils Flying Tiger

Doesn’t matter if you haven’t drawn anything since you were a kid, try it … cost a pound … and no one ever has to see your drawing. Do it for yourself. 

Hair Treatment

Hair TreatmentSuperdrug

Aussie 3 minute goodness in a sachet … smells great … instant soft hair and cost a pound. Again … can get at least 2 goes with this … depending on how much hair you have of course.

Comfy Socks

Cosy SocksPrimark

Such an advocate of comfy socks … instant cosy feel 2 pairs for 2 pounds. Great for tiredness too … Well worth a try. Could only find these up to a size 8 but we probably could have looked harder.

Fruity Soap

Fruity Soap – Wilko

Bit old school but it smells amazing. Fresh and invigorating … a really good way to start the day. Loads of different ‘flavours’ to choose from.

Face wipe

Tea Tree Face WipesWilko

Love these … feeling tired and over worked? Take 5 mins, put the kettle on …. Give your face a bit of a massage with a cleansing wipe, works wonders. Try putting them in the fridge to sooth-tired skin

Lavender Candle

Lavender Candle – Wilko

They look pretty, Soothing smell, very relaxing. Lasts for ages… Enough said.   

Face Scrub

Face ScrubAldi

This is one of those instantly feels like its done some good type of deals. Quick easy and effective, loads of inexpensive options out there too. This one is nice and gentle … if you want something a little tougher you might have to pay a bit more for a branded one.

Lip Balm

Lip BalmWilko

It’s that thing we all forget … especially when it’s freezing cold. Total no brainer really. Another instant feel more positive kind of thing. Pocket size … looks expensive too, not that it matters of course.

I hope this give you something to at least think about, take care of yourself ok, it’s not easy to put yourself first sometimes, just remember self care is not selfish.

Should point out … we have no affiliation with any of these shops, or the products they sell. We just wanted to find cheap and cheerful products that you can go to the shops and buy.

No one is that busy

I made this film to encourage everyone to reach out to friends and family. Its been a tough year of course … so many worries for us all. I get that … but it’s important that we don’t forget our friends and family.

Its weird … i have noticed some of my friends who use to post lots on socials media don’t seem to post as much, Or maybe i’m not seeing those posts as much as i use to … and … well i find myself forgetting to check in sometimes. Forgetting to send that short little message to say ‘hows it going, not seen you in ages.’

Im sure we all say to ourselves I’ll do that tomorrow. Im trying hard to be one of those ‘let me do that today.’ people. Its not easy i know … but it feels good to get those nagging things done.

And lets be clear here … It takes seconds to send a message … literally seconds … but it can make a tough day a little less tough. I know how i feel when i get a message from a friend I’ve not heard from in a while. Makes me me feel wanted and appreciated … being reminded I’m still part of that social circle.

So I encourage everyone to have a think about one person they havent seen in a while … I bet they are feeling the same way you are. Delighted that someone took time out of their day to reached out.

Unwanted video Kit

We are always on the look out for used audio/video kit that can help us in what we do. Computer hardware and software are always welcome. Working with our volunteers is always a challenge so its great if we can enough kit to go around.

Camera lens

We are a bit limited for space so if you think you might have something that could help, please email justin@create4mentalhealth.com Anything you can spare no matter how big or small will be greatly received.

Digital sound desk

Huge thank you for all those people who have donated kit so far, we could not have got this far without you.

Cheap and Cheerful

It’s great to spend time in nature … enjoying the sights and sounds of wildlife, but sometimes it can be a little expensive. So we went looking for a cheap way to enjoy nature in your own back yard.

Wilko Bird feeder

Bird feeder … cheap (sorry about the pun) easy and maintenance free. We got ours from Wilko … feeder was £1.25 and the food was £1.00, And the best bit is … birds actually like it.

Birds enjoying our new bird feeder

To be honest we have tried bird food before and well we didn’t have much success. With the ‘fat balls’ … horrible phrase i know. its been a breeze.

Crow enjoying free food

All kinds of birds … some probably too big for the feeder … no idea how they manage. But its fun to watch them try.

A message from Frank Turner – by Justin

Frank Turner visited Kingston (again) back in May 2018 for a Banquet records show, We all were a little worried, at the time his mate Scott Hutchison – Frightened Rabbit’s front man was missing. The band had posted this earlier in the week

“We are worried about Scott, who has been missing for a little while now. He may be in a fragile state and may not be making the best decisions for himself right now.”

I can’t imagine what was going though Frank Turners head at the time, but he soldiered on, determined to give the audience what they had turned up for. We had asked if he would say a few words on camera about mental health but under the circumstances we didn’t push it. But Frank being Frank finished his sound check and strolled over and introduced himself.

Here is his interview .. full of kindness, hope and understanding.
A truly great guy, and a wonderful musician, such compassion for music, music fans, and for people who struggle.

He played his heart out during the gig, most unaware of his personal struggle at the time.

Scott’s body was discovered a few days after our interview, he had tragically taken his own life.

Tiny Changes was set up by his friends and family to help support other young people who find it tough sometimes.

Frank Turner – Little Changes

Little Changes … filmed by our amazing volunteers. lets hope we can film more shows very soon.


Grounding Techniques – By Kevin Argent

Hello my name is Kevin… I suffer with a mental illness… please don’t be scared of me I’m not crazy I’m just a little off balance sometimes… if I go quiet don’t worry I’m not going to jump, If I’m manic then just laugh at my jokes.


My poor folks where so worried about me the other day and my mum was scared that I was going to go the way of Robin Williams because she said I was manic and up and down but I use my #groundingtechniques and I take a deep breath before I leave the house and try my hardest to go forward.

I promise I’ll never lash out or get physical I just take a step back and collect my thoughts – I sometimes take a day or so to reply or a few hours but please don’t take this as me being a rude it’s because I care about my response and i also have to slow down my brain and my eyes – this isn’t fun not one F**king bit and most of this is brought upon by my own doings.

But I’m also learning and I’m getting better – I promise… Positive mental health is the answer… But I also wouldn’t half mind a farm somewhere out there I think that’s be nice 😃
If you didn’t think I was mental already then you’ll definitely think it now.

Every day before I leave my room I ground using the 5 rules of and it works – well most of the time l, sometimes my brain is going too fast I feel like a child and not a 40 year old man (well ManBoi ha!)

5 things you can see, around you, it can be literally anything you can see.

4 things you can touch, feeling the ground beneath your feet is a good one to start with.

3 things you can hear, id love to say bird somg but more often than not its next doors washing machine

2 things you can smell, the shampoo you use, or the hand sanitiser you have.

1 thing you can taste, what taste is in your mouth right now?

There are no right answers to any of this of course and there are lots of different grounding techniques you can try. Found a few here that might help Click link

You can follow my journey on my instagram Kevin Argent

Production tools

For us, making films that look great is important, to put strong images together with a strong message to help people who aren’t having a great day. We use a few production techniques to get the most out of what we film. Some of which are free to use, which is amazing .

One of our favourites is Blackmagic DaVinci Resolve

DaVinci Resolve 17

Loads to learn, easy to use and there is a free version. Giving everyone the chance to make good video look great. Editing, graphics and colour correction all in one.

We do use other products of course, Avid Media Composer, Pro Tools and Adobe of course.
There are free versions of Media composer and Pro tools available.

Correcting colour and adding snow

Keep creating and keep supporting each other. Happy filming