Niche Magazine Issue 46

Page 50

Rise in men seeking mental health support

Suicide attempt survivor tells Niche about his connection with mental health charity Lamp after demand increases for its helpline

L

ockdown restrictions have undoubtedly taken their toll on the mental health of many individuals, friends, families and work colleagues. A Leicester-based mental health charity has reported a significant upsurge in demand for its helpline, advocacy services and online resources during Covid-19, particularly from men. Leicestershire Action for Mental Health Project (Lamp) has provided free mental health advocacy services to people and organisations in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland for over 30 years. The charity’s services are independent, confidential, trusted, non-judgemental, and aim to make people feel valued, listened to, more able to cope, and to provide access to services that support their needs. By working with people to develop their confidence to speak out, Lamp enables individuals to make a real difference in the quality of the support and care they receive. The charity provides information and support, as well as organising and attending community events to help challenge stigma, increase awareness and help those whose lives are affected by mental health. Proud to work with a wide range of forward-thinking businesses across the region, Lamp’s Business Club is one of the first in the country to

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DON’T TRY AND GET THE MONKEY OFF YOUR BACK, LOOK AFTER IT, FEED IT BANANAS, LOVE AND RESPECT IT

emphasise the health and wellbeing of employees, and now counts over 50 local businesses as members, including Glenfield Electrical. Like a lot of people, Phil Houlder from Glenfield Electrical has suffered from negative thoughts most of his life. In his case, they led to him attempting suicide at age 12. He recently shared his experiences to encourage other men to speak up.

Phil’s story

When Phil was 11, a huge negative force would start on Sunday evenings before school. “I’d cry myself to sleep, get up in the morning and lock myself in the toilet. Mum and dad had to physically drag me out sometimes.” One day, in the school sick room, when he was 12, he swallowed 14 paracetamol tablets. Fortunately, they only rendered him unconscious, and he made a full recovery. But it helped him to understand why people take their lives, which is why he joined the Lamp Business Club. He says drink, drugs and girls got him through from the age of 16 to 21. Then he met his wife and settling down into family life had a tremendous positive impact. Then he took redundancy and started his own

business, Glenfield Electrical, which meant he had a lot more responsibility and was never ‘there’ with his family. His son once said to him: “You’ve not listened to a word I’ve said.” Phil told us: “I hadn’t. I’d been thinking about what I had to do at work tomorrow.” Remembering a break to New York with his wife, he said: “Mentally, I was somewhere else. My wife said it had been pointless going, and that broke my heart.” A year ago, he went on The UK Ministry of Inspiration fiveday ‘Broadband Consciousness’ course. “It literally changed my life,” says Phil. “I started to understand my own feelings and how to accept that those dark, negative, thoughts may have me for an hour, or even a day, but that things would be different tomorrow.” He says men are reluctant to talk about their feelings, which leads to a high number of male suicides. “Men have the belief that if we show our feelings, it’s a sign of weakness but it’s not. Telling your story is cathartic and can give hope and confidence to others.” To find out more about mental health support or the Lamp Business Club, visit lampadvocacy.co.uk or email info@lampdirect.org.uk.


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Articles inside

The Boardroom

2min
pages 106-108

Reviewed: London’s Strand Palace

2min
pages 97-98

Collaboration opp with The Bridge

2min
page 103

SoundCafe

1min
page 104

Susie the Foodie

3min
pages 88-89

Bistro Live Variety Night for Hope Against Cancer

1min
page 101

Festive foodie fun

2min
page 87

A break from business this Christmas

4min
pages 94-96

Life in lockdown for Menphys beneficiaries

2min
page 105

We Asked You

3min
page 61

First Impressions: a photography guide

2min
pages 75-76

A dynamic workflow

2min
page 77

Running a business with the backing of two awards

3min
pages 68-69

Awarding staff with confidence and pride

3min
pages 70-71

Why you should be applying for awards in 2022

3min
pages 62-63

Maximising award-win opportunities

4min
pages 66-67

Back to the desk: ergonomic health

2min
page 83

Bowel cancer and early diagnosis

2min
page 59

Living with high functioning anxiety

2min
page 57

Workplace mental health

1min
page 55

Loneliness at the top

1min
page 56

Overcoming bullying

2min
page 53

Caring for the carers

2min
page 60

Making friends with the demon

2min
page 51

Suicide attempt survivor speaks out

3min
page 50

The HR evolution

2min
page 47

How to be successful

1min
page 44

Cancer, anxiety, family struggles, business pressure, and more

3min
page 48

Navigating insolvency

2min
page 45

Getting perspective

2min
page 41

Apps for business

2min
page 39

Attracting talent

2min
page 43

Recovering from prostate cancer

2min
page 49

To restructure or not to restructure

5min
pages 33-34

Impact of divorce on family business

2min
pages 31-32

In conversation with Nicki Robson

2min
page 26

3 steps to retirement planning

2min
page 28

EMC Annual Award Dinner

1min
page 13

SEO creativity

2min
pages 36-37

Thought Leaders

19min
pages 16-24

Generation Next winners

2min
page 12
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