16 JUNE 2022
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Jami launches new campaign to improve understanding of mental health
Following an increase in demand for mental health support within the community, Jami is launching a new campaign to improve understanding of mental health and to highlight how its services can help those who are adversely affected. As the leading charity supporting mental health in the Jewish community, Jami’s Understand Mental Health multimedia campaign will explain some of the symptoms of mental illness; the impact on people struggling with mental health told through real-life experiences; and the ways in which Jami supports people to manage their mental health. Increasing the community’s understanding of mental health is the next step for Jami after years of raising awareness about mental health and its impact on people’s lives, through events such as the Jami Mental Health Awareness Shabbat. And Jami’s latest campaign couldn’t be timelier considering the rising number of people seeking the charity’s support. As Laurie Rackind, Jami’s chief executive, explains: “Many of us have become much more aware of our own mental health and its importance to our overall wellbeing, but we need to know that at any given time at least 25 per cent of us are actively dealing with a mental health problem. Developing our understanding about mental distress and the impact it has, will enable us to better recognise how our family, friends or colleagues may be feeling and make ourselves available to listen and support them in whichever ways we can.” Over the past two-and-a-quarter years, Jami has seen a 55 per cent increase in the hours of support delivered in response to the Covid crisis, a trebling in demand for help from its Carer and Family Support service, and a doubling of requests for support from young adults. As a result, Jami’s lifesaving services have had to expand and adapt to meet the growing needs of the community. To this end, Jami is expanding its Head Room Café in Golders Green, which provides informal and inclusive mental health support on the high street. The Café’s free, peer-led programme of events aims to
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reduce social isolation and build personal and communal wellbeing by providing the chance for people to build relationships, take part in meaningful conversations and gain mutual support. Through the expansion into its neighbouring premises, Jami will be able to broaden its programme of events further and deliver services to more people in an accessible, supportive and relaxed space. In response to the rise in children with mental health problems – which saw an increase of 77 per cent of children aged under 18 needing care for issues ranging from self-harm to eating disorders between April and October 2021 compared to the same period in 2019* – and the lack of available mental health services for them, Jami launched its pilot Children and Young Person’s (CYP) service in March 2022. Using a multi-skilled team, consisting of social workers, mental health practitioners, a mental health support worker and a young people’s education officer, Jami’s CYP service is providing tailored one-toone support based on each young person’s individual needs.
To fund Jami’s CYP and other mental health services, Jami launched its first-ever crowdfunding campaign, See Me, See Mental Health, in January 2022, raising £1.24million; a sure sign of how much the community has come to recognise the impact of mental illness and the need to ensure that professional support is available. Nevertheless, Jami’s newest campaign aims to reinforce this message further. Mark’s story Mark visits Jami’s Head Room Café at least three times a week because he likes “the aura”. “Coming here is like a holiday,” he says. “The staff are so lovely. I want to engage with people who understand me,” he explains. “And they do.” Café manager, Andrea, brings Mark a plate full of food because he often forgets to eat. “I only have one meal a day,” he admits. “But I love cakes,” he says smiling. Mark doesn’t have a big appetite, so Andrea keeps checking on him, gently reminding him to take a mouthful every now and again. The care and compassion she shows Mark and other Head Room regulars is clear to see. It’s also one of the reasons why Mark travels 1.5 hours every Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, and sometimes Fridays, to this specific Café. The other reasons are to take part in the weekly programme of events and to be around like-minded people. “Head Room gives me somewhere to go each day. There’s always someone to lean
on. And I can be myself here,” he explains. But being Mark isn’t easy. The scars left by years of bullying, which started in nursery and continued until he left school at 16, haven’t faded at all. “It was hard to talk about the bullying with anyone,” he says. “It made me quieter and more withdrawn. I felt imprisoned in my own body. I didn’t have the confidence to do things and I never went out. It was horrible.” Then, a violent assault during a burglary, several years ago, left him in a coma and led to him having frequent seizures. He says: “My seizures can happen any time but loneliness affects me the most. I hate the weekends because I can’t come to the Café and that’s when I feel really isolated. I’ve had mental health problems all my life but the accident made it worse. I just want to be like other people.” Mark enjoys company. “When I come to the Café, I say hello to everyone,” he says. He also joins the conversation and walking groups, and takes part in Creativity4All, Head Room Café’s twice-weekly art and writing session, with an emphasis on connection, peer support and process. “I do art to bring a bit of sunshine into my life,” he says. “I also love art galleries and I like to write.” On Wednesdays, Mark goes to Jami’s community hub in Redbridge, where he receives support from one of their occupational therapists and the opportunity to engage with people who also have longterm mental health problems. “It’s nice just being with people who understand what you’re going through,” he says. “When you feel low, you need someone to pick you up. You need nice people around you.” But whether Mark is mingling at the hub or connecting in mutually supportive ways at our Café, he says: “Jami provides people who listen and places to go. Without Jami, I’d be lost.” If you need support or are supporting someone who needs help, visit https:// jamiuk.org/get-support/ or contact 020 8458 2223. If you are struggling to cope or need immediate help, contact Shout’s 24/7 crisis text service. Text Jami to 85258 for free, confidential support. For free, safe and confidential online counselling and emotional wellbeing services for adults, contact Jami Qwell at https://www.qwell.io/jami *NHS data analysed by the Royal College of Physicians for BBC News, February
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