Health & Wellbeing

Put on your walking boots and set out on the Breast Walk Ever

THE NEW Year often brings about new found enthusiasm and a fresh motivation. Perhaps you are looking to do more to help others or a new challenge?

The Against Breast Cancer charity is bringing its Breast Walk Ever event to Hampshire on Sunday, May 7th.

With full and half marathon options, as well as a 10k walk, Breast Walk Ever Hampshire has plenty of choice for anyone looking for a local walking challenge. The routes, all starting together just outside Winchester, follow waymarked trails including the Clarendon, Itchin and Pilgrims Way.

All three walks let you trek in the footsteps of King Charles II on the Monarch’s way, following the route he took after suffering defeat to Cromwell in 1651.

Against Breast Cancer’s Breast Walk Ever walkers have raised well in excess of £100,000 over the years to help research into secondary spread Breast Cancer.

“We are delighted to offer a Breast Walk Ever event in Hampshire. To have an event close to where our research takes place has been a long-standing ambition and one we cannot wait to fulfil,” said the charity’s event manager, Richard Martin.

“The routes look stunning and it’s a great chance to get out in the fresh air with family and friends to make a real difference”.

Over 370 men are diagnosed with Breast Cancer each year as well as over 55,000 women. Breast Cancer is statistically the most common form of cancer in the UK. Against Breast Cancer fund vital research into secondary spread of the disease, the main cause of breast cancer related deaths.

Entry fees range from £12 to £28, depending on distance. There is an early bird offer for teams of four who will receive a 20% discount when signing up before the end of January.

Walkers can expect wellstocked support stations, cheerful marshals and a complimentary massage at the finish to go with

The event features a full and half marathon, as well as a 10k walk

their hard-earned medal.

All walkers are asked to raise funds with an initial target of just £75. There is free parking at the event HQ in Hursely. breastwalkever.org

Use mindful eating to help ditch yo-yo dieting for good

Words by Claire Sankey

IN JANUARY we’re often bombarded with messages about losing weight and the latest diet. If you find yourself in a pattern of dieting in January and then yo-yoing throughout the year, it might be time to rethink your regime and practice mindfulness for better weight management.

Dieting is the number one cause of disordered eating. The 1944 Minnesota Starvation experiment (healthy men were put on a six-month restricted calorie diet) showed a stark link between undernourishment and the onset of unhealthy body image and food behaviours (binge eating, cravings, disordered eating, body dysmorphia).

The best-intentioned January diet could be setting you up for a year of weight yo-yo-ing, which carries health risks such as heart disease, increased inflammation and messing with your gut microbiome and mental health.

The diet industry will suck you into short-term thinking, but if you want to be healthier you need change long-term.

Mindfulness is a lifelong practice which can help you shift your relationship with food and your body and is associated with less impulsive eating, reduced calorie consumption, and healthier snack choices.

Further, mindfulness-based interventions can help you manage the difficult emotions that can lead to comfort eating.

Mindfulness means paying attention, on purpose, to what is happening in the present moment and adopting the attitudes of kindness, acceptance and non-judgement.

Mindful eating is the practice of slowing down and noticing your food, paying attention to your body’s cues and savouring every bite.

Follow these steps to practise mindful eating: ● Remove all distractions (phone, TV etc) and set a timer for five minutes. ● Eat slowly (put cutlery down between each bite or chew 10 times). ● Get curious about how much you can notice, such as tastes, smells, colours and textures. ● Pay attention to your body’s hunger and satiation cues. Taking a few minutes to practise mindful eating each day may help support you towards a healthier relationship with food and help you to ditch the yo-yo dieting for good.

Claire Sankey is a certified mindfulness, yoga and somatics practitioner. Mindfulness was a key part in her recovery from an eating disorder. www.clairesankey.com

Health & Wellbeing Families urged to get resilient to help vulnerable young people

DID YOU know that only 10% of children in the UK play in natural spaces and today’s young people spend less time outdoors than prison inmates?

This February half term, children’s charity, the Youth Adventure Trust, will be encouraging children from across Wiltshire to take on the Virtual Resilience Challenge.

The trust wants to get children outdoors to help promote positive mental well-being, build resilience and develop confidence, while at the same time helping to support vulnerable young people who are facing challenges of their own.

The Youth Adventure Trust supports young people in Wiltshire to build confidence and resilience to help them fulfil their potential and lead positive lives. They are currently working with 113 young people and the challenges they face on a daily basis have not disappeared because of Covid-19.

By joining the Resilience Challenge, children and families will make a very real difference to the lives of vulnerable young people like Ben, who says about his time on the Youth Adventure Programme: “It’s helped me with my confidence and with my trust – definitely helped me with my trust.

“I just want to say a big thank you because without everything that the YAT has done, I would be so different and it’s like you guys have changed me and for the better.” 97% of families the charity supports are struggling with the cost of living crisis and many of the children would have no outdoor activity if they were not participating in the Youth Adventure Trust Activity Days.

Families can choose to run, ride, ramble, ski, scoot or swim their way to resilience by taking on 25km, 65km or 100km (at their own pace, spread over the week or done all in one go) to raise much-needed funds for the Youth Adventure Trust.

Each participant will be aiming to raise funds to match the kilometres they’ll cover. These funds will enable the children the charity supports to get outside and start to re-build their resilience and confidence to face the challenges in their lives.

Funds raised will enable the charity support children in the local area to re-build their resilience and confidence

Physical activity and being outdoors are golden tickets to physical health and well-being. Getting outdoors helps people to become more confident and develop a higher sense of self-worth and self-esteem, which in turn helps people to make more positive choices.

As a society we need to recognise that the earlier we introduce people to outdoor activities, the more likely they are to choose an active lifestyle and that can only be a good thing for our young people, our communities and future generations.

Rachel, a participant in 2021, said: “The resilience challenge has given us a focus for our walks and a target to aim for. It has pushed us to walk further, to go outside despite the wind and the rain.

Not just funds for an inspiring organisation, but to raise resilience in ourselves at a time when perhaps it is needed more than ever.” www.youthadventuretrust.org. uk/resilience-challenge

Tips for working from home during the winter

Words by Francesca Tyer

WORKING from home can be challenging, especially during the colder months. Here are some top tips to help you stay healthy and motivated this winter.

Drink and eat

In winter, many of us live on tea and coffee.

However, drinking water is also important. When the body is cold, the brain must work harder. Water aids brain function, as does eating regular meals, and both help to keep the body warm.

Stay connected

Working from home can be lonely, especially in the winter when social events tend to tail off. Make sure you stay connected with friends and colleagues to avoid the winter slump. regular exercise, even in winter. Try a home workout, go to the gym, or go for a walk.

Lower light levels in winter mean less vitamin D, so going outside for a walk or run during the daytime is beneficial.

Change your workspace

If your regular workspace is cold or dark, it might be time to change things up. Sit by a radiator or a window where you are exposed to natural light.

Even winter sunlight can be warming. important to take a break. It’s all too easy when the weather turns cold to sit still and keep working.

However, trying a hobby that takes you away from your screen, even for just half an hour, is beneficial.

Health & Wellbeing

Why fathers’ mental health matters in the pre- and perinatal period

DID YOU know that 1 in 10 dads suffer from postnatal depression – that’s 75,000 dads each year in the UK. Furthermore, according to NCT research, up to 38% of new dads are worried about their mental health.

Looking after an infant is often a challenge for both parents. It is increasingly recognised that postnatal depression and other perinatal mental illnesses and disorders can be experienced by men as well as women.

We now understand that becoming a father and experiencing fatherhood can be a stressful and isolating experience.

It is quite possible that the increased pressures of fatherhood – which mean little sleep, extra responsibilities, greater financial challenges, and changes in relationships and lifestyles – will all affect the father’s mental health.

Research has shown that one in 10 new fathers suffer from postnatal depression, very similar to the figure for new mothers.

Once education, universal assessment and screening processes are introduced, this figure will no doubt be higher – I believe that the figure for mothers has increased now that they are being routinely assessed, and this is supported by Wisner et al’s (2013) finding that almost 22% of women suffer from postnatal depression during the first year post-partum – thus highlighting the need for much more to be done to support fathers in the perinatal period.

It cannot be emphasised enough that the biggest killer of

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men under 50 in the UK is suicide. Studies have shown that fathers with mental health problems during the perinatal period are up to 47 times more likely to be classed as a suicide risk than at any other time in their lives.

Surely now is the time to act and make a difference?

Fathers Reaching Out - Why Dads Matter was published by Mark Williams in 2020.

Mark is a campaigner for fathers’ mental health and has done a great deal to both raise awareness and effect real change.

The report was intended to be read by all those involved in the provision of perinatal mental health services across the UK and globally, including in particular those with the potential to achieve policy change at the highest level.

The report shared the findings that Mark gathered throughout his 10 years of work with ‘Fathers Reaching Out’, in order to raise awareness of the issues surrounding paternal mental ill health and the impact this can have on individual families as well as wider society, and to identify and highlight key proposals for change.

The report made 25 key recommendations, including more support for fathers, enquiries into paternal deaths, increased paternal mental health screening, specialist mental health support for fathers, greater support for men becoming fathers.

Early prevention programmes were also recommended, such as improving engagement with fathers by healthcare professionals, as well as services that make fathers aware of changes that occur to their body and emotional needs, promoting more positive ways of coping.

Perinatal mental health issues might take a number of forms: ● Paternal depression – clinically similar to maternal depression, including low

Research has shown that one in 10 new fathers suffer from postnatal depression

mood and lack of enjoyment.

They might not feel good enough, hopeless, not knowing how to be a better father than their own, etc.

However, fathers might express their emotions differently, perhaps externalising their feelings in such a way that their actions might be viewed as aggressive or cold, which can lead to misinterpretation. ● Suicidal ideation ● Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) ● Paternal Obsessive-

Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

Sobering statistics

● An average of 10.4% of fathers are depressed both pre- and post-natally, with the peak time for fathers’ depression being between three and six months post-birth (Paulson &

Brazemore, 2010). ● 24%-50% of new dads with partners suffering from depression were also affected by depression themselves (Goodman, 2004) ● 33% of young fathers wanted support for their mental health and there was nothing for them (NCT) ● 20% of new dads felt completely isolated during their first year of fatherhood (Movember) ● 33% of dads were stressed during the perinatal period (Movember)

Where to find support

If you are a new father, or about to become a father and you are worried, unsure who to talk to, anxious or feel you need more support, you are not alone.

There are a number of organisations who are there for you and who you can talk to: ● https://www.dadsmatteruk. org/ ● https://thedadpad.co.uk/ ask-dadpad/mental-healthnew-dads/ ● https://www.thecalmzone. net/ ● https://www.samaritans.org/ ● https://www.bestbeginnings. org.uk/baby-buddy-supportservice ● MIND – www.mind.org.uk helpline 0300 123 3393 or text 86463 ● PANDAS – www. pandasfoundation.org.uk, 0843 2898401 ● APNI – www.apni.org, 0207 386 0868 ● www.dadsmatteruk.org/ ● https://www.mentalhealth. org.uk/explore-mentalhealth/publications/ becoming-dad

If you’re in emotional pain or a crisis, you can receive free 24/7 confidential support via the Baby Buddy Emotional Support Helpline – https://www. bestbeginnings.org.uk/babybuddy-support-service. Text BABYBUDDY to 85258 for free, anonymous support via text message, any time of day or night.

Read the report

This feature has been adapted with kind permission from the report, Fathers Reaching Out – Why Dads Matter: 10 years of findings on the importance of fathers’ mental health in the perinatal period, which was published by Mark Williams in September 2020.

It can be downloaded here: maternalmentalhealthalliance. org/wp-content/uploads/ MARK_WILLIAMS_FATHERS_ REACHING_OUT_PMH_ REPORT10_SEP_2020.pdf

For more information on Mark’s work, campaigns, training, books and latest research, visit: https://www.markwilliamsfmh. co.uk/blog/