Stress – and how to tackle it to improve wellbeing

OVERCOMING stress is the focus this week as Mental Health Awareness Week takes place in Warrington.
Mental Health Awareness Week aims to raise awareness of the importance of talking about mental health. The theme for this year is “stress” and how it can be tackled it to help improve mental health and wellbeing.
The borough council will join individuals and organisations across the country to support the initiative, increasing people’s understanding of mental health and wellbeing issues and how to combat stress.
Cllr Pat Wright, the council’s lead member for statutory health and adult social care, said: “Some stress can be beneficial as it can help motivate us to reach targets or achieve goals, but excessive or prolonged stress can affect both our physical and mental health.
“Research has shown that two thirds of us will experience a mental health problem in our lifetime and stress is often a key factor in this. By tackling stress, we can also help to reduce the risk of mental health problems such as anxiety and depression.”
People are being encouraged to make time to look after themselves by increasing the frequency of “feel good” activities in their daily lives.
Anyone feeling stressed and finding it hard to cope should talk to someone they trust such as a friend, family member, or GP.
They could also visit Warrington’s mental health awareness website www.happyoksad.org.uk, which has links to free resources to help with mental wellbeing and directories of mental health support services.