Introduction...

Greetings…

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, children of all ages and anyone else I may have missed, welcome to my mental health and well-being blog.

Who am I? 

Mark Sherwood, a Lancashire lad that is no one special, no one rich and definitely no one famous.

Born and raised in the seaside town of Blackpool, Lancashire, I hold a 2:1 Bachelor of Arts (Honours) degree from the University of Creative Arts (UCA), Surrey as well as a Post Graduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) from Lancaster University. 

I am currently training to become a counsellor with five years’ experience and counting working in the educational system, I am now wanting to find a way to further help not only children and adolescents but adults as well, mentally, physically and not just ‘educationally’.

I am an avid bodybuilder standing at 6’5 and currently weighing 24 stone, I owe a lot of my current physical and mental well-being to my time spent in gyms training (my place to switch off and feel good), working on my mind and body.  

So, why would you be interested in what I have to say?

Perhaps you won’t, but my aim is to reach those in need. For those that have and that are currently struggling, and likely believe they will continue to do so for the rest of their lives.
This blog will focus on real life situations and events that I and others have been through, as well as looking to collaborate with those closest to people suffering to help get THEIR stories out there and gain an understanding from a loved one’s point of view.
I shall also be hoping to focus on the positive aspects of life and motivate others to NEVER GIVE UP.

I always believed NOT talking about my past was the best thing to do. To bury my memories, my thoughts and my feelings deep down and hope they never resurfaced.

Eventually this got too much and enough was enough. It was either seek help or allow my mental health and my past to destroy me and to deprive me of a future.
My objective is for others to know they too can have a future, regardless of their past or present.

Why can I help? What would I know about suffering?
As a child I was sexually and physically abused over a long period of time.
At age 19 I was attacked and raped.
Age 22 I found my mother on the kitchen floor following a fall at the family home, she would later go on to lose her life.
I have attempted suicide twice during my life, thankfully and obviously I was unsuccessful with both, following which I was diagnosed with depression and admittedly I still battle to this day. 

These are a few events from my life which shall be discussed during posts along with other less traumatic events and hope they will in some way relate to others and give them the courage to stand up and fight back against their own personal demons.
I am not here to tell you that life will always be easy, or that everything will be great one day. There are still battles to be faced each day but things CAN and WILL get easier, and YOU don’t have to face things alone.

A few facts you may want to know…
1 in 5 of the worlds children and adolescents suffer with a mental disorder.
It can take up to 10 years for these young people to receive the help necessary after first showing symptoms. Opportunities to help are often missed until they reach ‘crisis’, causing young people to self-harm, become suicidal, be violent and aggressive or drop out of school.

1 in 4 people will experience a mental health problem, which means someone you may know is likely suffering right now, please take the time and check on your loved ones. Be kind to the man in the street who always walks alone. Smile back at the woman who smiles at you as you pass her by. Take time to be nice to those who make an effort to acknowledge you, and even those that don’t, you have no idea what they might be going through.

Depression is one of the leading causes of disability, affecting approximately 300 million people globally.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that each year approximately one million people die from suicide, which represents a global mortality rate of 16 people per 100,000 or one death every 40 seconds. To put that into context for a 90-minute game of football, 135 people will have committed suicide from the kick-off to the final whistle.
It is predicted that by 2020 the rate of death will increase to one every 20 seconds.

People with severe mental disorders die approximately 10-20 years earlier than the general population.

56% of young people believe anyone their age diagnosed with a mental illness would be treated differently, with 55% believing they would lose friends, and 51% believing anyone their age diagnosed with mental illness would be embarrassed.
This is a clear indication that there is still a stigma surrounding mental illness.

“The worst part about having a mental illness is people expect you to behave as if you don’t.” – Joker

These are just a FEW facts that can be easily accessed with just a little research. Take some time and gain some information on this ever-growing disease. One day it may affect you or one of your loved ones, if it hasn’t already.

So, what is the overall goal?
I have for a long time now sought of a way to motivate and encourage others. I hope by opening up about my past and showing others it’s okay NOT to be okay and that it’s good to talk will give people that encouragement and helping hand they need to overcome their own personal battles.
Ideally this will reach those who need it and let them know, they are not alone.
Ultimately, I want to offer people a safe place to come and read, talk and help one another.
WE can all support one another and instead of fighting alone, battle mental health as a team and kick its arse!

Recently I have had a set back with trying to get this up and running, having wanted to include and reach some of the younger people I have previously worked with. Unfortunately, some bitter people/former employer have attempted to put a stop to this and twist it into something else completely (for those of you that have noticed we are no longer ‘friends’ on Facebook, this is why) however, we’ve finally made it, and we’re ready to go.

Being challenged in life is inevitable, being defeated is optional.

Cheers…

Please follow the blog, join the Facebook page and share this with all… reaching and helping the many not the few is the goal.

I hope to post the first story tomorrow 11/01… It’s not an easy read and it's quite long (12,000 words almost, longer than my bloody dissertation) but if it helps even just one person, I’ll be forever grateful.

Anyone else interested in collaborating with me, sharing their own stories/struggles (this can be done anonymously if you wish) please feel free to make contact with me, I will always do my best to respond to each and every message and help anyone I can.

Thank you for taking the time to read my introduction.

I hope this is the start of OUR journey to helping others.