New data released on Time to Talk Day (6 February) reveals the UK’s reluctance to talk about mental health, with young people disproportionately affected by the silence.
A censuswide poll of 5,000 people, conducted as part of the initiative led by Mind and Rethink Mental Illness in partnership with Co-op, found that a third (34%) of respondents would rather avoid discussing their mental health than risk an ‘awkward’ conversation.
Time to Talk Day aims to break this cycle by encouraging millions of conversations about mental health in homes, schools, workplaces, and communities nationwide.
The survey shows young people are the most likely to avoid conversations about their mental health, with half (49%) of 16-24-year-olds admitting to pushing people away, compared to just 11% of those over 75. Nearly half (46%) of young people say they wouldn’t want to discuss their mental health, compared to just 19% of 65-74 year olds.
Sadly, bottling things up is driving isolation; 39% said they have pushed friends and family away or that they have stopped socialising as a result of not talking about their mental health. And it’s making life more difficult. A fifth (20%) say not talking is causing them to struggle at school or work, rising to 37% of 16-24s and 24% say keeping quiet has made their mental health worse, highlighting the importance of being open.
Generally, the biggest barriers to speaking about mental health were fear of burdening others with struggles (26%), fear of being judged or labelled (21%) and feeling like no one will truly understand (21%). Three quarters (72%) report at least one factor making them feel uncomfortable talking about their real feelings, rising to a huge 894% of 16-24 year olds.
Time to Talk Day is the nation’s biggest mental health conversation. Taking place every year, it’s a day for friends, families, communities, and workplaces to come together to talk, listen and change lives. Not having conversations can have a negative impact on all aspects of life, including jobs, relationships, friendships and health. Mind, Rethink Mental Illness and Co-op are calling on people to get comfortable talking and start a conversation, however small, about how they are really feeling. Across the UK, Time to Talk Day is delivered by See Me with SAMH (Scottish Action for Mental Health) in Scotland, Inspire in Northern Ireland and Time to Change Wales.
