Rainbow of Promise
Rainbow of Promise is Elizabeth’s second collection of poems, following the aftermath of speaking out about her experience of familial sexual abuse in her first poetry book. It links past trauma with present difficulties, finding ways to overcome the resulting anxiety, mental health issues and intrusive memories when dealing with her everyday life, that can... Read More
The impact of self-neglect
Anne has written about her struggles with self-neglect, how that has impacted on her life, and where this obstacle comes from. CW: Discussion of abuse and trauma. The impact of self-neglect. Hi my name is Anne. I’ve got complex post-traumatic stress disorder, generalised anxiety disorder, and depression. I struggle with dissociation, flashbacks,... Read More
Dial House @Touchstone Service Update 29/10/21
Dial House @Touchstone is back open for face-to-face support! It’s been a long road to get to this point and we’re really pleased that we’re able to offer this agai on Tuesdays and Thursdays, though in a limited capacity due to Covid restrictions and our risk assessments. Limited number of one-to-one supports, but socials offered... Read More
For All Those Times
Elizabeth Shane wrote on the LSLCS blog earlier this year about poetry being her creative outlet to help express herself as a survivor, to help process and to bring it out to the world in her book of poetry to help others feel less alone. We’re privileged that say that she’s shared a poem with... Read More
Unequal world, unequal mental health: World Mental Health Day 2021
By Lulu It’s that day again, World Mental Health Day. I’ve mentioned in a previous blog how awareness days and the like can sometimes feel hollow, like a box-ticking exercise. This blog post isn’t going to just repeat that debate over the merits of these days. It may not be a solution in any sense... Read More
Culturally sensitive support – the value of Dial House @Touchstone
Dial House @ Touchstone opened its doors 1st October 2013. The service is a partnership between Leeds Survivor Led Crisis Service and Touchstone, and was opened to address the fact that people from Black and Minority Ethnic (BAME – we know this term isn’t ideal and are exploring alternatives) backgrounds do not generally access community mental health... Read More
Olympic Medals For Mental Health
Mental health has been in the sporting spotlight recently, with the headlines centred on Simone Biles and Naomi Osaka pulling out from events and press duties in order to better look after their mental health. Lulu writes about some of the reactions to this news and the mental health discussion that’s all over the internet... Read More
MS: Many Strengths and Magnificently Strong
Becky talks about the impact a recent diagnosis has had on her life, how it will affect her physical and mental health, and what she’s planning on doing to look after herself. The sentence, “I can confirm we are working with a diagnosis of MS,” feels like a life sentence. Being diagnosed with... Read More