To mark
Stress Awareness Day 2023, I’ve teamed up with The Newcastle Upon Tyne
Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (NUTH) to talk to you about how their upcoming
Mental Health Strategy can help to tackle why it can be so stressful to visit
or be admitted to hospital. I’ll also be providing some tips and advice for both
those struggling with anxiety in this way and those staff who are caring,
helping, and supporting these people…
How Do You Define Stress If It’s Different for Everyone?
Since I began working in the online/digital side of the mental
health industry in 2013, I have known that there are far too many instances where
the way you word something can be incredibly powerful and influential – in the
worst way, and in the best way. This means that to talk about defining
something in this area, it can feel like a bit of a minefield because you can
be so unsure which route to take – which one will have the least carnage. Which
will damage the least amount of people. And which will be the most effective
and efficient in really translating the message you’re trying to get across to
whatever audience you have.
My thoughts on this challenging area of blogging in the mental health
industry was really an inspiration for my blog’s title. Going through the
traumatic abuse I experienced when I was younger there wasn’t a single moment
where I felt any less than completely alone. For so many reasons, I couldn’t
tell anyone what was happening to me and the worry someone would find my diary
was intense enough to totally detract me from even writing about it and being
able to process things in there. And so, when the memories of the abuse began
to cause a deterioration in my mental health and I made my first suicide
attempt, I still felt that I couldn’t tell anyone – couldn’t explain why I was
feeling the way I was feeling, thinking the things I was thinking, and behaving
the way I was behaving. That inability to really communicate these things
properly meant that mental health professionals very obviously (and completely understandably)
struggled to provide me with decent care, help, treatment, and support.
In 2009, I finally reported the abuse during my second psychiatric
hospital admission when I was under the detention of the 1983 Mental Health Act
and had been transferred to the Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU). In finally
opening myself up to the mental health professionals, I found they became more understanding
and appreciative of just how much I was struggling; however, there was still an
essence of stigma and so, I chose to brand my blog; I’m NOT Disordered as a nod
towards those who consider a person with a mental health diagnosis to be truly
defined by their illnesses.
It was then through my blogging that I came to recognise how
helpful writing/typing was for my mental health and how much I benefited from
the notion that I was able to put something difficult, upsetting, overwhelming
and/or traumatic, into words. Into a way where others might actually, even just
in the smallest of ways, grasp what I mean. And so, for such a long time,
whether others could appreciate why I felt the way I felt and why I did the
things I did was one of the most important aspects in my life. I didn’t just
benefit from validation – I craved it. It was like I needed in order to
function! Which is why I have a vivid memory of a blog post I wrote a very long
time ago – March 23rd 2013 to be precise! It was titled ‘The One
With The Headphones Analogy’ (which you can actually still read here) and in the
piece, I talked about the analogy I had come up with in order to describe my
experience of hearing voices/auditory hallucinations in a way which I hoped
would be more easily understood by others. And by ‘others’ I mean literally
everyone else in the world because even someone who also hears voices can
experience them in a completely different way. So, in the post I talked about
how, for me, hearing voices was like wearing headphones so that the sound is
coming through your ears, but somehow seems to take up the entire inside of
your head. And boy did it feel good when I received lots of feedback reassuring
me that the analogy had been helpful and that – those closest to me – felt like
they can better support me now too!
So, having learnt all of this about how different mental health
can be amongst people and how important it can be to find the right words; when
I thought I’d start off this blog post with a definition or description of
stress, I quickly realised that might be a little unreasonable and inefficient…
However, I did find this bit from the World Health
Organization (WHO):
‘… stress is a natural human response when we face challenges
or threats in our lives. It can be defined as a state of worry or mental
tension caused by a difficult situation. Stress can manifest itself in various
ways, including physical, emotional, and behavioural symptoms. Some common
signs of stress include anxiety, depression, irritability, fatigue, and difficulty
sleeping.
Stress can be managed through various techniques such as regular
exercise, yoga, and meditation. In severe cases, medication like
antidepressants and anti-anxiety drugs can be used.
Please note that stress is a complex condition that affects
individuals differently. If you are experiencing symptoms of stress, it is
important to seek professional help from a qualified healthcare provider…’
5 Tips to
Coping with The Stress of Attending Accident & Emergency (A&E)
1.
Where practical; take entertainment e.g., an iPad, book, a puzzle
book etc.
2.
If any of your regular medication will be due shortly, take them
with you
3.
Don’t be afraid to ask if there’s anything A&E staff could be
doing to help relieve the stress
4.
Prepare psychologically and literally for it being a long wait/to
be in A&E for a while
5. utilise therapy techniques such as self-soothing or doing subtle breathing techniques
5 Tips to Coping with The Stress of Visiting a Patient/Loved One
1.
Consider what will help to plan to do afterwards – something
positive or some quiet time
2.
Hold onto happy, funny memories with them to avoid only thinking
of them as poorly
3.
Ensure you have the practicalities correct e.g., visiting times
and rules on wearing a mask etc
4.
Take them something you can both enjoy e.g., a puzzle book or a
game or something edible!
5.
Use grounding techniques to avoid your visit triggering memories
of your own admissions
5 Tips to
Coping with Stress as An Inpatient
1.
Where practical and possible, don’t be afraid to take some of your
own things into hospital
2.
Use headphones and other distractions and activities to block out
any horrible noises
3.
Utilise small and subtle (but affective) therapeutic self-soothing
techniques
4.
Keep in touch with family and friends to help with stress related
to feelings of isolation
5.
No question is too stupid to ask the staff, if it’ll help you to
know the answer; then ask it!
5 Tips to
Coping with Stress as an Outpatient Attending Appointments
1.
Ensure you have all of the practical elements organised – even the
travel time to the hospital
2.
Write down any questions you’ve thought of prior to the
appointment
3.
Be prepared for the facilitator of your appointment to be running
behind schedule
4.
Bring refreshments in case your appointment is delayed, or they
decide to admit you/run tests
5.
Where appropriate – take painkillers or other necessary medication
prior to the appointment
5 Tips to
Supporting Someone Struggling with Stress
1.
Allow them control over as much as possible in their visit or
admission to hospital
2.
Where practical, check whether a quieter place would help the
person
3.
Encourage them to seek professional help and advice where
necessary/appropriate
4.
Encourage them to use grounding techniques or self-soothing
activities
5.
Provide general reassurance, comfort, and validation
NUTH’S LINKS:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/NewcastleHosps
Twitter/X: www.twitter.com/NewcastleHosps
Instagram: www.instagram.com/newcastlehosps
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/newcastlehosps
YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/NewcastleHospitals
Website: www.newcastle-hospitals.nhs.uk