TW | EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT BEING UNDER THE CARE OF THE CRISIS TEAM | PART TWO OF THREE

*This is Part Two of Three, you can read Part One here!*

TW | EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT BEING UNDER THE CARE OF THE CRISIS TEAM | PART ONE OF THREE

“Successful people recognize crisis as a time for change - from lesser to greater, smaller to bigger.”

Edwin Louis Cole

*This is Part One of Three*

As you may know from a previous blog post titled ‘TW | “SHE’S ACTUALLY JUMPED! GET AMBULANCE ON LIGHTS AND SIREN!” | WHAT HAPPENS BEFORE, DURING, & AFTER YOU JUMP, LESSONS LEARNT, & LOTS OF ADVICE’ (which you can read here), I’ve recently gone through a very big, unsafe relapse in my mental health recovery. On August 24^th, as a result of a delusional belief to jump from a bridge near my home, the Crisis Team told me they would be out within the next 24 hours to assess me. At their assessment – after I had jumped – they decided to prescribe Zopiclone (as one reason for my relapse was a lack of sleep) and put me on caseload stating that it would be for at least one week. As it happens, six days later, things are improving and on August 30^th, I was officially discharged. My week with them – and previous experiences under their care – have inspired and informed this blog post where I’d like to provide insight and advice around working with the Crisis Team…

TW | “SHE’S ACTUALLY JUMPED! GET AMBULANCE ON LIGHTS & SIREN!” | WHAT HAPPENS BEFORE, DURING, & AFTER YOU JUMP, LESSONS LEARNT, & LOTS OF ADVICE

“…Like, it’s physically hard to open your mouth and make the words come out. They don’t come out smooth and in conjunction with your brain the way normal people’s words do... So, you just keep quiet.”

Ned Vizzini

In the early hours of August 24^th, 2025, I jumped from a small bridge near my home which crosses a disused railway track. In this blog post, I’d like to share everything that happened before it, during it, and after it. This post is not intended as ‘attention-seeking’ but instead, to raise awareness of a lot of different issues which crop up throughout it and I want to do that (raise awareness) to help others. To help those who have also jumped, to feel less alone. To help professionals see good, helpful, and supportive work. To help provide the loved ones of those who have jumped with some sort of insight. The content also is definitely not intended as any sort of negative or unsafe influence. Nor do I want it to upset or trigger anyone – hence the ‘Trigger Warning’ in the title; if it does, please visit the blog’s Help Directory and reach out for professional support where relevant/necessary. With all of that said, thank you all for providing me with the platform to hopefully do some good with my content and to experience the personal, therapeutic benefits I receive in writing like this; I might have created I’m NOT Disordered, but it wouldn’t be where it is today without all of you – and for that, I am eternally grateful…

AN INTERVIEW WITH ME BY CHAT GPT

“There’s no shame in having to fight every day because if you’re still alive to hear these words or read this interview, then you are winning your war. You’re here.”

Jared Padalecki

A while ago, I eventually began using AI – mostly in the form of Chat GPT – and I’ve finally decided to do something I’ve seen a lot of Bloggers and Influencers do since AI became a thing; give it a prompt to set me some questions as an interview. In the prompt, I asked it to pick out questions related to blogging, having a large audience, and my mental health, so here are some of my favourite questions; answered…

THE IMPORTANCE OF PEER SUPPORT IN MENTAL HEALTH | PRE-EVENT BLOG POST | IN COLLABORATION WITH TYNESIDE CATS PROTECTION

Lean on me,

When you’re not strong,

And I’ll be your friend,

I’ll help you carry on

Bill Withers: Lean On Me

Not too long ago, I spotted an event on Facebook advertising Tyneside Cats Protection’s Summer Open Day at their Adoption Centre (you can check out the event here). After not only collaborating with them – and the charity on a national basis – many times over the past few years (with our most recent one being: DAY THREE MHAW | A COMMUNITY-THEMED Q&A WITH A CAT CARE VOLUNTEER | MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS WEEK 2025 WITH CATS PROTECTION | I'm NOT Disordered), but having also attended previous Open Days at the Centre, I was eager to attend. With one of my best-friends and his partner also planning to attend, I contacted the Centre and asked whether we could all meet a few of the cats (as I have done previously in this post: ABANDONMENT & HOW TO COPE WITH IT | IN COLLABORATION WITH CATS PROTECTION | I'm NOT Disordered) and with the answer being “yes, of course!” we ended up deciding to make the entire thing into a collaboration. I found however, that I had two ideas for themes or angles that the collaboration could take, and so I agreed to publish this piece – which was inspired by Cats Protection’s Volunteer Assistance Programme (more info and their poster are at the end of this blog post – prior to the event and then another on the day/just after it…

WHAT ABOUT US? | TIPS FOR ALL THE MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES WHO ARE FAILING US

Oh, what about us?
What about all the plans that ended in disaster?
What about love? What about trust?
What about us?

P!nk: What About Us

Over six years ago, I actually wrote a blog post of a similar theme and inspired by the exact same song (P!nk: What About Us – which you can listen to here) that led to this post too (you can read that post here), so I was in two minds as to publishing this. Eventually, however, I recognised that there has been a huge increase in the blog’s readership since then, and so it’s incredibly likely that there’ll be a lot of people out there who actually haven’t seen, heard of, or read that piece. I also realised that I have a lot of new ideas and experience on this topic, so it’s likely not going to be much of a repeat at all...

THE ULTIMATE GUIDANCE TO WORKING WITH AN INFLUENCER

“No one else knows exactly what the future holds for you, no one else knows what obstacles you've overcome to be where you are, so don't expect others to feel as passionate about your dreams as you do.”

Germany Kent

A little while ago, I wrote a blog post titled: The Most Transparent Blog Post I’ve Ever Written (which you can read here) and in it, I talked about being given – numerous times now – the label of ‘influencer’ by others. I decided to do some research at the beginning of the post, in the hope that it would provide me with evidence to fight me meeting the definition of the label, but instead, I found (in this article) that due to the following of I’m NOT Disordered (2.3 million readers) I’d be deemed a ‘Mega-Influencer!’ And on talking to my Waythrough Recovery Worker, I agreed that my blog is at a standing in terms of both popularity and reputation, that I can no longer demean or deny it. So, here I am(!) agreeing to be an Influencer! Now, this blog post was actually inspired by a recent meeting with a few of Waythrough’s Communications and Marketing team, where the idea of the organisation working with Influencers was discussed. The Manager said that I was the ‘perfect person’ to have involved because of my ability to bring actual, lived insight into this world, and so, here’s the blog post which provides guidance to working with an Influencer…

THE MOST TRANSPARENT BLOG POST I’VE EVER WRITTEN

“Transparency fosters a sense of trust and provides serious motivation.”

Billy Boughey

Now, I’m very uncomfortable referring to myself as an Influencer but having the number of readers that my blog has (there’s over 2.3 million of you lovely people!), the fact others have labelled me it, and that I’ve been working with the Celebrity and Influencers Relationship Manager of Cats Protection – and I’m certainly not a Celebrity! – I think it’s perhaps time I try to accept it and own it! So, in a conversation I was in recently, there was talk about the fact that so many people can form opinions of an Influencer’s life, without recognising or realising that the content they see, is what the Influencer has chosen to let you see. It’s not their entire life. Their entire story. I’d like to think my mental health blog and the content I produce on social media (particularly I’m NOT Disordered’s brand-new Instagram: @imnotdisordered) is more balanced, transparent, and honest. So, in this post, I’m going to chat through more about that conversation and the thoughts and opinions within it, my thoughts on being deemed an Influencer, why I think my content is different, a ton of transparent insight into blogging and social media. As a sort of sidenote: I’ll be creating another ‘most transparent blog post…’ about mental health soon…

JOIN A RAPE & ABUSE SURVIVOR AT A HUGE GYNAE APPOINTMENT | VLOG & A COLLABORATION WITH AMAZON UK INCLUDED!

 

I found a strength I've never known
I've been thrown out, I've been burned

When I'm finished, they won't even know your name

You brought the flames, and you put me through hell
I had to learn how to fight for myself

Ke$ha – Praying

On May 2^nd, I had to attend an appointment with Gynaecology to discuss having my smear under a general anaesthetic. I decided to film the day for two reasons: the first, was to provide empathy and advice to other survivors and those in a similar situation. The second reason was to give insight to those who judge people for not having this procedure. My general message from this? Don’t judge a person’s journey, when you haven’t walked in their shoes. In case there are people out there who are interested in this experience and don’t want to or can’t watch videos, I thought I would write a quick blog post about it too and managed to get a collaboration with Amazon UK for it! At the end, however, I’ve still also inserted the entire vlog from YouTube…

DAY SEVEN MHAW | SERIES RE-CAP & REFLECTION

“Always work hard, be honest, and be proud of who you are.”

Patricia Velasquez

Another Mental Health Awareness Week over! I feel like it actually went so quick! So, for anyone who may have missed some of the posts, I’ve added their links, a bit about each one, my thoughts and feelings upon reflection of each of them, other important links, and any lessons learnt from each post…

DAY FIVE MHAW | HOW MY LOCAL NHS MENTAL HEALTH TRUST ARE TACKLING ‘COMMUNITY’ WITH AN ‘INVOLVEMENT BANK’ | MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS WEEK 2025 WITH CUMBRIA, NORTHUMBERLAND, TYNE & WEAR NHS FOUNDATION TRUST

The Involvement Bank - Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust

“Coming together is a beginning, keeping together is progress, working together is success.”

Henry Ford

I can’t believe Mental Health Awareness Week (MHAW) 2025 is almost at an end; with today being the penultimate piece of content for the Week! Today’s post is in collaboration with my local NHS mental health Trust; Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust (CNTW) and we’ll be looking at the largest points of discussion around this Week’s theme of ‘community’ in particular relation though, to the Trust’s genius creation and incredible operation of their Involvement Bank…

DAY THREE MHAW | A COMMUNITY-THEMED Q&A WITH A CAT CARE VOLUNTEER | MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS WEEK 2025 WITH CATS PROTECTION

Cats Protection | UK’s Largest Cat Welfare Charity

Twitter: @catsprotection

Facebook: Cats Protection

Instagram: @catsprotection

More info on Mental Health Awareness Week (MHAW):

Mental Health Awareness Week | Mental Health Foundation

“There is no power for change greater than a community discovering what it cares about.”

Margaret J. Wheatley

This year, to celebrate MHAW, I chatted with the lovely Keira Wood; a Cat Care Volunteer from Cats Protection Tyneside, about everything this year’s theme of ‘community’ means to the UK’s largest feline welfare charity and their essential Volunteers…

DAY TWO MHAW | HOW WAYTHROUGH ARE TACKLING ‘COMMUNITY’ | MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS WEEK 2025 WITH WAYTHROUGH

“Learn to enjoy and respect each other’s differences.”

Fred Meijer

For the second day of Mental Health Awareness Week 2025, I’ve collaborated with mental health and drug and alcohol support charity; Waythrough. Prior to Richmond Fellowship and Humankind merging, I had been under the care of Richmond Fellowship for almost ten years and was honoured to be a huge part of the communications and marketing aspects to the merger and the creation of Waythrough. In this post, I’ve chatted with another service user and fellow member of the Life Experience Council as well as Waythrough’s Inclusion Manager about how Waythrough have tackled the theme of community…

HOW MY COLLABORATION GAME HAS CHANGED IN 12 YEARS

“The purpose of life is not to be happy, but to matter, to be productive, to be useful, to have it make some difference that you lived at all.”

Leo Rosten

So, I’ve been realising that my most recent blog posts have been quite deep and overwhelming in various ways, and over my years of blogging – as I’m NOT Disordered has grown in popularity – I have found that my content which includes tips and advice for budding bloggers also proves fairly popular amongst readers. Having also literally just popped off a new Collaboration Pitch, I felt inspired to put this piece together where I’m going to do a bit of an examination of my ‘collaboration game’ from the very first partnership with the YoungMinds ‘Vs Campaign’ in 2014 to my most recent projects with the Royal College of Emergency Medicine and Newcastle Upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust…

EVERYTHING THERE IS TO KNOW ABOUT DISPUTES IN MENTAL HEALTH | INCLUDING ARGUMENTS AMONGST PROFESSIONALS & HELPFUL LINKS

“The only part of an argument that really matters is what we think of the people arguing.”

Kim Stanley Robinson

 There was a point in my mental health journey – not necessarily the recovery part – where I had this sudden realisation that disputes were becoming so frequent that they were almost natural reactions to anything even slightly worthy of disputing. The development of that automatic response meant that I actually wasn’t even realising or aware that I was doing it half of the time it was happening! Through having Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) as a psychiatric hospital inpatient, I learnt a lot about properly handling yourself to be the best possible version of yourself during a dispute, as well as learning the whole saying of choosing your battles and these are lessons, I still stand by. I – and my mental health in particular – have benefited a lot from this improved understanding and change in attitude and behaviour so I wanted to spread the new-found knowledge to others…

MY JOURNEY FACILITATING TRAINING IN MENTAL HEALTH WITH ADVICE TO HELP YOU DO IT TOO!!! | LAUNCHING UNDERSTAND WITH IND

“The great aim of education is not knowledge, but action.”

Herbert Spencer

A number of years ago, I was asked to co-facilitate mental health training for the new recruits of my local Police force (Northumbria Police) in partnership with Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust (CNTW). It was my first experience of doing something like that, but it remains one of the most enjoyable, influential, and educational opportunities I’ve ever had in the entirety of my blogging career! So, since then, I’ve gone to take on a number of additional, similar commitments and with those experiences and a recent decision in mind, I have created Understand with IND and its five Training Programmes. To launch it and acknowledge its feature in the brand-new pages on I’m NOT Disordered, I’ve put together this piece which is full of accounts of my experiences in facilitating training around mental health as well as things I’ve learnt from them, and advice I would give to budding facilitators…

LOOKING BACK OVER THE TWO YEARS WITH MY FLUFFY SOULMATE | ALSO INCLUDING MY FAVOURITE CAT BITS FROM ETSY | HAPPY 2nd BIRTHDAY, MY LITTLE RUBY | IN COLLABORATION WITH ETSY UK

“Our soulmate is the one who makes life come to life.”

Richard Bach

Even though for my two mini-Lionhead bunnies (Luna and Gracie) I celebrate their ‘Gotcha Day’ as their Birthday, I know Ruby’s actual date of birth(!), and so her Birthday is marked on March 26^th. This year, for her second Birthday, I’ll be looking over the previous two years with her, realising she’s my fluffy soulmate, reminiscing over my favourite moments together, and reflecting on some of the things I’ve learnt from loving her. I’ll also pepper the post with some of my favourite cat items and products on Etsy UK right now…

HOW I EARNED THE OPPORTUNITY TO GIVE A SPEECH AT THE EMTA CONFERENCE FOR THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF EMERGENCY MEDICINE, ALL THE ADVICE I’D GIVE, & A HUGE THANK YOU | #EMTA2025

"Action will delineate and define you."

Thomas Jefferson

When the Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM) asked me to write another blog post after the event (I published one before the Conference; which you can read, here), I struggled to think what angle or theme I would use for it. So, I thought about why people come to I’m NOT Disordered anyway, and really, it’s typically about looking for advice and accounts of situations they’ve been in too – accounts which bring hope of recovery and tips on coping. But I also wanted to recognise that my life – and that of so many others – doesn’t revolve around trauma and mental illness. So, I created this post which contains a thank you, a couple of videos from the event, and is also full of advice and thoughts on the three actions I've taken which, I believe, led to me being invited to speak at this prestigious conference hosted by the Emergency Medicine Trainee Association (EMTA)….

WHY I’M PRESENTING AT THE EMTA CONFERENCE FOR THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF EMERGENCY MEDICINE & EXCLUSIVE INSIGHT INTO MY PRESENTATION! | #EMTA2025

“Be spectacularly great at what you do. Wear your passion on your sleeve and hold your heart in the palm of your hand. And work hard. Really hard.”

Robin S. Sharma

EMTA (@EMTAcommittee) / X

RCEM Events (@RCEMevents) / X

A number of years ago, I was asked to attend and blog at an event at a local University, and ever since, I’ve kept in touch with the Doctor who invited me. Then, a few weeks ago, she got in touch with me and offered me one of the largest and most prestigious opportunity that I think I’ve ever been offered – an invitation to speak at the National Conference for the Royal College of Emergency Medicine! It was one of those situations where you try to play it cool and act like things like this happen all the time… But actually, all that coolness went out the window and I just said: “oh my goodness! Are you serious?!” After a few emails with the lovely Conference and Events Officer, and confirmation of my train tickets and accommodation, I asked if I could announce my presentation on, I’m NOT Disordered and across my social media and was told “yes, please!” So, I’m going to use this opportunity to talk through a lot of the reasons why I’m doing this, to publish some feedback and comments from various professionals, and to provide some exclusive insight into my PowerPoint...

EVERYTHING THAT WENT INTO CREATING A SERVICE USER APPROVED MENTAL HEALTH STRATEGY | IN COLLABORATION WITH THE NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUST

“Teamwork is the ability to work together toward a common vision. The ability to direct individual accomplishments toward organizational objectives. It is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon results.”

Andrew Carnegie

In 2021, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) conducted a mental health themed review in acute settings. From this review, CQC made three massive recommendations: that mental health care in acute settings should meet nationally recognised standards and that acute staff should have the training to feel confident in meeting mental health needs as well as being able to support their own wellbeing. Then, the third recommendation was that acute Trusts should have a Mental Health Strategy that has board level oversight and clear governance over administration and monitoring of the Mental Health Act. And so, NUTH set about creating a Trust-wide Mental Health Strategy, and almost immediately, they knew that including service users would be incredibly useful to the creation of the Strategy. I was honoured to be chosen to be in the ‘Expert Refence Group.’ This collaboration post will celebrate today’s official, internal launch of their Strategy by sharing my thoughts on all the steps NUTH staff have taken to ensure that it is service user approved. I do this, with the sincere hope that the Trust’s service user approved Mental Health Strategy will inspire others to adopt a similar approach in their Strategy creation processes as well as perhaps developing ideas to take even more action around mental health within their own organisation…