EVERYTHING I NEED FOR BLOGMAS 2020 & THE BRANDS I’LL BE COLLABORATING WITH

So, one last post before the Blogmas content begins tomorrow!

I thought I’d make it one that I enjoy creating and that will bring insight into exactly what goes behind producing so much Christmassy content from December 1^st until Christmas Day!

 

CREATIVITY

I’d like to think I’m quite a creative person, and that I have been since I was little and started writing short stories about horses! Before that, my Nana and I used to tear out things we liked from a catalogue and make collages with them on paper. But when my Textiles teacher in School began massively criticising my work, I lost confidence in my creative projects and didn’t do many more for over five years when I was detained under the 1983 Mental Health Act. I needed to tell the staff how I was feeling and what I was experiencing and since I couldn’t find the words to say it out loud… I wrote it down. As soon as I saw that doing so was helpful, and that it put the staff in a better position to support me, I continued writing until a year later when I started I’m NOT Disordered!

TWO TOP TIPS ON PUBLIC SPEAKING | NORTH TYNESIDE WORLD MENTAL HEALTH DAY 2019

So, it may not be World Mental Health Day until the 10^th of October but I’ve actually already attended an event to celebrate the occasion with North Tyneside Launchpad at Cullercoats Crescent Club, where I was very kindly asked to give a talk on social media and blogging. With this year’s World Mental Health Day being around the theme of suicide prevention, I decided to center my talk around the life-changing benefits and consequences that social media can have on someone. After discovering the UK suicide statistics (there are over 800,000 suicides in the UK per year and it is the leading cause of death in 15-29 years olds) and having my own experiences, it’s something I’m very passionate about so talking to a crowd of strangers about it seemed do-able! 


I still remember my very first public speaking event at the Time To Change Story Camp in London and I called my Mum as a hysterical, anxious mess and told her there was no way that I could do it! But of course, I ended up giving the speech and it wasn’t such a total disaster that I didn’t say ‘no’ to all future invitations to do some public speaking! And in continuing to give talks and speeches, I’ve learnt a few things that I thought I’d share because I’d like to encourage you all to share your own experiences publicly because I’ve seen how beneficial it can be for others.