Mental Health First Aid, what is it and why is it important?
This week I attended an excellent two day training course on mental health first aid and as a result I am recognised by Mental Health First Aid England ("MHFA England") as qualified to give mental health first aid. The training was delivered by Brendan at Mood Mental Health Training and I can whole heartedly recommend it. What is poor mental health? MHFA England include the following conditions in its definition of poor mental health; anxiety, depression, and psychosis . There are obviously many different ways these conditions manifest themselves including eating disorders, self harm, hallucinations, delusions, and suicidal thoughts. Interestingly MHFA England makes a distinction between poor mental health and mental ill health with the latter being longer lasting, more easily diagnosable and less likely to be caused by a specific event. What is mental health first aid? MHFA England define mental health first aid is the immediate intervention to support a person experienci