Mental Health Awareness Week 2022

Hosted by the Mental Health Foundation, Mental Health Awareness Week takes place this year between the 9th and the 15th of May 2022. The week aims to try and focus on achieving good mental health and this year’s main topic is loneliness.

With many people working remotely now and feeling more isolated due to the pandemic, the foundation will be raising awareness of the impact of loneliness on our mental health and the ways we can take to address it.

If you are planning an event to mark this week, these are some of the speakers we would recommend, not just covering loneliness but mental health in general.

DAN KEELEY 

Dan Keeley is one of the UK’s leading mental health activists, thought leaders, and keynote speakers on a mission to empower the UK to speak up when they are suffering.

In 2017, after a 5 year battle with bipolar disorder and coming close to taking his own life, Dan ran 1250 miles from the Colosseum in Rome back to the London Eye to share his story on a national scale – raising over £15,000 for The Campaign Against Living Miserably and inspiring hundreds of others to speak up about their own personal battles.

Now Dan is a nationally-recognised and award-winning mental health activist, thought-leader, and keynote speaker; harnessing his lived-experiences to inspire others by collaborating & delivering powerful live talks with many of the UK’s most forward-thinking corporate organisations, conferences, NHS trusts, festivals, schools, and social enterprises dedicated to improving the mental wellbeing of their staff, audiences & communities.

Disconnection, uncertainty, loneliness, overwhelm, complacency, lack of identity and the fear of missing out are just some of the key issues Dan covers in his speech on Empathy & Compassion in a World of COvid-19

BIG IAN DONAGHY

Big Ian Donaghy is a passionate inspirational and keynote speaker who works tirelessly to raise dementia awareness, combat loneliness, and provide grief support.

Drawing on his experience of 20 years teaching young people with learning difficulties, and nearly 10 years in the world of care, Ian speaks on how companies and individuals can better support their families, and staff who have been affected by dementia, grief, and or loneliness.

Ian Donaghy is a passionate and moving speaker, lauded for his infectious enthusiasm and thought-provoking delivery. His speeches are all bespoke to each client but helps companies, associations, and groups get a better understanding as to how to support those who have been affected by Dementia, Grief, and loneliness.

Ian also has a talk called manKIND in which he speaks on the power of kindness and the impact companies can make on their communities.

DR BETH HEALEY

Dr. Beth Healey, is an Emergency Medicine doctor and inspirational speaker and has worked for several years in the NHS as well as in a variety of international settings. Fluent in French, this has included providing pre-hospital medical care in the Swiss Alps.

As part of medical and logistical support teams, she has worked in a number of extreme and remote environments including Svalbard, Siberia, Greenland, Antarctica, and the North Pole.

More recently during the COVID19 pandemic, she has drawn on her personal experience and research into isolation to share advice and coping strategies to help reduce anxiety during governmental lockdowns and self-isolation.

Dr. Beth Healey speaks on subjects such as –

• Surviving extreme conditions
• Adapting to new climates
• Space and Antarctic Research
• Isolation & Coping Strategies
  

SIMON THOMAS

Simon Thomas has been a highly successful broadcaster for over 20 years and a moving and inspiring speaker on mental health and dealing with bereavement.

Simon Thomas began his career in 1999 when he became the 27th presenter on the BBC’s flagship Children’s show Blue Peter. During his 6 years presenting the show he experienced a number of highlights ranging from climbing Mount Kilimanjaro to sky diving with the RAF Falcons, racing Darren Campbell, Frankie Fredericks, and Jason Gardner over 60 metres at an International Indoor Athletics Meeting and presented Her Majesty the Queen with a gold Blue Peter badge.

In 2017 Simon experienced a life-changing event when his wife Gemma died very suddenly, just three days after being diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia. Four months later he took the hard decision to leave Sky Sports and devote his time to looking after his son Ethan. Since then Simon has become President of Blood Cancer UK, has written his first book – ‘Love Interrupted’ on his journey through grief, and has written a number of blogs on his site A Grief Shared. To date, his moving posts on grief, mental health, and solo parenting have been read by over a million people.

CLARKE CARLISLE

Clarke Carlisle is a former professional football and television presenter who is a keynote speaker on mental health, having suffered from complex depressive disorder throughout his career. Clarke Carlisle played football for QPR, Burnley, Blackpool, and Watford to name a few, and won promotions with two clubs and player at Wembley Stadium. After over 500 appearances he retired at the end of the 2013 season. Clarke presented two acclaimed documentaries for the BBC Football’s Suicide Secret and “Is Football Racist?” for the BBC and wrote a book about his career A Footballer’s Life.

What Clarke did not realise was that for the last 13 years of his playing career he had been suffering from Complex Depressive Disorder. It was only after two suicide attempts that he was admitted to a psychiatric hospital, where he finally received an accurate diagnosis.

These are just a few examples of the speakers we work with that speak on Mental Health. If you are planning an event around that time and looking for a speaker please drop us a line at enquiries@scampspeakers.co.uk