Craving community and coping with change

Welcome to the MHD newsletter. A 3-minute weekly read where you will be encouraged to get reflective with a journal prompt, have relevant reading suggestions with a new book each month and hear about nutrition in the news and what we have going on over in team MHD.

Weekly check in:

Good morning and happy friday!

This week has brought a number of unexpected challenges and changes for me so I have had to adapt and prioritise the most important things. For me that’s the best way to cope- accept the situation, reassess priorities and move through. I know many of you may particularly struggle with change, it is something I think a lot about in clinic with my clients. For this reason this week’s journal prompt is on the theme of change.

Journal prompt:

How have you successfully navigated change in the past? Write about a time when you faced a significant shift in your life and how you managed to adapt. What strengths did you discover within yourself?

Nutrition and mental health news:

This article in the Guardian highlights a significant rise in mental health issues among young people due to various recent challenges, including the pandemic, economic pressures, and social media.

“While mental ill-health accounts for at least 45% of the overall burden of disease in people aged 10 to 24, only 2% of global health budgets are devoted to mental healthcare.”

Mental health services are shockingly underfunded, part of this is because young people’s problems have been seen as less important for a really long time. It is common for older generations to assume that it’s easier for young people now than when they were young. However there are many challenges being faced today that never existed 20 years ago.

With little support out there and a diminishing sense of connection, life has become more isolated and many of us are now craving a sense of community.

My sister recently told me that she has noticed an “epidemic of run clubs” in her area. Which I think is hilarious, but also hints at something positive coming out of this. Which is that due to the lack of support available to young people, they are creating their own communities and clubs. The past few years has seen an explosion in book clubs, run clubs, craft clubs and online communities that do meet ups and events.

If you are someone who feels like you want to develop a sense of community here are some ideas from me- as someone who has recently moved to a new area and had to develop this for myself:

• Attend community spaces: such as libraries and community cafes - often these places run their own events.

• Consider going to community events, finding online pages for your local town/ area so you know what is going on.

• Consider joining online Facebook or WhatsApp groups made for local meet ups.

• Consider joining a local club- whether the library or a local book shop has a book club, if you like participating in exercise clubs you will be able to find run clubs, calisthenics clubs, perhaps yoga clubs, or making crafts or salsa dancing.

• If you can’t find local clubs- why not start one yourself? If you are feeling a lack of community events in your area I am sure you won’t be the only one.

• You may also want to consider volunteering in the local community.

These are just some of my ideas but please do reply to this email to let me know what you are doing to create a feeling of community support.

Something I have observed is that a sense of community is also likely to be important in eating disorder recovery. Those who are isolated tend to struggle to a greater degree. Being part of a community allows individuals to share experiences, gain encouragement, and get support from others. This collective support helps build resilience, reinforces and role models healthy behaviours, which are crucial elements in maintaining long-term recovery.

August Book of the month:

I hope you are loving this book so far.

That’s all from us this week, back again same time next week.

Look after yourself <3

Sophie and the team at Mental Health Dietitians.

We’d love to hear from you! Replies to the email are sent directly to our team inbox. We welcome any comments, questions and feedback!