Mental health resources
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Muslim Counsellor and Psycotherapist Network (MCAPN)
MCAPN is both an online directory of private, qualified and registered professional Muslim counsellors, psychotherapists and psychologists (that you can find here) and a support network for these professionals. They offer a variety of therapy techniques from Islamic Counselling to CBT. The clinicians can also work with individuals, couples, families or children and of-course it can be done online, via telephone or email.
The MCAPN’s aim is to increase awareness of, and education of, mental health within Muslim communities, to help break down barriers and stigma around mental health and to support those seeking help. Islamic Counselling is becoming more widely available as more Muslim clients look for a counsellor who offers a method of working through their concerns that includes their spiritual/religious well-being and that works with the Quran and traditional Islamic writing.
Every Mind Matters
Every Mind Matters is a Public Health England Initiative that aims to bring mental health to the national forefront. They say they ‘want to make it easier for everyone to look after their own wellbeing and improve their mental health, by providing a digital hub full of advice, tips and resources and a new online tool to help everyone create their own action plan.’
They also have a wealth of help regarding coronavirus from what to do if you’re worried, how to look after children to ideas to tackle working from home and mental wellbeing while staying at home. In particular, visitors to the website can answer 5 quick questions to get a free, personalised mental health plan along with tips to help them deal with stress and anxiety, improve their sleep, boost their mood and feel more in control.
Sikh Your Mind
Sikh Your Mind is a mental health support charity for the Sikh community whose aim it is to increase awareness of mental health difficulties, reduce stigma about it and provide information about services that are available, to the Punjabi and Sikh community.
They also have a list of counsellors, psychotherapists and psychologists including where they are located, that you can find here. Some of the professionals can speak in different languages such as Bengali, Hindi, Mirpuri, Punjabi, Urdu and English and can provide counselling through the lens of community/culture/religion.
The website also features videos on topics ranging from what Sikhi says on mental health and how to nurture the Sikhi spirit to domestic violence, parenting and a dementia guide.
Counselling Directory
The directory was created by a group of individuals who had dealt it with mental health problems and wanted to helps others. They created a tremendous online resource of over 10,000 qualified counsellors. They also have articles on some of the common types of mental health concerns, including general information, signs and symptoms, treatment options, self-care and how counselling can help.
There is also information on what counselling is, the different types of therapy that there are, the different types of mental health professionals that there are, what self care is and how it can help you, what to do if you’re worried about someone else, stories of others, their new mental health podcast and facts and figures about mental health.
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Mental health helplines
This invaluable NHS resource provides the contact details for all of the major mental health helplines in the UK and covers almost all issues from anxiety, bipolar disorder and OCD to eating disorders, learning disabilities and bereavement. There are also a few helplines for specific groups of people like Family Lives, for parents, YoungMinds, for children and adolescents and Men’s Health Forum for men.