The Love Hastings Love Yourself day was inspired by the Mental Health Day held last autumn.

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Love Hastings Love Yourself will be holding an event at The Palace Bar on Thursday 2 February as part of a nationwide push to get people talking more openly about mental health for one day. Sharon Rhodes, the co-ordinator of the event in Hastings is appealing to poets, performers and musicians to sign up for the Open Mike Marathon. Erica Smith grabs 10 minutes to talk to Sharon about her plans for the day.

Sharon Rhodes, Hastings area Time to Change co-ordinator

“It would be great to talk about Mental Health in true Hastings style by doing it creatively! This is a call out for as many participants as possible to take part in the day – whether you want to read a poem, sing or tell a short story.”

She continued: “Loads of people have signed up so far, including:  Andrew Harston, Ed Mayhew, Eleanor Lyn, the Tune-Up Tuesday Choir, Kat Lee Ryan and The Awesome Sounds Choir to name but a few. We want this to be a 12-hour Open Mike Marathon to encourage conversation about mental health – so there’s still plenty of performance slots to fill. Please don’t be shy – this will be a supportive space for newcomers to the stage and we welcome them as much as we welcome the big names in town.

Eleanor Lynn and guitarist Greg Mulherne are two of the many local musicians signed up for the Open Mike already.

“Hastings is taking part in Time to Talk Day because mental health is a topic that we should all feel able to talk about. Having these all important conversations can make a big difference to many people. The more we talk, the more lives we can change.”

Love Hastings Love Yourself will join hundreds of other groups, organisations, schools and members of the public, who will all be having conversations about mental health on Thursday 2 February. Activities planned for the day include the all day Marathon Open Mike, and in the back room there will be a series of healing, creative and informative workshops.

“We are putting a call out to Musicians, Stand Up, Singers, Choirs, Clowns, Creative and Healing Workshop Facilitators ie Yoga, Massage, Thai Chi, Qigong, Artists and anyone who has anything to offer that may start a conversation on that day.” – Sharon Rhodes

1 in 4 of us will experience a mental health problem in any given year, but many of us are too afraid to talk about it. Starting a conversation about mental health might seem daunting but simply sending a text, checking in on a friend or sharing something on social media can break the ice.

Time to Talk Day aims to get as many people as possible across England talking about mental health. Since it’s launch in 2014, it has sparked millions of conversations in schools, homes, workplaces, in the media and online, and attracted support from celebrities such as Freddie Flintoff, Stephen Fry and Frankie Bridge. Time to Talk Day 2017 aims to get the nation talking about mental health for 24 hours on the 2 Febraury.

Time to Talk Day is organised by Time to Change, the campaign to change how we all think and act about mental health problems. It is led by Mind and Rethink Mental Illness charities. More information and tips about managing mental health can be found at the Time to Talk Day website.

Book your performance slot now!

Please contact Sharon Rhodes at monalisa73@hotmail.co.uk, call 07765 518431 or message the LoveHastingsLoveYourself Facebook page to book a slot between the hours of 11am to 11pm.

For information about Time to Talk Day and how you can get involved as a performer or volunteer, please call 07765 518431, or email monalisa73@hotmail.co.uk

Or have a look at the LoveHastingsLoveYourself Facebook page for more information.

Time to Talk Day in Hastings is on Thursday 2 February at The Palace Bar, White Rock, Hastings. It will run from 11am to 11pm and is FREE.

Also in: Health Matters