Learn More about Mental Wellbeing

Understanding and meeting our mental wellbeing needs is an essential part of maintaining our overall quality of health.

Like all aspects of health and wellbeing, the time and energy investment required to stay well is often much less demanding than what is required for successful treatment and recovery!

Building even a few simple mental wellbeing activities into your daily routine can be a highly effective way of protecting your mental health.

The links on this page contain a wealth of ideas and resources to help you develop you own self-care plan.

If you need any additional guidance, support, or encouragement, do not hesitate to get in touch with the many support providers that are in place to assist you.

Mental Maintenance Toolkit

Mental Maintenance Toolkits 

Working in the ambulance service brings unique pressures. Whether you are on the frontline, behind the scenes, or volunteering, your mental wellbeing matters. Looking after it every day is just as important as responding in a crisis. 

These two free toolkits, created by the North East Ambulance Service and endorsed by the Association of Ambulance Chief Executives, are designed to help you take proactive steps. (Click on images to view toolkits)

Personalised Toolkit 

A confidential, fillable workbook to reflect on your mental health and create your own wellbeing plan. 

Use it to: 

  • Map what keeps you well at home and at work
  • Identify your support network with the Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes model
  • Plan how others can support you when things are difficult
  • Track triggers, coping strategies, and weekly goals 

Good for: 1:1 wellbeing conversations, phased return planning, or personal reflection. 

Employee and Volunteer Toolkit 

A practical guide covering common topics such as sleep, anxiety, low mood, trauma, and fatigue. Includes self-help strategies and signposting to further support. 

Inside you will find: 

  • The Stress Bucket model to understand cumulative load
  • CBT-based tools for anxiety and low mood 
  • Trauma recovery guidance
  • The Mental Health Continuum to monitor your wellbeing 

Good for: independent use or alongside peer support, training, or occupational health. 

Need support to get started? 

If you need a little help to get going, there are lots of people who can support you: 

You can also access confidential support outside of work: 

  • TASC: call 02477 987 922 for general advice, or 0300 373 0898 for 24/7 crisis support. More info at theasc.org.uk
  • Shout: text SHOUT to 85258 for free, 24/7 text support 
  • Samaritans: call 116 123 any time, or email jo@samaritans.org (reply within 24 hours). More info at Samaritans.org
  • Your GP or 111 for advice and support 

Blue Light Together 

 

Blue Light Together – Dedicated to providing information, ideas, and support specifically for the staff (and their loved ones) of UK emergency service organisations.

West Midlands Ambulance Service, along with other Senior Leaders from Emergency Services, have signed The Mental Health at Work Commitment – Mental Health At Work.  This is an unprecedented agreement, declaring that mental health is, and will remain, a firm priority for all  UK  emergency services. For the first time, a uniform set of standards for supporting staff mental health will be adopted and integrated into their workplaces.

Association of Ambulance Chief Executives 

 

Association of Ambulance Chief Executives – Information and support for ambulance service staff Supporting Ambulance Staff on Mental Health and Wellbeing – aace.org.uk

College of Paramedics

 

College of Paramedics – Information and advice about the mental health and wellbeing needs of staff working within emergency healthcare organisations.

Climbing Out

 

Climbing Out is a UK based charity that rebuilds confidence, self-esteem and motivation in adults following a life-changing injury, illness or trauma.

Find A New Way Forwards – Climbing Out empowers people who have been through a life-changing trauma, to take control of their own mindset, actions and behaviours. We do that through our fully funded 5 day mental resilience programmes, which combine outdoor activities and personal development coaching in a setting where long-term supportive friendships can be formed.

The programmes are life changing, providing a springboard to help people to start living life again post injury, illness or trauma. The programmes have given participants the confidence to go to university, change careers, go travelling, enter into relationships, but most importantly, they have had the confidence to be the person they want to be.

For more information, click the flyer to the left, go to our testimonials page to see what WMAS staff have to say about their Climbing Out experience, or click here to go to the Climbing Out website.

DoingOurBit

 

#DoingOurBit is the largest free platform of its kind. Offering externally verified sessions from leading professionals across fitness, wellness, mental health and nutrition – with #DoingOurBit you can be assured each session has the highest level of safety, integrity and quality.

Doing Our Bit have also now created a free mental wellbeing hub for NHS staff to use.

#DoingOurBit is a specially designed online fitness platform with over 60 free workouts for NHS staff, with new content being added all the time. Every workout has been externally verified to ensure the highest level of safety, integrity, and quality. To read more about #DoingOurBit read this blog post.

Soon you will be able to access the #DoingOutBit app and early next year they hoping to have in-person classes, gym sessions, and swimming. To access the updated platform and additional services you need to re-register or register your details.

 

Frontline19

 

  • Frontline 19 provides free, confidential psychological support to NHS frontline workers.
  • A focus on ‘frontline’ staff due to capacity and resources- nurses, HCAs, Drs, paramedics, MH workers, students…
  • Working nationwide with a network of qualified therapists, counsellors, psychologists and psychotherapists.
  • Support is free and counsellors are supported with training, CPD and safeguarding issues.
  • A focus on staff at high risk of burnout, stress and trauma.
  • Process for self-referral. Secure online form or direct email Triage- reviewed and allocated based on urgency, need and therapist availability. Client matched with therapist with necessary specialisms. Therapy sessions start. Virtual and up to 12 sessions.
  • Frontline19 offer a range of supports. 1:1 therapy; Group sessions; Workshops; debriefing sessions following high-stress or traumatic events. Looking to support more men.
  • Referenced PHP- fantastic service. Frontline19 received awards for its video- ‘Sicker than the Patients’.
  • Supported hundreds of thousands of NHS staff- high satisfaction and evidenced outcomes.

For More information on Frontline 19 please visit the Frontline 19 website. 

Or view presentation HERE

Coping with everyday life and feeling well

 

What is mental wellbeing?

If you feel you are able to cope with everyday life, make decisions and react appropriately to situations and people around you, you might be described as having good mental wellbeing.

But perhaps you are struggling to express emotions, feel overwhelmed by day-to-day life and experience mental health issues or crises and you could do with some help to improve your mental wellbeing.

If you are experiencing mental health problems or want to improve your mental wellbeing Able Futures could help you.

Apply now for free mental wellbeing support from Able Futures.

Supporting Our NHS People – Self-care guides and information about products and services available to the NHS workforce to support their wellbeing needs  NHS England » Supporting our NHS people

NHS Every Mind Matters – Expert advice and practical techniques to help you create your own Mental Wellness Plan  Every Mind Matters – NHS (www.nhs.uk)

NHS Mental Health Pages – Information, self-assessment, wellbeing self-help tools and mental health services details Mental health – NHS (www.nhs.uk)

Self-help guides from Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust – An online bookshelf of concise, award-winning self-help leaflets. The free to download collection explains the signs and symptoms of the most common mental health challenges and provides practical strategies to help address them. Self Help Leaflets – Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust (ntw.nhs.uk)

Reading Well – Details of self-help books that have been recommended by health experts, as well as people with lived experience of the conditions and their relatives and carers. Reading Well (reading-well.org.uk)