Hi
I am getting in touch ahead of Mental Health Awareness on behalf of Sea
Sanctuary.
Sea Sanctuary is
a Cornish mental health charity and one of the world’s leading
exponents of blue health and they believe that blue spaces, such as the
sea, are massively beneficial for people’s mental and emotional
wellbeing.
With the 2022 theme for MHAW being loneliness, below is a press release about
how being around spaces can help ease this.
If this is of
interest, we can offer further comment, interviews with our CEO, images
and sailing trips from Falmouth.
Many thanks.
Natalie
Sea Sanctuary Champions Blue Spaces for Easing Post-Covid
Loneliness
Sea Sanctuary, a mental health charity in Cornwall,
welcomes loneliness as the theme of Mental Health Awareness Week 2022, as they
believe more people than ever are feeling isolated in the aftermath of the
pandemic.
With social lives put on hold due to multiple
lockdowns, periods of isolation and working from home, the impact on mental health has been
devastating. Technology offered some connection, but with consistent face to
face interaction lost for nearly two years, Sea Sanctuary is concerned about the number of people who are
desperately struggling in the shadows of isolation, as life returns to normal.
However, they believe spending
time around blue spaces, such as the sea or lakes, with other people in real
life, could be the key to finding calm and happiness again.
Sea Sanctuary Founder and CEO, Joseph Sabien,
says, "We know that loneliness is a precursor for poor mental health, so
welcome this modern-day crisis being put in the spotlight during Mental Health
Awareness Week 2022. Everything we do is about bringing people together,
forging new networks and opening conversations, something that was lost during
the pandemic and has had catastrophic consequences across
society. Our sailing and therapeutic programs on our tall ship
Irene, give people the space to authentically connect with each other, as well
as connecting with the water around them. As they work the sails and focus on
the job in hand, they naturally start to build trust with each other, and this
can lead to finally having conversations they have been too scared to start in
the past."
He adds, "By helping our clients to build connections, we give them
a voice, which, in turn, alleviates loneliness and saves lives. It's easy to
assume everyone has a voice and they know how to use it, but the truth is many
of our clients feel like they don't have the opportunity to say what's on their
mind, and this can be life threatening. They find it hard to be honest about
the mental health struggles they are dealing with and if we aren't there to
catch them, things can go very wrong."
For more information about services from Sea Sanctuary go to seasanctuary.org.uk and
for details regarding Mental Health Awareness Week go to www.mentalhealth.org.uk
For media details, interviews, images, and press trips, contact Natalie
Trice at Devon Trice Public Relations; natalietrice@natalietrice.co.uk
ENDS
NOTES TO EDITORS
Sea Sanctuary is a Cornish mental health charity with a unique approach.
As one of the world's leading exponents of blue health, they believe that
blue spaces, such as the sea, are beneficial for people's mental and emotional
wellbeing.
Through its training programmes and group sessions, Sea
Sanctuary helps hundreds of people every year, who would otherwise struggle to
get the support they need, and their latest review indicated that 84% of people
who used their services reported an improved sense of wellbeing.
They also work with businesses to look after the needs of their employees,
which helps them raise much needed funds to support people in our local
communities.
For more information go to seasanctuary.org.uk