The e-wellbeing Youth Podcast

How are you really? 

1 in 8 men in England suffer with their mental health. In this episode, we talk to young men about the importance of opening up the conversation and breaking down the stigmas surrounding the mental health of men and boys. They share ways how they look after their mental health and connect with others when they're struggling. 

Louisha has always known she is autistic. Now, at 17 years old, she has been on a two-year journey to get an official autism diagnosis. In this episode, she talks to us about her experiences navigating school as a blind and neurodiverse young person (the good, the bad and the ugly!), the helpful tools she has used over the years, and her favourite parts of being neurodiverse. 

She also shares her advice for other neurodiverse young people and gives tips to teachers and parents supporting someone going through the same thing as her. 

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This week’s episode of the e-wellbeing podcast tackles the subject of mental health stigma. Stigmas are negative assumptions made about people because of how they look or what group they’re perceived to “belong” to. These assumptions mean that the people on the receiving end of the label could be mistreated, not taken seriously or valued in the way that they should be.

How do stigmas affect how young people think and feel about their wellbeing? What role does the media play in this issue? We ask our Youth Ambassadors to unwrap these topics and discuss what we can do together to tackle the unhealthy and unhelpful assumptions about mental health.

In this episode, we talk to YMCA WiSE Youth Ambassadors about relationships. The YMCA WiSE project educate young people on all aspects of healthy relationships. From the struggles of maintaining long-distance partners, to the challenges of isolating with housemates, in this episode, the Youth Ambassadors share their thoughts on how the pandemic has changed relationships for young people. We bust some myths and misconceptions about 'healthy relationships' and share how good communication and boundaries can have a positive impact on your mental health. 

The pandemic has seen a 61% rise in homeless young people, and we are facing the biggest homeless crisis for young people in a generation. In today's episode, we are joined by Chas Walker, Chief Executive of YMCA DownsLink Group. Chas a wealth of experience in supported and social housing, particularly when it comes to supporting homeless young people.

In this episode, Chas answers young people’s questions on the relationship between youth homelessness and mental health and gives us some ideas on how we can support young homeless people in our community.

During the pandemic, social media has become one of the only ways to stay connected with loved ones and the outside world. But being connected all the time can be overwhelming and difficult to switch off. Whether you love it or love to hate it, there’s no denying it’s hard to escape the constant scrolling, liking, and sharing. But what is the impact of social media on the mental health of young people and can we find a healthy balance?

2020 has been a year of a lot of change for everybody. First, we adjusted to lockdown: closure of schools and workplaces, cancellations of events, and so on. Now, as strict lockdown rules are eased in some places and tightened in others, everyone is having to adjust once again to a ‘new normal’. All the uncertainty has impacted young people’s mental health and wellbeing. 

In light of recent events surrounding the #BlackLivesMatter movement, we've seen a rise in protests from people of all cultures and backgrounds on the topics of racism, privilege, diversity, discrimination and more. Understandably, this has and continues to impact the mental health of children and young people growing up in an ever-changing society as we transition out of lockdown.