Boosting your mental health on blue MondayPublished: 17 January 2025 Ryan Jones from MS-UK’s Helpline explains the mental health support we offer It’s thought that the term ‘Blue Monday’ originally came into use in 1800s literature as a term to capture the feeling that factory workers had going back to work after the weekend. ‘Blue Monday’ is now a recognised awareness day, usually the third Monday in January. This is felt to be the point in the year where most people feel at their lowest in mood and most depressed. This year Blue Monday is 20 January. There has been some criticism over how this date has been calculated and whether there is any valid science behind this being the actual saddest day of the year. However, most of us recognise that the combination of the emotional comedown of the post-festive break and January’s cold, wet and windy weather conditions makes for a challenging time to maintain positive mental health. The negative impact on mental wellbeing can often be amplified and much more difficult when living with a long-term condition such as multiple sclerosis (MS). January is also a time that many people decide to make commitments to bring about positive changes. Whether you have a ‘new year, new me’ mindset, or you are looking to overcome general winter blues we want to highlight five things MS-UK can do to support you if you are experiencing poor mental health and help you move to a more positive mindset and a healthier place of mental wellbeing. MS-UK have a directory of qualified and experienced counsellors who have completed our eLearning course for counsellors (counselling people with MS). The counsellors who feature in our directory often offer subsidised rates when mentioning the directory at the time of booking. We originally developed our eLearning training to help make sure that the professionals who support people with MS really ‘get it’. Delve into our online and printed information all about Mental Health and MS. This includes tips from other people living with MS about self-management, professional help that may be available and looks at the impact of poor mental health. We also look at some of the possible treatments and support that is available. As part of MS-UK’s work to help reduce isolation and increase connectedness in the MS community, We have a peer support service. These are small online groups called peer pods. All our groups are facilitated by volunteers, and the volunteers are supported by our team. These small groups are great ways of connecting with others living with MS. Sometimes having people to talk to who really understand life with MS can be very valuable. MS-UK offer a range of online activities (delivered over Zoom). We have regular exercise and movement sessions, information sessions and much more. All our services are designed with the wellbeing of people affected by MS at their heart. Some of our sessions are especially useful for people looking to maintain positive mental health and bring about positive changes. We have mindfulness courses to help people live more consciously and better manage stresses. For those seeking to practice mindful meditation we have regular guided meditation sessions. These 45 minute sessions are delivered by our Yoga practitioner and aim to quiet racing stressful thoughts and Reduce anxieties. Our online team also have some great introductory sessions for 2025. These Include ‘Acceptance and Commitment Therapy’ (ACT) and Life Coaching. ACT is an evidence-based psychological approach that uses acceptance and value-focused action to help people deal with difficult thoughts, feelings and sensations and Life Coaching is about helping people identify and achieve goals whilst coping with the challenges of living with long-term health conditions. Reach out and connect with our Helpline team. Whether you want support with managing symptoms, accessing benefits, or simply seeking a friendly chat, our small team are here for you. The Helpline can be contacted by telephone on 0800 783 0518 (Monday to Friday 10am to 4pm), via our website webchat facility, drop us a message on WhatsApp, contact the team to book a Zoom call or send us an email on info@ms-uk.org If you have the blues and are struggling – please remember that we are here if needed for this Blue Monday (and every other day for that matter!) Other Stories You May Be Interested In... Blog Creating awareness View article Blog Housing and homes with multiple sclerosis View article Blog Running for my Dad View article