World Mental Health Day – Friday, 10 October 2025

Theme: “Access to Services – Mental Health in Catastrophes and Emergencies”

 

Jamie McGovern, CWU's Health & Safety Policy Adviser, has issued his latest letter to CWU Branches (LTB218/25) concerning this year's World Mental Health Day.

 

This is the LTB in full, after which follows a link to enable you to download the original LTB:

 

World Mental Health Day is coming up on Friday 10th October. The theme this year, set by the World Federation for Mental Health, is: “Access to Services – Mental Health in Catastrophes and Emergencies.”

This year’s theme is especially important to consider from a workplace context.

Workplace incidents or traumatic events can occur on any work site, any road, or in any workplace and these impactful events can directly affect our mental health. It is also important to raise awareness of the fact that trauma or distress doesn’t always show straight away, symptoms may appear weeks or months later.

Types of mental health problems | coping with trauma | Mind

Risk factors for trauma may include exposure to critical incidents and accidents, sudden loss, violence or overwhelming stress. Knowing the signs of trauma and what to do next is vital, as there are things we can do individually to protect ourselves and others from feeling overwhelmed.

Workplace posters shared with this LTB include tips to manage ‘Overwhelm’ and ‘Doomscrolling’.

 

* ‘Overwhelm’ is becoming overwhelmed by a feeling or event, which affects you very strongly, to a point where you do not know how to deal with it.

* ‘Doomscrolling’ doomscrolling is the habit of consuming negative news online repeatedly until it starts to significantly impact our emotional wellbeing.

The term doomscrolling itself became popular during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The application of self-care can include switching off from social media. Mental Health First Aid England refer to this as a ‘digital detox’, which involves setting a time limit and establishing boundaries about the time you spend online to improve mental health and reduce feelings of anxiety and inadequacy.

For anyone who is struggling, CWU MHFAiders are trained to listen, support, and signpost.

In November the CWU will support the first MHFAider® Day in England. MHFAider Day 2025 · MHFA England
Our MHFAiders are never alone in their role.

 

Through the Association of Mental Health First Aiders and CWU regional mental health support networks, they can remain part of a national community staying connected, supported, and confident in making a difference.

On MHFAider Day 2025, we will aim to shine a spotlight on their impact and celebrate the ripple effect they create.
Linking back to this year’s theme for World Mental Health Day 2025 World Mental Health Day – October 10th it is important to raise awareness of the fact that the 2-day CWU Mental Health First Aid course provides training to all learners to aid a better understanding of:

• What a traumatic event is
• What Crisis First Aid looks like for traumatic events
• What protective factors are available for supporting our Metal Health.

CWU Mental Health First Aid training will again be available in 2026. To further support branches, we can now also offer a Health & and Safety 1-day workshop in partnership with 5asideCHESS looking at trauma informed training, which can be delivered alongside our continued CWU Mental Health First Aid training. Work with us – 5asideCHESS

Please remember there is always hope, clicking on the following link can take you to your nearest support service.

Mental Health Support Network provided by Chasing the Stigma | Hub of hope

 

You can download the full LTB in PDF format here