Mental health is theme of festival
An inaugural mental health festival will launch in Perth and Kinross on Monday.
The Perth and Kinross Mental Health and Wellbeing Festival, organised and hosted by local charity Trauma Healing Together, will run from August 9-15 and will be held mostly online.
A keynote speaker will be best-selling author Michael Byrne, a survivor of the Clutha helicopter tragedy, who battled complex PTSD and recently featured on BBC documentary ’Disasters that Shocked Scotland’.
Perthshire North MSP John Swinney will also speak at the festival’s welcome event on August 9 at 9.30am.
The programme of events will include virtual workshops by 10 local organisations on yoga, mindfulness, expressive writing and other activities aimed at improving people’s mental health.
There will also be educational webinars designed to reduce stigma around mental health, Q&A sessions with organisations that provide mental health services in the area, and a series of podcasts on mental health topics.
Roxanne Kerr, who founded Trauma Healing Together in 2020, said: “The last 18 months have been incredibly challenging and understandably the mental health of many people has been adversely affected because of the pandemic.
“Isolation and loneliness have played a huge part.
“Statistically, it is likely that a high percentage of people will go on to develop PTSD once we are on the other side of the pandemic and we want to use this festival as an opportunity to bring people together as a community and ensure support is as accessible as possible.
“This festival also brings together 10 amazing organisations who have been working tirelessly throughout the pandemic and without them we would not be able to put this festival together.
“By partnering with different organisations, we hope to be able to provide people with choices on where and how they get support.
“We are particularly delighted that deputy first minister of Scotland John Swinney recognises the importance of mental health in the community and has accepted our invitation to speak at our welcome event on August 9 at 9.30am.”
The mental health festival is being funded by the The National Lottery Community Fund, which awarded Trauma Healing Together £9100 for the event.
MP for Perth and North Perthshire Pete Wishart also welcomed news of the festival.
He said: “I want to wish the team all the very best with the Perth and Kinross Mental Health Festival.
“I think that the last year has put a renewed focus on how important it is that we all look after our mental, as well as our physical health.
“I was pleased to see
Trauma Healing Together pull together so many support organisations who I have had the pleasure of working with over the years.”
Trauma Healing Together will also host a summerthemed Zoom quiz on Saturday, August 14 at 7pm with funds going towards supporting trauma survivors through free access to counselling and training.
For more info and to sign up to the quiz, log on to www.facebook.com/event s/1503506896664600?ref= newsfeed
To sign up for an event at the Perth and Kinross Mental Health and Wellbeing Festival, visit www. traumahealingtogether. org/events or www. eventbrite.co.uk/o/perthand-kinross-mental-healthfestival-33755498971