A new national survey has revealed that only 10% of people living in Ireland will do something every day to look after their mental health.
The results of the survey, carried out by Mental Health Ireland, are released ahead of World Mental Health Day on Thursday, 10th October.
Read the full survey here
The survey shows that while most of us (89%) do something to intentionally support our mental health each week, only 10% doing something every single day.
The survey showed that the biggest barriers to people supporting their mental health daily are time (32%) and money (31%), although 15% respondents said they don’t know how to support their mental health, and for 13% of respondents it’s not seen as something people in their social circle do.
For women, aged 25-34, money is the biggest barrier to supporting their mental health (54% of 25–34 year-old women surveyed), the highest amongst any age group. The survey showed that 19% of men said that supporting their mental health wasn’t something people in their social circle do compared to 8% of women, and 17% of men admitted they don’t know to support their mental health compared to 12% of women. This was highest amongst young men (18-24 year old) at 39%.
Across the population, spending time with friends and family (71%), exercising (70%) and spending time in nature (53%) are the most common ways people are supporting their mental health. Other ways we look after our mental health include having a hobby (51%), practicing mindfulness/meditation (26%) and going to counselling or therapy (16%).
The survey also showed that most people in Ireland (99%) recognise that spending time in nature is beneficial to our mental health.
When it comes to education around mental health, across every age group there is a clear desire to learn more about how to manage stress and anxiety. Women over 55 overwhelmingly (78%) want more support in managing stress and/or anxiety. Both 25-34 year old men and women want to understand more about mental health and want to know more about managing stress & anxiety (77%), managing mental health at work (57%), supporting someone with a mental health need (53%) and understanding mental health (52%).
Mental Health Ireland released the survey as part of Mental Health Month that celebrates the theme of Connection and provides tools, resources and activities around the country throughout October to improve mental health and wellbeing.
Jo Donohoe, National Development Manager for Programmes for Mental Health Ireland said: “The survey highlights the importance of connection for our mental health with a high number of us connecting in with loved ones or spending time in nature to improve our mood and protect our mental wellbeing. We want to show that there’s lots of simple ways we can mind our mental health every day, and that barriers such as time and money needn’t get in the way of this. This can be a quick coffee with a friend, a walk in the park, taking a break outside and stopping to notice nature around us, or simply taking some time out to take deep breathes. Better mental health can be available to everyone.
“Mental Health Ireland is offering free webinars every day in October with simple tips on how to mind and improve our mental health based on the Five Ways to Wellbeing. The survey shows that there is an appetite from the public for information on mental health, and we wanted to meet this need for everyone without the barrier of time or money.”
