Our network of Mental Health First Aiders has grown by over 50,000 in the last year alone. Steve Blundell (he/him), Content and Marketing Lead for MHFA England® recently sat down with one of our amazing MHFAiders®, Richard Malin (he/him) to chat about his experiences of signposting to support and taking self-care seriously.
Content warning: contains descriptions of poor mental health and references to suicide.
“My story, like others, started many years before I was diagnosed as presenting with stress, depression, and anxiety.
“As a teenager, I suffered with acne which left me feeling self-conscious and avoided cameras and photo opportunities as much as possible. Then in my early 30s, my mother died suddenly from an undiagnosed condition. I was extremely close to my mother who was more like a best friend to me. Both my parents had always supported me immensely and with hindsight I probably didn’t deal with her death very well. The truth is it had a deeply profound effect on me.
“Maybe a year or so after my mum had died, I had several occasions of crying for no reason and often felt sick when driving to work. I don’t remember the sequence of events, but I was persuaded to go to the doctor, and he suggested that I was suffering from stress, depression, and anxiety. He signed me off sick from work, which would eventually be for about 10 weeks in total.
Impact on my working life
“Before I was signed off sick, my diagnosis started a series of events in my workplace that continued to impact my mental health quite significantly.
“I started to learn to recognise the signs of poor mental health, especially in my own life. I realise now that I had no concept or understanding of mental health and the impact good and poor mental health can have on someone’s life.
“On further reflection I can see that I had been presenting symptoms for many years. I had poor sleeping patterns, often waking up in the middle of the night and waking up in the morning not feeling refreshed. This was coupled with poor eating patterns. Some days I would eat nothing, some days I would want to eat everything in sight. I was also often angry for no reason at all. I now know that these are all signs of poor mental health, but I just didn’t understand it at the time.
“Through my training as a Mental Health First Aider, I am now aware of what mental health is and how important it is to all of us. I almost would describe this awareness and knowledge as transformative and akin to flicking on a light switch that has allowed me to see and understand myself better.
My role as an MHFAider
“Undertaking the MHFA England training to become a Mental Health First Aider has helped me understand the importance of self-care and spotting signs of poor mental health in myself and my colleagues.
“I believe that showing empathy and understanding as an MHFAider has helped many people feel comfortable in sharing their own experiences. With my lived experience of poor mental health, I feel able to be open about some of my own story and my experiences, which I honestly believe have helped others realise they are not alone.
“There are no two experiences that are the same. Every person will have different feelings, different reactions, and different experiences and therefore, an MHFAider should never categorise them and should listen non-judgmentally. This is why the signposting part of my role is so crucial. I can signpost to professionals with relevant experience who can support and help them correctly.
“I am proud to be an MHFAider and absolutely love my role. I have an “I am a Mental Health First Aider” badge on my email footer to highlight my training and experience so that colleagues can come and speak with me. I have found this helpful in breaking down the fear of people approaching me.
Find out more about becoming an MHFAider
Signposting to support
“A few years ago, I was returning home after dark when I heard a strange noise. On further investigation I found a teenage girl standing on a rail bridge crying and in distress. I tried to speak with her for 10-15 minutes, but it was almost like she didn’t know I was there. She was unresponsive and appeared to be talking to herself. Immediately MHFAider training kicked in.
“Rather than trying to grab her, I kept trying to engage with her as best I could. Fortunately, a motorist passed by who stopped and asked if I needed help. They called the police while I kept the girl engaged. With the police's help, we managed to get her to come down from the bridge.
“Whilst this experience is fortunately relatively uncommon, there have been many other conversations that I have had with people in and out of the workplace, where I have been able to signpost to support or just be a listening ear.
Taking self-care seriously
“One of the key facets to the MHFAider training is about looking after ourselves. Self-care is so important and vital to our mental wellbeing. I try to model good self-care in and out of my working environment.
“This is still a learning process for me. But I have a few things that I know help me.
“I always make sure I take a lunch break. It doesn’t sound like a huge thing, but it helps me refresh and reset in the middle of the day. I often take a book to read as well, which really helps me switch off and escape for a few minutes.
“I regularly attend a salsa dance class that I started with other people. One friend recently noted that, “it’s a kind of therapy.” I couldn’t agree more! Whilst you are focusing on the dance classes and getting your feet in the right positions, you are forgetting everything else.
“The other thing I do most Sunday mornings, which I love, is going for a coffee and reading the paper, this is time just for me when I am really disciplined with myself and don’t use my phone. It’s time just for me.
“I would highly recommend the MHFA® course to anyone who wants to know more about themselves, their own self-care, and being able to support and signpost others to the help they may need.”
For more information on training Mental Health First Aiders for your workplace please email our mental health experts at
workplace@mhfaengland.org to talk through your requirements.
