A short guide to

supportingyour

wellbeing

https://northleedswellbeing.wordpress.com/

In a crisis?

0300 300 1485 is the phone number for the Leeds Crisis Assessment Service, the city-wide mental health crisis service for people 18 years and over.

https://www.mindwell-leeds.org.uk/i-need-help-now#/

999 for the emergency services

111 is the NHS non-emergency number.

What is Social Prescribing?

We all get stuck every now and then. We might feel down, sad, blue, lost, lonely, unmotivated, or experience another feeling which affects our wellbeing. Alternatively, it might be a ‘thing’ that is affecting us, like money, housing, work or relationships.

Just as we go and see a Doctor when we have a medical issue that affects our health, we can go and see a Social Prescriber when we have a social issue that affects our health.

Social Prescribing is about signposting and referring people on to other organisations that can help.

Social Prescribing is about you. It’s about talking, listening, understanding, informing, motivating and supporting new behaviours.

Need to talk?

If you would a chat with a Social Prescriber, please contact the surgery to arrange one.

Visit or phone:

Harrogate Road surgery (0113 268 0066)

Milan Street surgery (0113 249 0598) 

An introduction to Social Prescribing

What is Social Prescribing? Social Prescribing is a service for patients who have a social (or non-medical) issue that can affect their mental or physical wellbeing.   How can Social Prescribing help? Social Prescribing gives you time to talk, time to reflect, and time to think about the issues in your life. The Social Prescriber can help you find out about services, organisations and activities that could help you.   How long will it take? That is mostly up to you. Some people need one or two sessions so they can get some information. However, you can have up to ten sessions, over a period of three months. Each appointment can last for up to 1 hour.    Where will I be seen? At the surgery, at either Harrogate Road or Milan Street. If you are unable to leave the house it may be possible to arrange a home visit or telephone appointment. How can I access the service? Visit or phone the surgery reception to book an appointment. You don’t need to speak to a GP beforehand.

How do I cancel an appointment? If you need to cancel or rearrange an appointment for any reason, you must contact the surgery. Visit or phone: Harrogate Road Surgery (0113 268 0066) or Milan Street Surgery (0113 249 0598). How can I find out more about the service? Read one of the leaflets which are in the surgery reception area.  Is it confidential? Anything that you talk about in a session is confidential, although the Social Prescriber will record notes about the appointment. The only exception to this would be if there was a serious concern about your safety or that of another person.   Sharing of information Information you provide may be used for monitoring purposes by Linking Leeds. Linking Leeds will only usually contact you if an issue has been raised (for example, a complaint), or to get some feedback about the quality of service that you have received. 

How do I feel?

Sometimes it’s good to ask yourself a few questions about how you have felt over the past two weeks.

You can answer each question as none, some, most, or all of the time.

1 I’ve been feeling optimistic about the future  

2 I’ve been feeling useful 3 I've been feeling relaxed 4 I’ve been feeling interested in other people

5 I've had energy to spare

6 I’ve been dealing with problems well

7 I've been thinking clearly   

8 I’ve been feeling good about myself

9 I’ve been feeling close to other people   

10 I've been feeling confident

11 I’ve been able to make up my own mind about things 

12 I’ve been feeling loved 

13 I’ve been interested in new things   

14 I've been feeling cheerful  

If you consistently score ‘none’ or ‘some’ of the time, consider booking an appointment to discuss your responses with the Social Prescriber.

5 Ways to Wellbeing

Here are five actions that you can take to support and improve your wellbeing. Which of the following do you do on a regular basis?

Be with people

Be with the people around you: family, friends, colleagues and neighbours. Look after those relationships. Keep in touch with people.  Say ‘hello’, join a group or club, smile at people.

If that’s too much for now, speak on the phone, text, or join a good internet forum.

Be active

Do some exercise, take a walk, feel your heart beating. Get off the bus a stop early. Park at the far end of the carpark.

Find a physical activity that you enjoy and make it a regular part of your life.

Keep learning and doing things

Learning and doing things can be good for you. Start (or restart) an interest or hobby. Join a club or activity group. Read, watch, listen, do.

Help others, be kind, volunteer

Even the smallest act counts, whether it's a smile, a thank you or a kind word.

Larger acts, such as volunteering, can improve your mental wellbeing and help you to build new social networks.

Be aware, be mindful

Be more aware of the present moment, including your thoughts and feelings, your body and the world around you.

Some people call this awareness ‘mindfulness’. It can positively change the way you feel about life and how you approach challenges.  

If you are finding it difficult to engage in some of the things above, consider booking an appointment with your Social Prescriber.

 

Some k ey issues

There are often some common issues in many peoples’ lives. Consider the following issues, and about your current attitude toward them.

What I want to be – and what I don’t want to be

This is about changing yourself. From moving from where you are to where you want to be.

Self-care and self-management

This is about taking responsibility about knowing yourself and looking after yourself.

It is also about finding out who (and what) can help you achieve this.

Self esteem

How do you see yourself?

Is the glass half-full or half-empty?

Motivation

Motivation is about your willingness to do something. For example, the willingness to change. It’s difficult to change without the motivation to do it.

Resilience

Resilience is about managing setbacks. Call it bounce-backability.

If you are struggling with some of the key issues above, consider booking an appointment with your Social Prescriber

Useful websites 

 North Leeds Wellbeing – an information website with links to different resources.https://northleedswellbeing.wordpress.com/ 

Mental Health in Leedshttps://www.mindwell-leeds.org.uk/   NHS self-help guideshttps://www.ntw.nhs.uk/pic/selfhelp/ 

NHS Live Wellhttps://www.nhs.uk/live-well/

North Leeds Medical Practicehttp://www.northleedsmedicalpractice.nhs.uk/

Wellbeing Assessment tools.https://www.nhs.uk/Tools/Documents/Wellbeing%20self-assessment.htm

5 Ways to Wellbeinghttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/five-ways-to-mental-wellbeing

Not online?

If you are not online, there are plenty of places to learn how to get online. It’s easy to do, and (like the world’s biggest library) has the answer to most things.

Contact MAECare, Leeds Jewish Welfare Board or your local library for more information on how to get online. Or contact your Social Prescriber.

Final thoughts

Take responsibility for your physical and mental health

Learn to identify your feelings and emotions.

Recognise that thoughts are not facts.

Don’t let your ill-health define you

Create positive habits

Give yourself the advice you would give your best friend

Compliments and Complaints and how to make them

We believe that being open to feedback will help us improve our services. Please tell us when things are going well and if you think we can improve the service in any way. If you have a complaint you can expect to be listened to carefully, taken seriously and treated with courtesy and respect by everyone at Connect Well. If you want to make a compliment or complaint you can:Send us a letter Tell your Social Prescriber what you want to say Call Linking Leeds on 0113 336 7612 Email us at connectwell@commlinks.co.uk Go online at www.commlinks.co.uk/contact/have-your-say Access to your records

We believe in working with you in an open and collaborative manner. We want to make you aware that we keep records of the support we have delivered to you. We do this in order to ensure that the support we deliver is of the highest quality. We want to make you aware of your right to access your records. If you would like to access your records you can:Send us a letter Tell your Social Prescriber Call us on 0113 336 7612 Email us at connectwell@commlinks.co.uk

Once you have made the request a manager will get in touch with you and agree a time and date when this can occur.

Caring Hands Activity Group

Every Wednesday at Harrogate Road Surgery

Notes