A lot of us experience a problem with our mental health at some point in our lives and help and support from people around us can make all the difference to how we cope day to day and on the road to recovery. BBC Radio 4's All in the Mind Awards want to hear experiences of brilliant mental health care and will recognise the unsung heroes who helped make the difference. Claudia Hammond from the 'All In the Mind' show want to acknowledge the people and institutions who have had a real impact on mental health. Of course I'm going with the 'Professional' award for a mental health professional whose dedication, help and support made a really significant difference to you. This could be a psychologist, psychiatrist, social worker, nurse, volunteer or other professional. Mine is a counselor.
How has this person/project made a difference to you and your recovery? Max 500 words.
I've known Geraldine since 2018 after a significant suicide attempt had me hospitalised for days, & signposted by the home treatment team. I was apprehensive because I hadn't had much luck with counselors or therapists before. But something that set Geraldine apart, was being able to physically identify with her. Being black & a woman reassured me. I hadn't ever felt tethered to someone who supports my mental health like there.
Geraldine creates a safe space for me to unload all my cares, burdens & mistakes. What particularly touches me is how she pays attention to materials outside sessions [in her personal life] that are relevant to me. She brings those back believing they might resonate with me in some way during our sessions. She doesn't have to, but she does so anyway & for that I am grateful.
Geraldine's someone who easily comes to mind when I think of people who champion my success. She feels like a supporting role in my life story. I feel lucky to be able to say that, because not every person receiving therapy can. Not only that, she encourages me to thrive in my real life because she's intent on not only seeing me survive isolated, but rather revel in it. She challenges me tentatively further away from the edge of my comfort zones, at my own pace so that I can eventually thrive in a meaningful way. Her ubiquity's priceless & I dread the day when we no longer see each other.
It's apparent that she sees her vocation beyond the worthwhile mission that we carry out in that room. I continually feel considered, comprehended & genuinely perceived properly for the first time ever. She has undoubtedly improved my subsistence, no matter when I falter. It's been a liberating experience working with her & I've never felt deprived, excluded, dissappointed, or hindered by our time together. She's a significant facet that merges and facilitates the metamorphosis of my prior self-assured personhood, with elements of my contemporary autogenous self.
I am forever indebted to Geraldine & the progress we've been able to accomplish together. She has been a sanguine constant in my life over the past 4 years & if I could work with her indefinitely, I would. Geraldine has validated every single trauma of mine, whilst perceiving further damage I hadn't known I'd endured. She makes me feel so seen I could be translucid. I must also applaud her professionalism. Not once has she ever faltered in her role. Guiding & encouraging my growth. Not to mention, looking out for me in ways I would have never expected.
Geraldine has made an inestimable difference in my life because she's willed me to push myself further than I could ever have been able to fathom. She has legitimised my entire actuality, in ways that no one else has even come close to. She confirms my existence in the world, substantiating that I am indeed alive & real.
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