Mental health in the capital

There's a huge issue that MH services provision is designed to suit the needs of the providers, and nothing to do with the needs of people who are ill. And that's even if you've managed to get through the magic roundabout of no treatment where one referral after another is made because one service treats x but not y, and the service that treats y will not treat x. And at the end of the day, it's determined only by diagnosis, rather than looking at the needs of the individual.
Councils fail to purchase appropriate services because they assume the providers are doing the right thing, but eg, if you end up with prescription drug addiction because doctors haven't done their job properly, you can't access addiction services because councils only buy street drug and alcohol addiction support.

Planning policy that has an integrated society and open spaces at its heart (check happycity.com)

A travel infrastructure that is less cluttered - allowing people to cycle and walk in safety

Adequately funded support/guidance on all aspects of parenthood for new parents coupled with support in all levels of schools on emotional awareness and well being - esp for young boys

Adequate resource for 1 on 1 mental health treatment for those with current issues, waiting times and group sessions are not the answer for many

You asked would people know where to get help - outside the NHS I would as I'm pretty engaged in this area, obvs re NHS you start with your GP as I don't know of anything else. Someone mentioned a MH drop in centre similar to Sexual health further down, interesting idea.

Great that this conversation is happening, look forward to some real, tangible action coming from it and soon.

I admit that psychologists do what they could do to help people with mental disease issues, but sometimes they is nothing else they can do, but we stay surprised before the health assessment centres that push these people still to look for jobs by referring them to jobs seekers centres, exposing them this way to more anxiety and stress for the sake of statistics and whitening the face of the government, and I find this not fair at all to deal with these patients suffering from mental issues in this manner, and what I suggest is to leave them in peace, because they have enough hardships to endure, and they do not deserve really to have more problems and difficulties in their lives, enough is enough!

Education from Primary school level has to be the key.

How about promoting culture change away from valuing competition and choice over and above simply "being", and appreciating what we have? (Why does that sound so hippyish?)
All this hype about London being "dynamic", "global", "Greatest City in the World!" For who? We can't (don't want to) stand still, but we could re-focus on change that benefits London residents' quality of life rather than simply the London economy (no, they are not the same).
It's a big question: How do you balance the constant change inherent in a dynamic economy with the fact that human happiness depends on stability, community connectedness and peaceful enjoyment? I don't know the answer, but I feel the current balance is not right.

When it comes to mental (and physical) health, prevention is better than cure. I work for a mental health charity based in a primary school, but we need focus our attention even further back than this.
There is a HUGE amount of scientific evidence for the importance of the first 1000 days of life, starting from conception. A good experience during this vital period allows an infant to develop emotional and physical resilience that will help him/her cope with any number of difficulties in later life. It is basically a sound investment to devote attention and resources to this period: failure to do so sets up a vicious circle, because people whose own early infancy was deficient will struggle to parent their own children adequately. The following book should be essential reading for policy makers:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Why-Love-Matters-affection-shapes/dp/0415870534
Caring, whether for babies/children or the elderly/infirm, is accorded very low status in our society, although it is the most important thing we do. That needs to change. Scandi-style maternity/paternity leave anyone? Paying other people to care for our nearest and dearest may keep the economy healthy, but at a huge cost to human health and wellbeing. I'm not advocating women retreat to the home, but we need to sort out work/life balance for both genders and, with technology reshaping the world of work, maybe now's the time.

Life in London is fast. It's hectic. I think this creates a feeling that we should always be doing someone. Is there something we are missing out on. Amongst my friends, we don't get much rest. Now a few of us have moved out of London, the pace is slower. Although i work in London, I am able to slow down and rest my mind, gather my thoughts and recharge. I am sure in London, our minds are burnt out quicker without this rest.

Identity is important in London. In some places, you are accepted and you feel at peace. In other places, you clearly feel like you don't belong. This can happen only a few tube stops apart. In Holland Park you feel poor. On Latimer Road you feel rich. Even registering for this website - the option of Black British as an ethnicity doesn't exist. The feeling of not belonging, and going overboard in order to fit in and belong - can cause stress and mental health symptoms.

How can institutions help?
One of the ways could be to highlight some symptoms of mental health and explain them in more detail. How do you know you are ill? What does depression feel like? How is it different to just "not being bothered today?". We all talk to ourselves - when is the voice in your mind a mental health issue?

Knowing some of these things for people who have never experienced mental health issues - might allow people to seek help quicker.

From my experience, adult mental health care is very good: emergency numbers, fast track referrals, therapies. However with children it's much worse. First health visitors will tell you that every child is different, then GP says she has no time, school must make referral, school will wait until child is 7 and worst part, after being referred to a specialist, the waiting time for first appointment in Children Mental Health Services is 18 months! And this is when you more and more often hear about children suicide attempts. Too many patients, too little specialists. Government should focus on 'producing' doctors, not housing immigrants. Unfortunately London is building and building new homes without taking into account available services. Perhaps British people should have priority for NHS services, or higher rate taxpayers, or those who lived in a borough for longest.

Bad for mental health:

Bad public transport: overcrowded trains and tube, inability to get into a morning train, delayed and cancelled trains - adds up to daily stress

Crime and violence: acid attacks, violent crime, car thefts (happened to me) - adds up to worry and anxiety

Dirt and litter: streets are full of litter and sometimes I feel like I live on a landfill. Some people just throw litter on the street - unacceptable. Litter also left on the street by garbage collection team.

How to help:

- More trains and tubes, no tolerance for delays.

- Zero tolerance for littering, more public litters on the streets, almost every street should have a small public litter, council should take care that garbage collection teams don't leave litter after themselves.

I am interested in the relationship between depression and long term unemployment. These are often mutually reinforced, circular and self sustaining. Depression can lead to job loss and difficulty in job seeking. Long term unemployment is devastating to self esteem, leading to social isolation. Ageism is often a third closely related factor - losing a job at 40+ can be the initial step into long term unemployment and depression. All of this adds up to a gigantic waste of human skills and potential.

NHS services like Individual Placement and Support (IPS), which might offer a solution, aren't available to people with common mental health problems. I assume that's because it's too expensive given the huge numbers of people with depression. At least one social enterprise, Twining Enterprise, is focussed on mental wellbeing through work, and they offer IPS, but their services aren't available in every borough. As someone affected by all three issues I was thinking of starting another social enterprise myself to try to address this, but was persuaded by an advisor it would be exceptionally difficult without support and a wider network. Perhaps the best solution would be for organisations like Twining Enterprise to be funded London-wide and UK-wide.

Mental Health is a great thing if you have it but so many of all ages have problems. I agree with many things that have already been posted and it shows the complexity of trying to help.
Perhaps there needs to be a strategy with actions that could be taken. It could include:-
Social factors e.g. poor or no housing, chronic financial issues.Make available easily accessed drop in centres for people to meet or just 'chill out'
Babies and young children Keep and expand the Sure Start Centres
Work place e.g. attitudes, support for vulnerable employees
Schooling e.g. engagement between staff and families, zero tolerance for bullying [with help for the bullies to stop what they do]
Health e.g. association between acute and chronic physical ill health and mental health and support which is shown to help
Mental health problems - prompt and appropriate support from professionals [liked the idea of 'drop in clinics] -needs well educated and enthusiastic staff - proper training programmes, uniformity of provision across the country, clear idea of what the very good charitable organisations can provide. Education for the public in how to survive and hopefully access the help they individually feel might benefit them.
I am sure there are other things that should be included but we need a workable overall plan which is regularly reviewed