Blue Health - For a Mentally Healthier Lewisham
As a Blue Borough kid, I’ve always wanted to do more in the borough I grew up in - Lewisham (we call it Blue).
I saw at first hand, as a child how resources were wasted on interventions that didn’t connect with those it was supposed to serve, and delivered by those who didn’t understand the young people they were working with. 30 years on, the story continues.
For mental health awareness month, I decided to create Blue Health. A day where people within the borough gain FREE access to workshops, programmes and people, that meets them in their world.
Their world being the world’s of different groups, with the main focus being young men who get caught up in the streets. Like most of my childhood friends.
The theme for the day will be ‘How our environment shapes us’. I’ll bring some of my friends to assist on the day. This will include former members of the Ghetto Boys gang (film Blue Story was about) and a former Arsenal player.
Sports and Street Culture (Assembly/panel) - Covering how sport is unintentionally therapeutic, why people from adverse backgrounds gravitate towards sport, how sport benefits from adversity, the similarities between sport and street culture, how mental health plays out in street culture and the long term problems of what the short term benefits of gang membership provides.
Prefrontal Flexin’ - A session on reading aka how prefrontal (cortex) workouts are a great form of therapy. I’ll donate copies of my Soccology book (and other books), discuss segments of a chapter relating to mental health, with the assistance of the former Arsenal player (and maybe a kick about), discuss the benefits of reading, the types of books available to encourage schools to buy books their students are interested in and to encourage young people to read.
Entrepreneurship - A programme on behalf of Start Up Sherpas will be donated to a year group. Providing students with paid work experience and the opportunity to progress onto an entrepreneurship programme.
The problems my friends struggled with are the same many struggle with now - a lack of safety, funds, opportunities and access to people that understood them (within the institutions). This led to a tornado of problems. Not much has changed since with symptoms like knife “crime” being the focus, when traumatised childhood is the root.
Blue Health focuses on the root, whilst letting the people take the lead.
Please note if more than one Lewisham secondary school applies we will do a random selection.
This is an educational day for both students and staff.
To register interest please send an email to info@homeo.technology and someone will get back to you.
;)
