Support in the Bailiwick
There are a number of organisations and groups that provide specific support in Guernsey and Alderney. You can find a list of these on the Signposting page. You can contact any of these organisations directly, or you may want to look at some help for guidance first.
Where to go for further support
What we do at Guernsey Mind
Guernsey Mind is a charity whose aim is to support the people of the Bailiwick, encouraging a positive attitude towards mental health and wellbeing. Anyone can access our services at Guernsey Mind – you don’t need a referral. We don’t diagnose, prescribe or provide medical guidance, but we can help you find some places for support.
We would encourage anyone who wants to talk, or is worried about someone they know, to contact us.
We offer Supported Self-help which is an early intervention service which uses guided tools to support your mental wellbeing. It involves 6 sessions with a trained practitioner to look at what support you need and develop a wellbeing toolkit.
Visiting your GP
We want everyone with a mental health problem who visits their GP practice to get the support that best suits their needs. For most of us, our local GP practice is the first place we’ll go when we’re unwell. It’s there to help us with our mental health as well as our physical health. In fact, around one third of all GP appointments are related to mental health.
Be honest and tell your GP how you are feeling. Before you go to your appointment:
- Write down what you want to say in advance, and take your notes in with you.
- Give yourself enough time to get to your appointment, so that you don’t feel rushed.
- Think about taking someone with you to support you, like a close friend or family member.
Accessing Healthy Minds’ Service
Healthy Minds falls under The Committee for Health & Social Care and offer short term therapeutic interventions for adults who are suffering with mild-moderate anxiety and/or depression. They also offer support to clients who have experienced single event traumas.
You can either refer yourself using the self-referral portal (https://www.iaptportal.co.uk/guernsey.html) or your GP can complete a referral form and give you a self assessment form which you should complete and return to Healthy Minds.
You will then receive an email with details about the service.
After reading the email and attachment, call Healthy Minds to arrange a brief telephone assessment to discuss your needs.
After the brief telephone assessment, you and the therapist will agree a plan for what happens next – you may be offered workshops or an individual assessment appointment.
It is important that you commit to attend all planned sessions in order to gain the most benefit.
Full details can be found at https://www.gov.gg/healthyminds