On Blue Monday, let’s remember mental health deserves our year round attention

Good mental health needs more than a day.

The term ‘Blue Monday’ was once only known as the enigmatic title of 80’s Mancunian electro-rockers New Order’s biggest hit. But over the last few years it’s become more recognisable as shorthand for the third Monday in January - a date that some believe to be the most depressing day of the year. 

It was originally conceived in 2005 as a relatively light-hearted marketing gimmick, but as the years pass, this is being forgotten and Blue Monday is becoming cemented in the common consciousness as a legitimate day to dread. Whilst we’re not sure having a day in the calendar dedicated to being depressed is particularly helpful, anything that opens the conversation around mental health will also help tackle the stigma around looking after it.

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And that’s alright by us.

Looking after your mental health 365 days a year

With the Christmas come-down and traditional bad weather, January is always a difficult month to get through and with the pressures of the pandemic seeing levels of depression in adults double since 2019, it’s never been more important to pay attention to our mental wellbeing and encourage others to do the same.

So this Blue Monday we want to highlight the importance of being mindful of mental health all year-round.
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How do Team Huggg look after their mental wellbeing?

At Huggg we are always looking for ways to ensure our team feel supported and able to discuss their issues (should they wish to of course) and as part of this, we recently asked everyone to complete a voluntary wellbeing survey. The aim being to highlight any areas where we might be able to improve in this area. Hey, we don’t pretend to be perfect but it’s a good standard to aim for and we won’t stop trying until we get there.

We also asked for any quick wins our team members use to keep their mental wellbeing in check and if they’d mind us sharing them in this article. Thankfully, everyone said yes and you can check some of them out below…

A quick disclaimer: We aren’t mental health professionals so please don’t take these ideas as any kind of medical advice, they are just some of the little things we do to keep our noggins happy.  

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A little pick me up from us

This January we want to show people that even a small act can have a positive impact on their mental health, so we’re giving away a free winter warmer drink or snack to warm hearts, hands and minds. There’s even the option to donate the cost to charity for those that want to pay it forward.

Whether you enjoy it whilst walking round the park 🌳, listening to your favourite podcast 🎧 or chatting with a friend 💬on the phone we hope that it makes your day a little bit brighter. 
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Let’s use this Blue Monday to remember that looking after the mental health of ourselves and our colleagues, should be at the top of all our to-do list - today and every day.