Qwell – Free Digital Wellbeing Support
I’ve been open about my own personal lifelong challenges with mental health and depression.
Over the years, I’ve learned many techniques to help mitigate and manage my mental health.
These “scaffolding” techniques include
- daily meditation (I’m using both the Headspace and Insight Timer apps)
- journaling (the 6-minute diary is my handwritten tool of choice right now)
- cold-plunges (certainly not for everyone! 🥶)
- professional support.
But I’m always on the look out for new tools to help both myself and others with their mental health.
How many people struggle with mental health challenges?
Firstly, I know I’m not alone in experiencing these mental health challenges.
- around 65% of people say they’ve experience a mental-health problem at some point in their lifetime.
- in the latest survey of adults aged 16-64 in England, about 22.6% had a common mental-health condition.
- about 1 in 4 adults (≈ 25%) will experience a mental-health problem in a given year.
Specifically to my chosen profession of the tech space, a survey of the UK digital & technology community found 52% reported they had suffered from anxiety or depression at some point, and 28% reported they’d had a formal mental-health diagnosis.
That last statistic is just one of the reasons I accepted an invitation to join the board of 404 – Stress Not Found, a not-for-profit organisation offering a community to support the mental health of IT and technology professionals.
I know from experience that sometimes, during mental health challenges, it can feel too much to actually speak to another human being.
So I was intrigued to hear about Qwell, a free digital mental wellbeing support service for adults across the UK.
Qwell – Free digital mental wellbeing support
Qwell is well worth knowing about if you or anyone you know needs mental health support.
It’s a UK-based, free and anonymous digital platform designed for adults (18+), where you can access self-help tools, peer-support forums, and one-to-one chats with qualified practitioners. The best part is, you can access these tools without waiting lists or referrals.
What makes Qwell particularly appealing is the flexibility.
For instance, you can journal privately, track moods and goals, jump into community discussion boards when you want to connect, or book a chat when you need deeper support.
It’s available around the clock, every day of the year, so it’s very accessible for tech professionals.
Conclusion
Thanks to my wife, Claire, for bringing my attention to Qwell.
I’ve only just discovered and started using Qwell, so I can’t yet speak to it’s effectiveness.
However, any steps to provide free and easy to access support for mental health should be applauded.
I hope that Qwell can be another tool in helping people get the mental health support they need.
