This week is Mental Health Awareness Week, with ‘kindness,’ very pertinently as its theme this year. Miss Munro-Hall, Head of PSHCEE, tackled the topic at her virtual assembly and invited Year 9 Wellbeing Leads and Year 12 Psychology Reps to share their ideas for improving our wellbeing and mental health, with ways to support and deal with any feelings of worry we might be experiencing during these unusual times.

Eva, the first of our Year 9 Wellbeing Leads, spoke about how the smallest of kindness can make such a difference. Her tip: the next time you leave your house, maybe smile at people or wave ‘hello.’ It’s more important than ever to treat people with kindness. Anna then spoke about how humans are not designed to be isolated for long periods of time and the importance of staying healthy and happy at home. She suggested staying in touch with your friends from school, either by Facetime or House Party so that there are always other people to talk to if you’re feeling down. Try to keep yourself occupied – maybe try out some new activities that you wouldn’t normally do, like baking.

Diya advocated staying positive. Even though your friends are not physically with you, you can still do workouts with them, or make face masks together online. It’s a good idea to stay in touch with your immediate and extended family – you can make their day with a call or a message. Surprise your friends or family on their birthday – tell them how much they mean to you with a message, call, card or present.

For Shobhitha, quarantine is getting a little boring, so she has been trying something that she and her sister have never been good at before – baking! And now “we are pretty much professional bakers now!” Family board games nights are intense but fun – she can recommend ‘Exploding Kittens.’ And if you need to de-stress after an eventful Exploding Kittens, try some exercise or yoga.

As Asina said, quarantine continues to be a challenge to find the best way to adapt our lives. But just because we are at home doesn’t mean we can’t get help or seek advice as there are many online counselling services available, or you can always talk to any of the Wellbeing Leads too. Stay indoors, stay safe and stay happy!

Miss Munro-Hall then looked at the science of kindness and how it affects us all. It can sometimes feel like the world is getting harder out there, particularly during quarantine, but there are lots of examples of people being kind to each other and making the world a better place for all of us. Being kind all starts with one person – YOU! As The Random Acts of Kindness Foundation said “Kindness is the only thing that doubles when you share it.” But it is proved by science that by carrying out one random act of kindness a day, it can not only reduce YOUR stress and anxiety as your body is flooded with hormones, but also the person you have helped will feel healthier and happier. As other people see this act of kindness, they too can be filled with the same hormones (serotonin, endorphins and oxytocin) and are more likely to be kind to other people too as they follow the example. Miss Munro-Hall quoted big examples like Captain Tom Moore’s NHS fundraising, but even the smallest act of kindness can make such a difference to someone else. A random act of kindness can even be something as simple as just smiling and really meaning it.

Deputy Head Mrs Irwin then shared some of the lovely small acts of kindness from NHEHS students, including the Head Girl team sharing their ‘Ideas for Isolation’ document and Mr Futter making hundreds of pieces of PPE for the NHS with our DT department. At the end of last term Year 11 wrote letters to the elderly in care homes showing their understanding and compassion of loneliness, while our Charities and Volunteering Reps provide ongoing volunteering and fundraising opportunities through their regular Charities Newsletter. Finally, Mrs Irwin praised our student volunteers who used to go to read regularly at Drayton Green Primary School. These girls cannot physically go to the school at the moment, but to make up for it have made video recordings of themselves for the young pupils to help keep up their enthusiasms for reading and learning.

The assembly ended on a high note with our Psychology Reps sharing their tips on how to work on mindfulness of the moment. A good place to start for beginners are the Calm or Headspace apps, which are great for meditation, de-stressing and relaxation. The Mindfulness app gives a great overview of what mindfulness is and what small activities you can do to welcome it into your mind during the day. They also recommended working on your breathing, trying some mindful colouring, having plenty of fresh air and making sure you take time each day to focus on the positives.

Miss Munro-Hall would like girls to share their random acts of kindness, no matter how big or small. Please send them to her and she will make them into an NHEHS Scrapbook of Kindness, both online and to go in the atrium when we are back at school.