Calls to Bristol mental health charity up by 50% in pandemic

Doctors have seen a rise in people reporting serious mental health difficulties

People phoning a mental health charity "explode with sadness" on some calls, a volunteer call handler has said.

Mind in Bristol said calls to its helpline had risen by 50% since the pandemic started.

The branch has upped services to seven days per week and added extra ways to get in contact online.

Volunteer Kathy said new callers were just about coping pre-pandemic but lockdown was "the straw that broke the camel's back".

In 2020 a group of NHS leaders said doctors were seeing a rise in people reporting severe mental health difficulties.

It followed a more than 30% drop in referrals to mental health services during the peak of the pandemic.

Kathy started volunteering for Mindline after seeing her mum help a friend through a bereavement

Kathy started volunteering for Mindline in April 2019 and said things at work had gradually changed.

She said she noticed new callers were just about coping pre-pandemic but then lockdown "became the straw that broke the camel's back".

"You can hear this pressure over the line, like they need the frustration, sadness and scariness to just explode out of them.

"I've had calls where, as soon as I picked up the phone, they've started to sob, as if hearing another voice at the end of the phone has given them that space to finally let it out.

"Sometimes they've managed to talk through their tears for an entire 30 minutes, which shows an incredible amount of strength and determination to keep going through whatever is thrown at them.

"How a call can start with tears and end with laughter is a fascinating insight on how humans can overcome so much."

'New ways of working'

Bristol Mind CEO, Jo Min, said the pandemic had affected her team's mental wellbeing too.

"With the pandemic dominating the news and the continuing rise in deaths, this has had a huge impact on the mental wellbeing of our teams and those we support," she said.

"With the growing need for services, Bristol Mind has had to adapt quickly to new ways of working.

"It's so important that we are here right now and I call upon anyone in need of help to call us."

For information and support on mental health, access the BBC Action Line.