15th – 21st May 2023
Mental Health Awareness Week gives us all a chance to slow down and focus on our emotional wellbeing. It’s important that we raise awareness so that more people struggling with their mental health feel they can come forward to ask for help.
This year’s theme is anxiety.

Anxiety is a normal emotion. It’s a natural reaction that can even keep us out of danger. But sometimes, it can hold us back.
Throughout our life, there are a lot of things that can lead to feelings of anxiety – exam pressures, relationships, losing a job or starting a new one, moving away from home, along with other big life events. As the cost of living increases, today many of us are anxious about our ability to meet basic needs like heating our home or even buying food.
When we start to feel anxious but don’t talk to anyone, things can quickly get out of control and we feel unable to cope.
Anxiety disorders affect over 8 million people in the UK – that’s a little over 1 in 10 of us.
At Youth Talk, we see a lot of young people struggling with anxiety. In 2021, anxiety was the most common reason young people gave for referring themselves to Youth Talk; in 2022, it was second after ‘worried about their mental health’.
One young person shared with us:
“I don’t think I would’ve recognised what was making me feel low and anxious.”
“I may have been too anxious to go to University or make any friends or move on with my life.”
If you know a young person struggling with anxiety it’s important to remind them that they aren’t alone.
Youth talk provide free and confidential one to one counselling – no one else needs to know.
We’re here and we’re listening.

Youth Talk’s awareness campaign:
Thank you all for:
- Engaging with and sharing our social media this Mental Health Awareness Week.
- Encouraging your friends, family or colleagues to take some time out and prioritise their wellbeing. Where that was enjoying a coffee and cake, going on a walk, doing some lunchtime yoga, or organising a sports session or team event.
We asked you to send us a photo of what you and your team got up to. We’ve had some amazing responses! But please do keep sending them in and we’ll add them to our website!
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