NHS England Advice: Coping with stress following a major incident
Following the tragedy at Grenfell Tower in North Kensington, and the recent attacks in central London and Manchester, we want to share the advice NHS England has issued on coping with stress following a major incident and on how to find mental health support services.
It is normal to have strong emotional responses to traumatic event and it is important to keep communicating with each other, and through support helplines. We all need to make space and time to talk and listen.
Immediately after a traumatic event like this, most young people and adults, from all of our communities and cultures, will benefit from general support, and will not benefit from specific formal psychological therapy, including counselling.
In the immediate aftermath, do not encourage people to relive their experience, this is different to them spontaneously talking about it.
Most young people and adults do not go on to develop mental health conditions and recover naturally but if symptoms are severe or continue for more than four weeks, get in contact with your specialist mental health service, through a trusted source, for example your GP.
You can find more information on the Gov.uk website.
People living in North West London (including Brent, Harrow, Hillingdon, Kensington and Chelsea, and Westminster) and Milton Keynes, can also find information about mental health support and crisis services on the CNWL website.
Read more about mental health support services in North West London and Milton Keynes.
Finding mental health and emotional support services
Following the tragedy at Grenfell Tower in North Kensington and the recent attacks in central London and Manchester, we want to make sure that people know how to find mental health and emotional support services.
Talking Therapies Services
People living in Brent, Harrow, Hillingdon, Kensington and Chelsea, Westminster and Milton Keynes can self-refer to our Talking Therapies Services which offer a range of psychological therapies to support people who are feeling anxious, depressed, stressed or worried.
For our London services, visit www.cnwltalkingtherapies.org.uk to complete an online self-referral form.
You can also call us on the numbers below:
Brent Talking Therapies Service
Tel: 020 8206 3924
Harrow Talking Therapies Service
Tel: 020 8515 5015 / 5016
Hillingdon Talking Therapies Service
Tel: 01895 206 800
Milton Keynes IAPT
Tel: 01908 228830
Take Time to Talk Service – Kensington and Chelsea, Queen’s Park and Paddington
Tel: 020 8206 8700 (North Hub) and 020 7349 2400 (South Hub)
Westminster Talking Therapies Service
Tel: 030 3333 0000
Adult mental health services in North West London
Our Single Point of Access provides a first point of contact for people wishing to access adult community mental health services in Brent, Harrow, Hillingdon, Kensington and Chelsea, and Westminster.
People can refer themselves or make enquiries on behalf of a family member of friend. We also take referrals from GPs, other services such as police and London Ambulance Service and other healthcare professionals.
We are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week and 365 days a year. The Single Point of Access incorporates our CNWL Out-of-Hours Urgent Advice Line (UAL) which offers out-of-hours crisis support and advice to people in the boroughs above and in Milton Keynes.
Single Point of Access Tel: 0800 0234 650
Read more about what to do in a mental health crisis.
Read more about our Single Point of Access Service.
CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services)
You can find full details for all of our Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) on our website: www.camhsandme.org.uk
NHS England has issued advice to people on coping with stress following a major incident and how to find support with this. Read more about the advice from NHS England.