So Gemma, if someone's just beginning to realise that they're struggling with their mental health, where do they actually start without feeling overwhelmed?

I think that can be a very overwhelming place to start.

I would say whoever it is, speak to someone, which I know is always very vague advice.

But I think depending on the situation, you might go straight to the GP, which is a good place to go.

And I think you should eventually go there and get some medical you know eyes on the situation but equally I know that that can feel quite daunting and a bit overwhelming so I think if you have somebody anybody that you feel comfortable kind of talking to about how you're feeling whether that is making an appointment with a therapist if that feels better for you or a friend or a family member or a teacher or whoever I think just having some practice getting the words out can sometimes be the main thing.

And it might be that you struggle to get the words out and you need to write them down and you need to text someone and say, listen, I think I would struggle to have this conversation in person, but I'm really struggling with something, whatever it is, or just in general.

And Yeah I think speak to someone however you can do it would be you know it doesn't have to be immediately the perfect person for the job or exactly the way you would want to do it but just say something to someone and that's the first step and then you can take it from there is what I would say because I think Yeah, maybe digging too deep into trying to answer this question, but I've just heard the advice so many times, it's kind of always very blanket of, you know, if you think you're struggling with depression or anxiety, go and see your GP.

How do you think we manage that minefield? And do you think people need to maybe just think before describing their emotions a bit more?

Yeah.

So even when I was treating depression, treating anxiety, there was always something else, and it was, you know, "Oh, is it a bit of a mood disorder? Is it a this? Is it a that?" And it's like I just knew there was something.

I just never got to the bottom of it, and I feel like my mental health kind of continued to suffer due to that.

Well, not due to, but, like, that looming question mark, I feel like...

Well, put it this way, since I got my ADHD diagnosis, I haven't had a severe depressive episode in all the years that have followed, so I do think that's the reason why.

I'll come out and say it.

[laughs]

Mm-hmm