Tom Boyd speaks on Mental Health. Video supplied
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NewsTranscript
00:00 (gentle music)
00:02 - Throughout the 2016 year,
00:07 clearly we had an amazing year,
00:09 managed to win the flag,
00:10 which was an incredible experience.
00:12 But I think from my point of view,
00:14 I probably covered up a lot of the cracks
00:16 that were starting to appear in my mental health.
00:18 And I was really struggling with quite a bit of stress,
00:22 and though I didn't know it at the time,
00:24 a bit of anxiety and sort of
00:26 really not feeling great about myself.
00:29 I started suffering from quite bad insomnia
00:31 and spent probably a month to six weeks
00:34 without sleeping really at all.
00:36 The real moment where my mind started to turn
00:40 was having panic attacks when I was driving.
00:42 And I suppose the physiological effect
00:45 of your heart racing and sweating
00:48 and you can't concentrate, feeling dizzy.
00:50 That was a really, really challenging
00:52 period of time in my life.
00:53 I was seeing a psychologist from the club
00:55 who was an amazing support for me.
00:57 And quite honestly, not sure what would have happened
01:00 if she wasn't there.
01:02 It's hard for some people to sort of understand.
01:05 It's not tangible, it's not something you can see.
01:09 You know, some of the things that can be really helpful
01:10 during challenging times.
01:12 For me, something as simple as monitoring your breathing
01:15 and getting on top of, I suppose,
01:18 moments where you feel anxious or nervous or stressed out.
01:22 And all things that are, in a way,
01:26 putting money in the bank in terms of your mental health,
01:28 really sort of continuing to look after yourself,
01:31 make decisions that are helpful.
01:34 And now I can address everything realistically
01:38 and say, you know what, I'm not feeling great.
01:40 Let's go and do something enjoyable.
01:41 Let's take the dog for a walk, go surfing,
01:44 take the camera out, do anything,
01:45 and just invest in enjoying life
01:48 and trying to be yourself.
01:50 We always have to make time to try
01:51 and really look after your mental health.
01:53 And that's clearly one of the really important
01:56 parts of your life.
01:56 And even as of a couple of years ago,
01:59 I really had no idea about some of the techniques
02:01 that you can use to not only deal
02:03 with mental health issues, but also to prevent them.
02:05 I think the one thing that severe anxiety
02:10 and depression will teach you is a real self-awareness
02:13 and an ability to monitor your own mental headspace
02:17 more effectively and really unwind.
02:19 (upbeat music)
02:22 (upbeat music)
02:24 (upbeat music)
02:27 [BLANK_AUDIO]