NUS warns that more and more students in England are turning to dangerous methods in order to afford the £9000 a year University fees.

According to the English Collective of Prostitutes, which runs a helpline for people working in the sex industry, the number of calls it receives from students has at least doubled over the last year.

Research from the University of Kingston suggests that 20% of women working as lap dancers are students and 16% of all students asked said they would consider working in the sex industry.

Sarah Walker, who works for a prostitute helpline, has noticed an increase in calls since the government announced the planned rise in tuition fees. She told the BBC: “they [government ministers] know that the cuts they’re making are driving women into things like sex work. It’s a survival strategy so we would hold the government responsible for that.”

One young woman has revealed how she started working as an escort when she was 17 in order to fund her £70 weekly travel expenses to college.

The woman decided that in order to complete her A levels and eventually make it to University, she would have to find a job that didn’t clash with her study hours. In the end a friend encouraged her to work for his escort agency and she accepted.

According to the BBC, the young woman now thoroughly regrets her decision and has lost self-confidence and trust in others as a result. She encourages other young people in her position to find out as much as possible about available grants and benefits before making such life-changing decisions.

In light of these worrying reports, the Department of Education has released plans to offer £180 million worth of financial support to the most vulnerable 16-19 year olds hoping to go to University.

If you have worked or are working in the sex industry and you want to speak with a counsellor, you can find out more about the help on offer by visiting Types of Distress. Alternatively you can search for a counsellor using the search tool on the Counselling Directory homepage. 

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The charity’s Taking Care of Business campaign found that an alarming number of employees believe they could face the sack for admitting they feel stressed or depressed.

Of those surveyed 41 per cent said they considered stress to be a taboo subject and 46 per cent said they felt that taking time off for stress was seen as an excuse for something else.

Staff were afraid to openly discuss stress in the workplace as they felt this could put them to the top of the list for job cuts and redundancies. Unfortunately there concerns were not unfounded, with 22 per cent of those who had disclosed a mental health concern to their boss in a previous role having been sacked or forced from their jobs.

In a bid to end workplace discrimination Mind are calling for the implementation of the following:

Employers to encourage open and supportive work environments, where employees can discuss mental health without fear of discrimination

Employers to treat mental health problems with the same importance as physical health problems

Employers to ensure protecting mental health is embedded in change management, in order to manage extra pressure on remaining staff

Businesses of all sizes to make supporting staff wellbeing a corporate priority

Businesses to introduce workplace mental health policies that promote wellbeing for all staff, tackle work-related mental health problems and support staff who are experiencing mental distress.

For full details of the study please visit Mind and to read a related article about how mental health discrimination is costing businesses billions please view the counselling directory blog archive.

According to a recent survey conducted by Post Office Travel Insurance, heavy workloads and long working hours mean that the average Brit now needs six holidays every year to avoid becoming ill, anxious or aggressive.

Whilst a week in a UK holiday park or a few days camping by the seaside used to be enough to please our ancestors,  a quarter of todays workers now feel so pressured at work that they are ‘desperate’ to getaway every few weeks.

The survey revealed that in order to stay focused at work we need to take ourselves on a break at least every 62 days, with those who wait longer than two months standing an increased risk of becoming anxious, aggressive and ill.

However, understandably work and home commitments mean that very few of us are able to take a short break every couples of months, with almost half (44 per cent) going without a holiday for half a year or more.

Though some individuals do take a while to let their stresses and strains go, the majority find they feel more relaxed as soon as they begin their getaway with over 50 per cent of those surveyed feeling ‘fully refreshed’ after just one or two days away from the office.

Organisational psychology and health professor, Cary Cooper, has said that redundancies across the country have led to the number of employees falling in workplaces but not the workload. This means that as a result, many employees are working harder and longer for no extra benefits.

‘People who fail to go on holiday are more likely to become anxious, aggressive and withdrawn. They may also develop aches and pains and struggle to sleep. Over-working depresses your immune system, making it more likely you will catch a cold or the flu.’ She said.

View the original Daily Mail article.

Discrimination and stigma in the workplace can prevent employees with depression from seeking help and can end up costing the economy billions, reports the Independent.

According to a recent survey conducted by mental health charity Mind, a huge number of workers feel that they are unable to discuss their mental health concerns with colleagues or employers.

The Taking care of business campaign which was published yesterday, revealed that 1 in 5 people thought that mentioning their stress levels at work would put them to the top of the redundancy list.

The survey of over 2000 workers also revealed that 41 per cent of the employees surveyed were currently stressed or very stressed in their jobs, 48 per cent were concerned about taking time of work sick and 7 in 10 said their boss wouldn’t help them to cope with stress.

According to the Centre for Mental Health (CMH) last year the financial effects of mental illness in the workplace reached £26bn, an indicator that more needs to be done by employers to prevent workers from falling into a downward spiral of anxiety and depression.

Mind is now campaigning to challenge this stigma in the workplace and wants employers to begin identifying and supporting staff who are struggling with either stress or mental health problems.

Mind spokeswoman Amy Whitlock commented that mental health problems still remain the elephant in the room. ”Poor communication fuels the problem because if your boss or manager doesn’t even ask how you are, how could you possibly approach them about anything more sensitive? There is still a culture of denial which means employees are afraid to speak out because they fear discrimination or being thought of as weak, and employers are afraid to broach the subject in case they make things worse”. She said.

CMH chief executive, Andy Bell has said that the message of openness must come from the top but managers and supervisors are also key to the process as they are the ones who will spot signs of employees under performing. CMH’s new report Managing Presenteeism will show employers how to detect mental health problems early on as well as recommending better support. The report is to be published later this month.

For further information about Mind and their services please visit www.mind.org.uk and for information about counselling for depression, stress , anxiety and career counselling please visit our fact-sheets.

Researchers from Harvard Medical school in Boston analysed the records of over 17,400 women in their 50s and 60s, all of whom provided information about their work strains and any job insecurities they had.

What the researchers found was that women who described their roles as ‘highly stressful’ with little opportunity to use any of their creative skills, were 40 per cent more likely to develop heart disease, 43 per cent more likely to need heart surgery and a staggering 88 per cent more likely to have a heart attack than those in a relaxed role.

Additional findings included the discovery that women who were concerned about losing their job were far more at risk of being overweight and having both high blood pressure and cholesterol.

Head researcher of the study Dr Michelle Albert believes that an element of stress actually plays a positive role in our working lives, but believes we need to learn how to manage the negative aspects more effectively.

Dr Albert recommends that doctors make more of an effort to ask their female patients about their work pressures and suggests that women with high pressure jobs take precautions to protect both their physical and mental wellbeing by regularly exercising, leaving work at work and having a good support network of friends and family.

Researcher Dr Peter Kaufmann from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute in Maryland, said ‘This new data is among the most important to emerge in recent years concerning the relationship between job strain and cardiovascular health.’

If you are struggling to cope with the demands of your current job role and are considering either a change in direction or would be interested in learning ways to manage your job stresses, please visit our career counselling and stress counselling fact-sheets for information about how counselling may be able to help you. Alternatively, to contact a counseller in your local area to discuss this matter directly, please use the search tool located on the homepage to locate a qualified professional in your local area.

View the original article here

A new poll of 500 business leaders carried out by Trajectory has revealed that four in 10 managers believe recruiting individuals with mental health conditions in a job which involves dealing with the public or clients poses a ‘significant risk’. In addition to this, nearly one in four were unable to name a single mental illness.

The survey, which was carried out on behalf of the Shaw Trust (a charity which provides employment services for disabled and disadvantaged people) also found that up to three-quarters of the companies have no formal policy when it comes to stress and mental illness.

The poll also revealed that one in four companies are of the belief that individuals with a mental health concern are less reliable that other employees. Director of colleague engagement at Sainsbury’s supermarket, Jacki Connor, has actually said many stores find people with mental health issues to be more reliable and staff absence among them is below average.

Though far more needs to be done to eliminate this stigma, there are signs which indicate that times are changing. According to figures, back in 2006 only 11 per cent of companies employed someone with a mental health condition, a figure which has now raised to 21 per cent.

View the original article here

To cope with the high level of depressed fisherman who are now out of work the St Bernard Project has been set up in the small town of Chalmette. The charity offers free counselling to fishing families who have been affected by the oil spill.

The project was set up five years ago by Zack Rosenburg and his partner Liz McCartney who after seeing the devastation of Hurricane Katrina on TV left their jobs in Washington DC and moved to Louisiana.

The couple initially set up the project to help people rebuild their homes, but realised that once people began work on their homes they were missing the vitality of life they once had.

“They were missing this richness in their life. And so we decided, if we were going to rebuild people’s homes, we also have to make sure we’re rebuilding their lives.”

A little over a year ago the St Bernard Project started to offer victims of the hurricane therapy which would help them to handle their emotional turmoil. Since the oil spill has happened the charity is now offering help to families trying to cope with that.

They have found that the wives of fishermen are more open to talk about the impact the oil spill is having on their lives and are hoping to position a centre closer to the site which will see both male and female counsellors visiting the community to reinforce the message that those who are struggling are not alone.

Read more here.

As mentioned last week by Counselling Directory, mental health charity Mind has compiled a study on workplace stress and have found that 10 per cent of Britain’s workers have visited their doctors due to work stress and 7 per cent have started taking antidepressants as a result of workplace worries.

The most recent findings from NHS figures show that last year has seen the biggest rise in antidepressant prescriptions on record, rising from 35.9 million in 2008 to 39.1 million in 2009.

Experts believe the huge increase could be a result of much longer working hours, competition with colleagues over promotions and low morale as many companies try to cut their costs.

The nature of workplace stress often means that people end up taking work home with them resulting in pressure spilling over into personal life and eventually having a detrimental effect on a persons entire lifestyle and wellbeing.

If you are feeling an increase in responsibility and pressure at work then you may find it useful to talk to an outside party. A counsellor is a fantastic way to help you understand why you are feeling the way you do and they will help you to regain control and perspective. You can contact a qualified professional in your local area using the homepage of this site.

View the original article here.

After returning from one of the two countries it was found that one in seven military personal had turned heavily to drink at a rate which is 22 per cent higher than those who remained at home.

The study of 10,000 troops was commissioned after the military received warnings that rising casualty rates and repeated deployments would lead to an epidemic of mental health problems later, something which has already happened in the US.

Troops who were repeatedly deployed to war zone had currently not experienced an increase in mental health issues but experts have said we should prepare. It is thought that the reason this has not yet happened is due to the fact that a troop who comes back suffering with problems is unlikely to be deployed again, therefor making those deployed multiple times are more psychologically robust.

Professor Wessely said the NHS, military mental health services and charities should nevertheless prepare for an increase in the number of personnel returning with mental health problems, because of the increased numbers being committed to Afghanistan.

Read the full story here.

Volunteers were asked to memorise the layout of a 3D computer maze so they could find their way around it several hours later.

It was found that those who dreamt about a new task tend to perform it better on waking than those who don’t sleep or dream.

Those who were allowed to have a nap during the study found their way to the landmark quicker than those who had not slept. It is thought that the reason for this is due to parts of the unconscious mind working hard to process the task information whilst we are sleeping.

Authors of the study Dr Robert Stickgold of Harvard Medical School and Dr Erin Wamsley believe that dreams may be an indication that the brain is working on the same problem at many levels and have said the study suggests our non conscious brain works on the things it deems as most important.

The scientists say that this could pave the way for an improvement in learning and memory, for example students might be better studying before bedtime, or taking a nap after a study period.

Read the original article here.