Something new is here, part of my COPE Campaign and it’s FREE and potentially important for absolutely everyone.
Unstable or stable, big or small, kind or shady, rich or poor, family-friendly or lonely-liver, whoever we are, we all need support in a crisis.
After finding myself needing help and advice for my horribly dangerous internal narrative, I started talking to a charity helpline about my suicidal thoughts. One of the ideas that was discussed was a safety plan. It occurred to me that such a simple plan shouldn’t be put together at the time of crisis, it should be ready long before, as a preventative measure.
A few weeks of designing and ideas followed (all on my own, as always) and the MOSAIC campaign and card was born.
What is a mosaic card?
Most mental health centered organisations (such as the NHS and mental health charities) create this type of safety plan with those already in crisis as a suicide prevention tool, but, as I say, that can sometimes be leaving it too late.
My hope is that MOSAIC cards will prevent more lives being lost by making it simple for those in crisis to remember who their trusted friends are if the shit hits the fan. So I designed and printed them for the first time in 2023.
As someone who’s entered crisis on multiple occasions, I understand first hand what it’s like when your brain feels overloaded. Knowing what to do is difficult, feeling like the world around you is closing in as the desperation and panic takes over. You don’t feel safe and the isolation is overpowering. It’s no wonder, therefore, that many people don’t know who to call when they feel this low.
As my dedicated page of mental health and suicide prevention support lines shows, there are lots of organisations and charities that offer help and they are bloody brilliant, but they come with challenges. Some have limited opening hours, some are overwhelmed, some only cover a particular area, some only support a particular demographic, some only support a particular type of mental health concern…the list goes on.
The NHS also has a growing mental health system and you’ll definitely need their intervention for long term treatment. However, I’ve heard of NHS crisis lines that don’t return your call for 72 hours. When I recently called my local 111 Mental Health Crisis line I was told I’d be waiting 3 days. I left a message to enable something long-term, but had to go elsewhere for immediate help. How does a 3 day wait support someone with suicidal thoughts?
In a crisis, I need support to prevent my anxiety getting worse, sometimes dangerously, and being a patient on hold for so long is only adding to the problem.
Friends and family are a critical part of our social support systems, but just like medication, each person in our life serves a different purpose, as we do for them. Working out the best person to approach for help can be tricky, especially when you’re distracted by high levels of stress.
There is a gaping hole in the mental health support system right now, and the wait for treatment, advice and other help is often exhausting, which only makes those under mental distress even more mentally distressed. While we wait and hope for the challenges to be ironed out, we need a solution and community could be part of the answer. Neighbours, family and friends coming forward and offering to mutually support those we love.
We need to feel assured that the person or organisation we call in a crisis will make themselves available, take us seriously, listen to our situation, talk about it with care, and help us find the right support for long term recovery. That’s a huge amount to calculate when we’re on our own and already in a mental health decline. I’ve been there myself, which is why the MOSAIC card was created.
Formatted to be as small as a folded business card, the MOSAIC design is ready for anyone to complete their own MOSAIC list, then store it safely in a purse, wallet or phone case, primed and ready to act as a reminder of where to go for reliable mental health support, if and when needed.
This is a mutual offer, and an offer that might never need to be taken up, but if you find yourself struggling you’ll be relieved to know you’ve pre-organised who you can rely on.
The MOSAIC list is a simple but important mental health and suicide prevention tool for ANYONE to keep handy.
More information on MOSAIC plans and cards is available on my new, dedicate page, within the COPE campaign section of this site.
I’m really proud to have the first batch printed and ready for use, and my partner has kindly handed some out for me already.
I’m hoping to provide these cards free of charge with only postage costs, but I’m still working out the technical side, so more information will be available soon.
If you are interested in having some cards for you and your friends, or if you are an organisation that would like some sent for your employees, please email me at steph@creativesteph.co.uk to go on the waitlist.
In the meantime, you are welcome to print or copy my design above in order to get your own MOSAIC plan put together as soon as possible.
Trust me, there is no time like the present.
For more ideas on promoting good mental health, please take a look at my regularly updated stress distraction tools page, as well as the Hold Humour, Crap Poems, Weird Words and Haiku Hope series of silly readables to distract you while you’re on hold. I also have pages dedicated to sleep hacks, breathing techniques, kid friendly stress hacks and adult only stress hacks.
Remember that you should always make contact with your GP, local mental health service or the NHS 111 service to start the road to full and long lasting recovery. If you need to use them, your MOSAIC buddies should understand they’ll need to help you achieve this as a priority.
Take care, and thanks for visiting 💜
Creative Steph 