Creative ways to use group video chat to manage mental health
We all need community. Now more than ever. The UK government speculates today that some degree of self-isolation will be necessary for up to a year or more. The lessons that we learn over the next few weeks will stay with us as a society for a lifetime. My number one takeaway? People — and their mental health — matter.
They matter to me, to my survival. If I’m going to come out of this well, I need the people around me to be mentally healthy. If they’re going to come out of this well, they need the same from me. It’s my responsibility to look after my mind, not only for myself, but for those around me. Particularly when we’re living in such close quarters with our nearest and dearest, and at the same time, so alone.
For a few years now, I’ve been running a video journalling app, Mental Snapp. I was just about to ditch it and entirely give up. Now I have found a new purpose. We may resurrect it, but with a community twist.
With that in mind, I’m hosting mental health workshops on the group video chat tool, Zoom, 6 pm UK Time, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays. It’s early days and they are rough around the edges, but we’re finding things out about the technology and its potential.
The great thing about technology is that it can be harnessed as a tool and that its…
