Mental Health Ireland’s campaign, “Plan to Protect your mental health and wellbeing” celebrates World Mental Health Day by outlining five steps everybody can take to protect their mental health and wellbeing. These are:

Connect Do you connect with people around you? Family, friends, colleagues, neighbours? At home, work, school, in your local community?

Be active Do you exercise? Do you get outside, go for walks, potter in the garden? Have a sustainable pattern of doing more rather than being active one day and doing nothing for the rest of the week.

Take notice Are you aware of the world around you: sights, smells, sounds, temperature? Do you take time to notice how you are feeling? Do you savour the moment?

Keep learning When was the last time you tried something new? Have you set yourself a challenge recently?

Give Do you see yourself and your happiness in relation to the wider community? Have you tried volunteering? When did you last do something nice for a relative, friend or stranger?

MHI is a membership-based organisation of more than 100 mental health associations in Ireland. It is a founding member and the Irish representative for both Mental Health Europe and the World Federation for Mental Health.

See mentalhealthireland.ie, @MentalHealthIrl, #plantoprotect, facebook.com/Mental.Health.Ireland. Helpline: 01-4433890. You can text MHI to 50300 to donate €4 to Mental Health Ireland