Mental Health

[John Reyes]

Hi there,

I have been affected by mental health issues during the Gold Members Elections and in the period leading up to them and before hand.

I was wondering what people's views are on mental health and what the ECF and local leagues could do to support those who may be struggling.

Does your club or league do anything to raise awareness of mental health or provide support to members?

Personally, I attend Andy's Man Club, and in April I became a facilitator because I wanted to give something back. The support I received helped me through a difficult period, and I know firsthand how much negative experiences and personal challenges can affect a person's wellbeing and mental health.

I would be interested to hear about other people's experiences and any initiatives that clubs or leagues have in place.

[Christopher Kreuzer]

Thank you for posting about this, John. I don't know of anything personally within local or national chess, but I am aware of community and NHS support structures. I find chess helps my mental wellbeing, but if I found it was affecting it (or administrating chess was affecting my enjoyment of the game) I would talk to those who I know in the chess community and/or seek help outside the chess structure.

I say the latter, because I tend to compartmentalise chess from other areas of my life. Other people obviously take different approaches as suits them. I do agree that chess could do more to signpost ways to get support, but I would not necessarily expect it. One thing I have found that does help is to be a member of more than one chess club, though that approach is not available to everyone.