R U OK? Day is on Thursday 12th September 2019.
R U Ok? Day is about starting a conversation that can change someone’s life. All it takes is to start a conversation if you have a niggling feeling that someone you know, a family member, a colleague or someone you care about isn’t behaving like they normally do. Trust that gut instinct!
Ask them how they are and let them know that you have noticed that they are not their usual self. They may seem more agitated or withdrawn, not displaying their usual personality or they are just not acting like themselves. Trust and follow your gut instinct and then act on it.
By starting a conversation and commenting on the changes you’ve noticed, you could help that family member, friend, colleague, loved one or workmate open up. If they say they are not ok, show them that they are supported and help them find strategies to better manage the load they are under or how or where to get help from professionals. By asking how they are and showing support to that person they will know you’re someone who cares enough to ask.
Get involved. Make sure you listen and encourage the person to take action to get help and also check in with them regularly to see how they are doing. By checking in on them regularly it shows that they are not alone and that people do care about them and that it was not just a fleeting interest.
The R U Ok? Website has strategies on how to ask, listen, encourage and check in. It will help empower you to meaningfully connect with the people around you and help you start a conversation with anyone who you’ve identified may be struggling with life. It also provides links to places that you can link the person with and resources and stories about others struggling so that they know that they are not the only ones struggling.
There are many resources available to the public on the R U OK? Website. Check them out it could change someone’s life, if not your own.
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