David experienced isolation and loneliness almost all his adult life. This caused feelings of depression and paranoia, making it more difficult to reach out for help. Thanks to support from services like the Stafford Centre in Edinburgh, David now has a valued social life and creative passions.

By taking part in art classes and walking groups, David built confidence to socialise and grow friendships, which has helped him manage feelings of depression and loneliness for the past 10 years.

“I felt isolated as my family lived far away and I didn’t have a circle of friends. I experienced a bereavement and struggled with depression for many years. The isolation and depression made me even more reluctant to reach out for help because I didn’t have any confidence and didn’t like the thought of being around people.

“I had a lot of fear and paranoia that people wouldn’t like me. Because of that I grew bitter towards the world. It was like a vicious cycle because the longer I was isolated, the more bitter and lonely I became, and at times this made me angry and unpleasant to be around. My loneliness made it less likely for people to want to be around me. It made me believe people didn’t want to be around me.”

When David reached out for support, he was referred to another mental health service called Outlook Project, which provides adult learning classes to people experiencing mental illness. During his time at Outlook, David found his passion for art and started to talk to people and make friends for the first time in his adult life. In 2013, he was encouraged to visit the Stafford Centre due to his love of art and opportunities to socialise in group activities.

The Stafford Centre in Edinburgh has been supporting people with their mental health in Edinburgh and the surrounding areas for over 30 years. It’s a community resource for people experiencing poor mental health with the aim of helping people to manage their mental wellbeing, gain greater self-confidence and become more integrated within the community.

The centre operates as a drop-in where people can enjoy the company of others in a relaxed, friendly and safe environment and begin to build supportive networks. The priority is to promote wellbeing and recovery, reduce feelings of isolation, and foster a sense of belonging.

In addition to outreach, one-to-one support and counselling, The Stafford Centre offer various group activities to support mental health, such as Tai Chi, art, music, wellbeing, walking, Yoga, and crafts. The centre also provide a cafe, a place where people can enjoy homemade soup and socialise with other visitors.

“The Stafford Centre has all sorts of classes – I was doing Tai Chi for a while. It’s nice to have different activities you can try with other people. I’ve noticed myself feeling much more confident over the years when chatting to different people and socialising. The place has always felt informal and it has a really lovely atmosphere. It’s a safe and non-judgemental place where you know they won’t look down on you. There’s still a lot of stigma towards mental health and some people still associate it with people being violent, which is untrue. But you don’t get any of that stigma around here and there should be more aware about what mental health actually is.”