A new advice and support line opens on Tuesday 9 March for key workers across Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes. The line (01908 724227) will be open on Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm (except 12pm to 1pm).

This advice line is part of the Keeping Well Service, which launched in January to provide rapid access to mental health support for staff working in the NHS, social care and the voluntary sector.

From today the service will also be extended to include all emergency services (such as the Police, Ambulance Service and Fire Brigade) and teachers across the region.

The Covid-19 pandemic has brought considerable challenges and stresses for many of us, but particularly for key workers. You may be working longer hours, seeing friends and colleagues become unwell, being asked to work in unfamiliar areas. You may have worries about your own or your family’s health and safety. You might be exhausted from juggling the pressures of home life and childcare, social isolation and the uncertainty that this period brings to all our lives.

If you need someone to talk to then the Keeping Well hub is here

Common difficulties include isolation, bereavement, panic attacks, drinking or eating more and taking drugs.

Some people may have experienced these mental health issues for the first time during the pandemic while others will have seen them return. The hub can also help with pre-existing difficulties such as:

• Difficulties sleeping
• Trouble falling or staying asleep or sleeping too much
• Little interest or pleasure in doing things
• Changes to your appetite
• Feeling tired or having little energy
• Trouble concentrating
• Feeling nervous anxious or on edge
• Worrying too much about different things
• Trouble relaxing
• Becoming easily annoyed or irritable
• Being very afraid of a specific thing (e.g. injections/ needles, certain animals, lifts)

The number is not the only way to reach out. You can also use the website ‘live-chat’ where you can, in confidence, discuss your personal or professional struggles and wellbeing needs with a trained wellbeing professional at www.keepingwellblmk.nhs.uk or request a call back or email us if you can’t discuss the difficulty at that time.

The website also offers webinars, videos and self help resources for anyone in the region.

To access any of this support, there’s no need for you to travel; they’ll speak to you on the phone or in a video consultation.

Call 01908 724227 today, the Keeping Well Service is here for you

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