“This is just the start” – Langworthy Reds tackle stigma of mental health problems

After losing one of their own nearly six years ago, Salford rugby club Langworthy Reds have decided to tackle the stigma that is mental health.

In 2013 first team player Kenny Davis lost his life due to mental health issues and now his club have decided to do something in his memory..

With the help of charity State of Mind, the club hosted a mental health talk last week, with ex-rugby player Dan Scully.

We had a great weekend in our club house with @danscully8 from @stateofmindsprt attending to conduct a talk on #MentalHealth to all our club members. It was a great talk and a real eye opener for us all.#MondayMotivation #ItsOkayToTalk #ChildrensMentalHealthWeek pic.twitter.com/ZFqhBtTiQs

— Langworthy Reds (@LangworthyReds) February 4, 2019

Jack Mellor, a member who helped arrange the event, said: “We wanted to do something because we believe this issue should be tackled and we want to see more done from charities.

“We lost one of our own in Kenny in 2013 and we don’t want a repeat, it’s important we spread the word.”

Full house and ready for a @stateofmindsprt talk with @danscully8! pic.twitter.com/eXLi9dVj6A

— Langworthy Reds (@LangworthyReds) February 2, 2019

State of Mind aims to promote a positive look on mental health within sports and ultimately want to prevent suicide from sportspeople who think their lives aren’t worth living when they have given up their said sport.

Mellor said: “It’s great to see what they are doing. They realise the stigma and want to tackle it.

“They have been a real support and we really want to do more to help.”

Great talk from @danscully8 on state of mind for our local @LangworthyReds inspirational talk from the big man thanks all for your time ??

— Chris Morley (@Morley133Chris) February 2, 2019

The charity was set up in 2011 and has grew from strength to strength over the last few years.

Mellor said: “The first talk was a great success, the players feel a lot more comfortable to discuss issues now.

“This is just the start, going forward we are planning on regular talks on Monday evenings and hopefully we can remove the stigma.”

If you play sport and are struggling with the mental health issues related, then you can contact State of Mind via Twitter.

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