Smoking: it's good to be a quitter

Wednesday 9 March is No Smoking Day. While studies show that two-thirds of smokers want to quit, nearly one in five UK adults continue to smoke.

We spoke to Sheila Wright, one of our Non-Executive Directors, about giving up.

Sheila’s story

"My first experience of smoking was aged nine years, smoking cigarettes supplied by friends who had ‘stolen’ them from their parents. By 16 I was addicted to nicotine, financed through my dinner money and pocket money.

Young people and self-harm

We spoke to Marie Armstrong, Clinical Lead for the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) self-harm team, to find out about young people experiencing self-harm.

My name in Marie Armstrong, and I have been Nurse Consultant, Clinical Lead for the CAMHS self-harm team for 15 years. During that time it has been a privilege that so many young people have shared their different stories, their experiences, pain and distress but also their hopes and recoveries with me.

What is self-harm?

Self-harm includes things like cutting, burning or taking an overdose – harming yourself in any way. Self-harm can affect adults as well as young people, and lots of the advice in this blog applies to adults, too.