Suicide is the single biggest killer of men aged under 45 in the UK. Let that sink in. Mind charity state that 1 in 4 people in the UK will experience a mental health problem each year, and in England, 1 in 6 people report experiencing a common mental health problem (such as anxiety and depression) in any given week. New research has also shown that 84% of UK men bottle up their emotions and every week in the UK, 84 men take their own life. These statistics are utterly shocking and need to be talked about.

For our next part in our series of Conversations by ATIKA, we invited in George David Hodgson, Mental Health Advocate and owner of Maison de Choup. George and our store manager Sam discussed their own personal journeys with mental health, as well as men's mental health specifically and the importance of talking about how you are feeling.

We also got to learn more about George’s brand Maison de Choup. George started MdC after suffering from panic attacks and sketching and drawing on paper how he felt. This then gave him the idea of putting his designs onto t-shirts. The rest is history! George donates 25% of certain designs to Young Minds charity, who empower and support young people suffering from mental health.

Podcast: http://bit.ly/2HEwVHA

Suicide Prevention Hotline

1-800-273-8255

CALM

0800 58 58 58

SHOUT

Text 85258

Young Minds Parents Helpline

0800 802 5544

@hubofhope

Credits

George David Hodgson @georgedavidhodgson @maisondechoup www.soundcloud.com/maisondechoup www.maisondechoup.co.uk

Sam Sutton @sam_sutt

ATIKA London @atikalondon www.atikalondon.co.uk