For Mental Health Awareness Week we wanted to share with you our top 10 tips on how to keep positive during lockdown. 

18 - 22 May 2020 is Mental Health Awareness Week and this year the focus is on kindness. We realise the past 58 days and counting may have been difficult for many, our lives have been upheaved. We’ve been told to stay at home, we can’t see our loved ones, schools are closed, many people are on furlough or muddling through working from home and our trips and holidays are being cancelled. We realise it’s a tough time, more so than usual but we wanted to provide you with some helpful tips on how to keep positive throughout this strange time. 

Watch a webcam 

Are you missing your favourite destinations? Check out these webcams, live streamings from each location. 

Derwentwater Marina, Lake District 

Windermere Lake Cruises, Lake District

Ullswater Steamers, Lake District

Whitby Yacht Club, North York Moors

Malham Village, Yorkshire Dales

Whaley Moor, Peak District

Mam Tor, Peak District 

Swaledale, Yorkshire Dales

PortMeirion, North Wales

Llandudno, North Wales

Take time to reflect

Take some time to reflect, evaluate and re-prioritise your life. During lockdown we’ve had lots of time to think about what’s important, whether it’s your family and friends, health and wellbeing, lifestyle, work life balance. Why not write a list of all your thankful for to remind you once life is back to it’s hectic self. 

Do some baking or cooking

Why not try a new recipe or bake a cake, for yourself or a neighbour. Here’s some yummy recipes for local delicacies we love!

Grasmere Gingerbread, Lake District 

Bakewell Tart, Peak District 

Wensleydale Creamery, Yorkshire Dales

Sticky Toffee Pudding, Lake District 

Welshcakes, North Wales 

Yorkshire Puddings, Yorkshire

Catch up with family, friends, neighbours and work colleagues. 

We’re all in this together. Pick up the phone, organise a zoom quiz or send a postcard to your family, friends, neighbours and work colleagues so they know you’re thinking of them during lockdown. 

Be charitable

Many charities are really struggling having no income during lockdown, why not make your kindness act for Mental Health Awareness Week a charitable donation. Make a small donation to your chosen charity or a Mental Health Charity like Mind, Young Minds, Heads Together or your favourite local charity such as the Lake District Foundation.

Plan your next trip

Use your time to plan your next adventure, whether it’s later this year or 2021, start researching travel destinations. Mountain Goat can help you organise all your UK travel needs, we offer scheduled and private tours of England, Wales & Scotland. Our expertise will help you discover the hidden gems of the Lake District, the adventure capital of North Wales, the Instagram worthy destinations in Yorkshire, the foodie hubs of the Peak District and the historic cities amongst much much more! 

Get crafty

Whether you’re an expert or an ameatur it’s fun to get crafty every once in a while. With the theme of Mental Health Awareness Week being Kindness, why not make a key workers or an NHS staff member a thank you card or poster. Now more so than ever, we are so grateful for all the hardworking key workers and NHS staff during the coronavirus panamedic - show them some love! 

If you’ve got little ones, you could get ahead of the game and start making your Father's Day card (21st June) with Herdys fun card ideas. 

Do your daily exercise

Make the most of the glorious weather we’re having and get out of the house and take your daily exercise during lockdown. Spending time in nature and green spaces helps your mental health as well as your physical health. If you can’t get outside then you can still exercise indoors daily with The Body Coach, Joe Wicks.

Watch your favourite films or programmes

We are so lucky to have a number of streaming services at the tip of our fingers. 

If you’re missing the Lake District, we recommend watching The A Word, currently on series 3 on BBC but available on Iplayer this family drama is based in the Lake District, about a boy with autism at the heart of its family. If you’re looking for something a little more 15+ then we recommend Deep Water, an emotional thriller set in the Lake District. Series 1 is available on Amazon Prime to rent or buy. 

Are you a Beatrix Potter Fan? Miss Potter is a 2006 biographical film starring Renée Zellweger and is based on the life of the beloved author and illustrator Beatrix Potter, also available to rent or buy on Amazon Prime.

If you’re looking for your fix of the Peak District then we recommend Pride and Prejudice, this 2005 film was set at the beautiful Chatsworth House in Derbyshire and was used to provide exterior and interiors for Mr Darcy's mansion at Pemberly. Available to rent or buy on Amazon Prime. 

Similarly, The Duchess was filmed at Chatsworth House. This 2008 film, based on the biography of the late 18th century, Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire played by Keira Knightley. The Duchess is available to watch free if you have an Amazon Prime account. 

Are you missing Yorkshire? If so why not try and spot Goathland Station on Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. The first in the Harry Potter series, Goathland Station in the North York Moors was used for part of the Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone for Hogsmeade station, available to rent or buy on Amazon Prime. 

Also available on Amazon Prime is Victoria which is on Series 3 about the 64 year reign of Queen Victoria and was filmed at Castle Howard.

Be kind to yourself 

Lastly but most importantly, be kind to yourself. Don’t compare yourself to others, lockdown is harder for some than others. We will get through this and it won’t be like this forever.