Tough Girl Podcast Ellie Douglas - Mental Health Personal Trainer aiming to raise awareness, and challenge stigma around mental health.
May 11, 2021
47:47
Ellie in her own words: "I am a Mental Health Personal Trainer based in East Sussex. I started my business WellbeingFIT last year because I want to raise awareness of the many benefits of exercise on our mental health and wellbeing. I also want to make exercise more accessible and positive to people - especially if they usually feel that exercise isn't for them. All of this was inspired by my own mental ill-health. I have suffered with depression and anxiety for the last 10 years, and have also received treatment for PTSD. I did get to the point when I began planning my suicide. Exercise was my saviour through my toughest times. I am still on my journey of recovery and I am using my experiences to help people; to provide empathy and compassion; alongside emphasising how exercise can really help our mental health. Alongside WellbeingFIT I have also started my mental health blog #WeGotThis. My aim here is to raise awareness, challenge stigma and to provide a safe space to share stories. I want people to know that you can go through a really tough mental health journey and still come out the other side. There is hope when you are able to share what you are going through. Stigma still tells us that we should feel guilt or shame when we are experiencing mental ill-health - this alone adds a huge amount to our suffering which is completely unnecessary. Exercise can provide relief from symptoms of mental ill-health and can be a space for sharing how you are feeling. It can also be a way of maintaining good mental health - regularly giving yourself priority and challenging what you are capable of." New episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast go live every Tuesday and Thursday at 7am UK time - Make sure you hit the subscribe button so you don't miss out. The tough girl podcast is sponsorship and ad free thanks to the monthly financial support of patrons. To find out more about supporting your favourite podcast and becoming a patron please check out www.patreon.com/toughgirlpodcast. Show notes
- Who is Ellie and what she does
- Being a Mental Health Personal Trainer
- Her journey into fitness and how it started
- How exercise helped her with her mental health
- Getting though the toughest times
- Feeling alone with her mental health and not being able to talk to people
- Realising that becoming a PT could be a way of helping people
- Wanting to help people with their recovery
- Signing up to a PT course after her first child
- Starting her own business - WellbeingFIT
- The exciting and challenging times at the start of her business
- Trying to get paying customers
- Knowing the reasons why you are doing this
- Being supported by her Brother in Law who built her website
- The power of asking for help
- Enjoying all types of exercise
- Exercise after having your baby
- Sleep deprivation
- Mum guilt
- Depression and anxiety after having her first child
- Seeing a therapist every week
- Getting professional help
- Being told she had 'mild depression'
- Talking therapy by the NHS
- Needing to know the core reason of why she was feeling how she was
- The stigma of mental health and how it's changed over the past 8 years
- What makes a Mental Health PT different
- Dealing with stress
- Coping with lockdowns
- Comparing situations with other people
- Wellness and kindness
- Final words of advice