Nikki and Salem visited Muslim Women’s Group in Surrey to run a mental health workshop

When a women says ‘this group is my oxygen’, you really quickly get a picture of how important it is.

Nikki and Salem visited Muslim Women’s Group in Surrey to run a mental health workshop. We wanted to hear about their views on mental health and the mental health services in Surrey.

The group was formed to promote wellbeing and reduce isolation. The group facilitator told us that many Muslim women feel isolated in Surrey. Some women attend for a period of time, build their confidence and go on to find work or other opportunities within Surrey, others attend regularly and get involved in local projects.

We asked the group whether they felt mental health is discussed among their community….     

Many of the women felt it wasn’t discussed and were left feeling isolated. Living in the UK is a very different environment. It’s much quieter and it’s harder to connect with people. In Nigeria for example, there are street sellers selling fruit and veg or other produce. It’s busy and lots of opportunity to connect with people.

We asked if the group were aware of the mental health support available….

Some said they didn’t know where to look for the information and mentioned that some were not internet literate.

Some said they were aware of the support but didn’t find it accessible. Whether that’s due to language barriers, lack of transport or more simply the needs of the community not being matched by the services being provided.

Another barrier is the GP receptionist asking about the details of why you’d like to see the doctor. Many of the women said they wouldn’t say it’s regarding mental health and would therefore not get the support they need. 

So how can this change?

The women told us that healthcare professionals need to understand the different cultures and what’s important to them. For example, it’s unlikely a Muslim woman will talk to anybody unless she trusts them, healthcare professionals need to build that trust.

They would encourage healthcare professionals to attend groups and learn about what’s important to that community.

We talked about a pilot scheme that’s currently happening in Woking in Surrey where the doctor is conducting one to one appointments with people at groups like theirs rather than in a doctors surgery.

Many women said that healthcare professionals should visit people in their homes, where they feel safe to talk.

The women said they didn’t know a lot about mental health until they attended the group. This group is a safe space to talk, to support each other and to share a cuppa!

One final word from one of the group…

‘When my daughter brought me to this group, it was like paradise!’