Launching the secret to improving your wellbeing

Health professionals in Rochdale think they have unlocked the secret to long-term health and happiness.

Rochdale Borough Council and NHS partners launched a new ‘Five Ways to Wellbeing’ programme that encourages us all to feel good and live well for longer.

Colin Lambert, Rochdale Borough Council’s Leader, said: “Feeling good is healthy. When we feel good in ourselves and about our lives we feel happier, more energetic, more motivated and we know that if we feel this way we will live longer and our quality of life will be better. The ‘five ways’ approach, treats your mental health and wellbeing as importantly as your physical health. I agree with that approach whole-heartedly. Happier individuals create happier and more co-operative communities.”

A new interactive website has launched allowing you to measure and monitor your emotional and mental wellbeing. For the first time you can track how you feel as many times as you want and get advice on what and who can help.

Evidence has shown that there are five simple actions which people can adopt and build into their daily routines to improve their wellbeing and life expectancy by years. The Five Ways to Wellbeing asks you to:

1. Connect…with people around you and lets support each other. The importance of family, friends, good neighbours and colleagues are a known boost to wellbeing.
2. Be active…physical activity is proven to make you feel good from walking and gardening to sports and play.
3. Take notice…be aware of the world around you and what you are feeling. Reflecting on your experiences will help you appreciate what matters to you.
4. Keep learning…set a challenge you will enjoy achieving. Learning new things will make you more confident and motivated.
5. Give…giving your time and skills to benefit others can be incredibly rewarding to ourselves too and can help us build that sense of community.
   

Dr Taylor, a Heywood GP and NHS Heywood, Middleton and Rochdale Clinical Commissioning Group’s lead for mental health, added:

“Improved wellbeing unlocks your potential. In other words if we feel good we’re in the right frame of mind emotionally to make lifestyle choices that will improve our physical health and mental wellbeing. It’s all about creating the right state of mind from which everything else will follow.” 

Rochdale is now a world leader in this field having successfully worked with Warwick University to translate the ‘five ways’ scale into Urdu and Bengali recognising the language and cultural needs of our communities.

Professor Francis Taggart, from Warwick University’s Medical School assisted Rochdale in making the translations and explained the ground-breaking significance of this piece of work: “It has taken almost two years to complete and validate these translations which are the first in the world to be adopted and produced in Rochdale. It extends the Five Ways to Wellbeing programme for the benefit of so many more people. Rochdale has been a true pioneer in this field,” she said.

To measure your wellbeing, visit www.rochdale.gov.uk/livewell and click on ‘five ways’ to register and get started.