Linda has been a participant on the Bridges project at Dudley & Walsall Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust since September 2019 and has issues with OCD and depression. Her condition means that during the Covid-19 pandemic she feels unable to leave the house due to anxiety and her OCD has worsened.
Linda has been supported on a weekly basis over the telephone to discuss different ideas on how to manage her OCD and which techniques may work for her. She has also been provided with self-help guides on OCD as well as links to online activities (chatterpack). The weekly support is keeping Linda motivated.
As well as the support she has been receiving from the project, Linda also tries to keep herself busy and has started fundraising for the NHS and the Manor Hospital staff, after seeing appeals via Facebook. She is currently crocheting pairs of hearts in order for them to be given to a patient and their family to symbolise being connected through this time. She has also auctioned some of her signed Walsall FC football shirts in order to raise money for a food van for the staff at Walsall Manor Hospital. One of these shirts, signed by former player Jimmy Walker, resulted in the player himself contacting Linda and arranging for a replacement signed shirt to be provided to her as an acknowledgement of her donation. Linda has raised £300 so far for this cause.
Linda says that even though she is unable to help physically, she is helping in any way she can. Fantastic work Linda!
