More than half of people in Huddersfield who have suffered from mental health problems said they had to deal with stigma or discrimination as a result, according to an Examiner survey.
Eight in ten Examiner readers who answered our survey into mental health for World Mental Health Day said they personally had suffered from a condition.
Another 16 per cent said a family member had suffered from a mental health problem instead, meaning 96 per cent of people who took part in our survey had been closely affected by the issue.
Of those who said they had a mental health condition, 55 per cent said that they personally had experienced stigma or discrimination as a result.
In a related question 15 percent of these people said they had been treated unfavourably at work in relation to their mental health, while 25 per cent said their employers were aware of their condition but did not provide any support.
Examiner readers did not rate the mental health services available to them very well in our survey.
A total of 56 per cent of people rated mental health services in their local area as ‘very poor’ or ‘somewhat poor’, with only 20 per cent saying they were good or very good.
When asked what could be done to improve them, three quarters of people each said that services needed more money and that access to counselling should be made easier.
Talking to friends and family emerged as the most common way for people in Huddersfield to manage their issues.
This was closely followed by taking medication.
Our readers said playing sport, eating healthily, attending therapy and practising mindfulness techniques were also popular for managing their state of mind.
We timed our survey to coincide with World Mental Health Day on Tuesday October 10.
This day aims to bring attention to the importance of mental health and the scale of people dealing with various conditions.
