A new scheme to destigmatise conversations around mental health is holding its inaugural event in Sheffield.
Crying on the Sofa, founded by Ryan Murphy, was inspired by his own experiences with severe depression.
He said: “I couldn’t see a way out; I remember sitting on the sofa in my front room, cuddling my baby son, crying, sobbing, thinking: ‘I hope these tears dry before my wife walks in the room’.
“At a similar time, I remember forcing myself to go out for a walk to get some fresh air and food from the local shop; I remember passing a family and purposefully putting my head down, hoping they wouldn’t try to make eye contact because they might see the pain behind them.
“These were real low points for me, and I always knew I wanted to help anyone and bring awareness, which eventually led to founding Crying On The Sofa.”
The first event, held at software company Pendo’s Sheffield offices on September 24, will feature talks from industry professionals and Mr Murphy himself.
While Mr Murphy and the speakers are from a tech background, he encourages anyone who is interested to give it a go.
He said: “I am very familiar with the everyday battles and struggles [of the tech industry], and I didn’t want to make assumptions about other industries or lives.
“Everyone is welcome at the events, not just tech workers.”
Crying on the Sofa is entirely self-funded, so the speakers and venue have been sourced from his vast network of industry contacts and friends, including almost 80,000 followers across various platforms, built largely from LinkedIn.
He said: “What’s the point in me having this platform if I can’t at least try and do some good?”
His goal is to enable “1,000,000 conversations about mental health”, with prospective events being varied between talks, question-and-answer sessions, workshops, or even fireside chats.
Conversations of mental health struggles have become more commonplace than ever, but Murphy wants to dispel any remaining misconceptions.
He said: “Mental-health problems have no correlation with being lazy or weak.
“Life has a funny habit of turning the tide, and when it does, you’ll need understanding.
“A saying, and our motto, which really helped me at the time: “If you let tomorrow be a better day, imagine how great next week can be.”
Visit Crying on the Sofa’s website here: https://www.cryingonthesofa.org/