A Miss Great Britain finalist from Glenrothes has become a mental health ambassador.
Louisa Thomson is one of four people to take on the voluntary role with Support in Mind Scotland (SiMS) to raise awareness of mental ill health and promote the charity’s work.
The NHS mental health nurse will be named officially on Tuesday, the 100th day of the year – the first of three “1 in 100” awareness days to reflect the statistic that one in 100 people will experience a serious mental illness such as schizophrenia or bipolar disorder.
Louisa used her place in last year’s Miss Great Britain final as a platform to highlight mental health issues.
“Support in Mind Scotland does invaluable work with people experiencing ongoing mental illness,” she said.
“My passion is trying to help raise awareness of mental health and reduce the stigma attached to the term.
“I think it is important for us to talk about anxiety and depression.
“However we need to take that a step further and talk openly about severe and enduring illnesses such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.”
The three other ambassadors named by the charity include a comedian, a former South African flying squad officer and a senior leader in the banking sector.
“Big” Gary Little is one of the biggest acts on the Scottish comedy circuit and has just returned from a series of dates in Australia.
The Glaswegian has been a valued supporter of SiMS in recent years and has spoken candidly about his own struggles with depression.
Marius Pelser was diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder in 2016 as a result of his time in the South African police force.
He is a keen supporter of the charity and is eager to raise awareness of PTSD and promote the benefits physical activity can have on mental wellbeing.
Marius, now a business architect based in Edinburgh, said: “My diagnosis ticked all the boxes such as flashbacks, disassociation, hyper arousal and anxiety and as an added extra I also developed some OCD tendencies.
“I am fortunate that my symptoms are manageable through exercise.”
Edinburgh-based Gillian Henderson, a senior leader with Lloyds Banking Group, plans to use her new role to focus on mental health in the workplace.
“The way the workplace operates is changing and we need to make sure that we are giving the right level of support and visibility around mental health,” she said.
