Untold Stories

Be a part of our open project and submit your story

Untold Stories is a project to honour the mental health experiences of our older family members and friends.

Inspired by last year’s Black History Month theme of ‘Reclaiming Narratives’, we are holding space for our older community by sharing their stories around the complexities of mental health, which are so often overlooked and unheard.

Black Minds Matter UK understand the impact that can be created when Black individuals are afforded a space to have their experiences seen and heard, which is why we are honoured to bring this project to life.

Discover the stories below and support our work.

A woman with a headscarf writing a note at a table set with glasses, plates, and a lit candle during a meal gathering.
A woman wearing a patterned blouse and headwrap, sitting in a meeting or conference surrounded by other women.
A woman in a patterned headscarf and earrings reading a small piece of paper at a crowded table.
“I was depressed ... I knew I was depressed, but you just get on with it. I didn’t know I could get help so I didn’t think to seek it.”
— George, 69
Text on a black background reads 'BM 2024'. A green banner below states 'DIG DEEPER, LOOK CLOSER, THINK BIGGER'.

Be part of our Untold Stories Project

Submit your story or spread the word

If you are 60 and over. Share your story with us. 

We want to hear your thoughts and/or experiences acknowledging your mental health, and how you might go about seeking, accessing, and engaging in treatment and support for your mental health.

We aim to understand how identity, culture, age and environment have impacted your experience.

Here are some questions you can answer to help guide your story:

  • Do you think you have ever experienced a mental health issue in your lifetime?

  • How did your upbringing, culture or sense of identity impact your perception or experience of mental health?

  • Did you ever think to seek help?

Featured
Olatunde
Olatunde

As a child, I think I always struggled with anxiety and in later years as an older person, I had been treated for depression at times. But I think the one thing I now realise looking back was whenever I was treated for depression, I dont think I had an outlook in life that was of no hope or feeling very low, just probably exhausted.

Read More →
Gregory, South London
Gregory, South London

I didn’t understand why this was happening to me. I felt like my body was betraying me, and it was attacking me all the time.  And it made me more nervous about leaving the house back then because I didn't know when to expect the next attack. I wanted to hide away.

My mother told me to go and pray hard for forgiveness; that the Lord was telling me to be better boy than I was.

Read More →
N M, North London
N M, North London

The pandemic was a difficult time for me and it brought lots of feelings to the surface which I had been avoiding or trying not to pay attention to. Being locked down made the feelings a lot more intense and there was nowhere to go to escape from them. I was definitely depressed during that period and it lasted for some time. 

Read More →

How to share your story

Send us a written story.

Aim for a maximum of an A4 page.  Send your written story to info@blackmindsmatteruk.com with the email subject of ‘Untold Stories’

If you require further information, please email info@blackmindsmatteruk and somebody from the team will get back to you. Thank you for your contribution.

An elderly man with a gray beard sitting at a desk, looking down at a laptop. In the background, there is a blurred orange guitar and a window.

“What is all the fuss about? Why should I tell somebody my business?” Andrea, 74

hands resting on the lap of a woman wearing a red dress

How to support this project if you are below the age of 60

Encourage an older family member or friend who is over the age of 60 to share their story with us. 

They can choose from the above two format options. If they need a bit of support putting together their story, be there to support them.

An elderly man with a white beard looking at a laptop, with a woman leaning over and pointing at the screen, both focused on the device.

Read the Untold Stories

Featured
Olatunde
Olatunde

As a child, I think I always struggled with anxiety and in later years as an older person, I had been treated for depression at times. But I think the one thing I now realise looking back was whenever I was treated for depression, I dont think I had an outlook in life that was of no hope or feeling very low, just probably exhausted.

Read More →
Gregory, South London
Gregory, South London

I didn’t understand why this was happening to me. I felt like my body was betraying me, and it was attacking me all the time.  And it made me more nervous about leaving the house back then because I didn't know when to expect the next attack. I wanted to hide away.

My mother told me to go and pray hard for forgiveness; that the Lord was telling me to be better boy than I was.

Read More →
N M, North London
N M, North London

The pandemic was a difficult time for me and it brought lots of feelings to the surface which I had been avoiding or trying not to pay attention to. Being locked down made the feelings a lot more intense and there was nowhere to go to escape from them. I was definitely depressed during that period and it lasted for some time. 

Read More →
G Ashton
G Ashton

My first experience of anything relating to Mental Illness was when my partner at the time, the father of my children developed what I now know was psychosis, specifically schizophrenia. It was a word  which I didn’t understand, so I set out to educate myself.

Read More →