Back in May it was Mental Health Awareness week. Newspapers ran stories, MPs dutifully tweeted support, awareness was raised. Fine. But then what? One in four people in the UK will experience a mental health problem this year. You’ve probably heard that stat before, or something similar. Politicians certainly have. But despite all the awareness, we as a society and as a nation, still struggle to take this seriously. Most companies still don’t understand the idea of a mental health sick day; governments are still unwilling to properly fund mental health care. If you break you arm, you go to A&E, see a doctor within four hours, and get it fixed. If you are diagnosed with a mental health issue, good luck if you get any treatment on the NHS inside six months. And even then, it probably won’t be very good.In this week’s show, Steve Bloomfield and Stephanie Boland are joined by:· Luciana Berger, shadow minister for mental health· Anoosh Chakelian, New Statesman· Mark Brown, journalist and mental health advocateGet in touchSteve: https://twitter.com/BloomfieldSJSteph: https://twitter.com/stephaniebolandFurther readingMark Brown on why it’s time to take student mental health seriously: https://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/politics/its-time-to-take-student-mental-health-seriouslyAnoosh on workplace sick days: https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/health/2017/07/i-felt-so-frantic-i-couldn-t-see-my-screen-why-aren-t-we-taking-mentalHere’s an interview with Luciana Berger from 2015, just after she became shadow mental health minister: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/nov/04/luciana-berger-mental-health-crisis-minister