McPin Young People's Network

A graphic outlining what dissociation feels like, with 6 icons below the title. Thought bubble for 'feeling disconnected from your thoughts', people pointing at someone for 'the sense of watching yourself from a distance', a bed for 'the world around you feels dreamlike', a magnifying glass for 'uncertainty about your identity', a missing puzzle piece for 'gaps in your memory', a person for 'feeling little or no physical pain'.

Dissociation can be hugely debilitating and confusing to experience.

There are lots of reasons why you might experience dissociation. It can be linked to numerous different mental illnesses.

For #DIDAwarenessDay, we're raising awareness of dissociative disorders 👉 www.rethink.org/dissociation

💔 Young people waiting for CAMHS support (average 359 days vs 4-week target) report:

Deteriorating mental health
Worsening suicidal thoughts
Feeling alone & dismissed

Poor communication increases anxiety
Interim support urgently needed

buff.ly/CLEe5GU

#CAMHS #WaitingTimes #YouthMentalHealth

Share your story 🗣️

Did you grow up in the UK (or UK & Japan) & live in London?

Bridging Divides wants to speak to adults age18-24 in a 1hr interview on gender experiences & wellbeing.

You'll get a £20 voucher for taking part - pls share with your networks!

More info here 👉 tinyurl.com/musm42nx

The Wolfson Summer School in Youth Mental Health Research is back! 🥳

In this three-day virtual programme, we aim to give attendees an introduction to the field of youth mental health.

📅 29 June - 1 July
📍Online

See more and apply: bit.ly/wolfsonsummerschool (link in bio)

#WolfsonSummer26

1 in 5 young people has a common mental health condition – yet support still too often comes only at crisis point.
The #FutureMinds roadmap sets out the changes needed to shift the system towards prevention and early intervention and transform children and young people’s mental health
bit.ly/49HOq6S

A PhD researcher from the University of East London is looking to interview young people (aged 13-20) about their vies and experiences of the discharge process from adolescent mental health wards.

Express your interest here 👉 forms.office.com/Pages/Respon...

Please do share with your networks!

Great to be part of day 2 of the #AMHDMshowcase. Sharing work from the Agency in practice project. Learn more about the project here mcpin.org/project/agen...

@mcpinypnetwork.bsky.social

#thisismyplace - As part of Children's Mental Health week

In our next session at #AMHDMshowcase: Prof Rose McCabe and team present "Agency In Practise"

A collaborative presentation exploring agency in mental health – presented by researchers, clinicians and people with lived experience together.

🔗 mcpin.org/project/agency

@CityStGeorges @McPinFdn

The team during question time

Agential ladder on the slide

Rose McCabe starts the presentation

The whole team on screen!

Bursting with joy and pride to hear the fantastic presentation by the Agency projects team at the UKRI showcase! @mcpinypnetwork.bsky.social #AMHDShowcase #philsky #ChildrensMentalHealthWeek mcpin.org/project/agen...

Six people seated for panel discussion on stage

As part of #AMHDMshowcase today we heard from young person advisory group members in a panel discussion on involvement of young people in research – impacts and lessons learned. This session was chaired by McPin’s research director @vanessapinfold.bsky.social

@mcpinypnetwork.bsky.social

Panel discussion now at #AMHDMshowcase: "Involvement of young people in research – impacts and lessons learned"

Chaired by Vanessa Pinfold from @mcpinfoundation.bsky.social, Dr Alison Penny from @ncb.org.uk, Prof Paul Cooke, and, most importantly, young person advisory group representatives.

View from audience, slide on responsible research and innovation

It was great to see the digital youth team to kick off the #AMHDMshowcase today. Chris Hollis, Ellen Townsend and the sprouting mind group of young people explored linking responsible research innovation and youth involvement. #livedexperience

Researchers at University of Birmingham, Nottingham Trent University, and the NSPCC are looking for young people (16-19) who identify as LGBTQ+ to take part in a one-off interview to understand and better support online blackmail.

More info here and below: mcpin.org/research-opp...

This #ParentMentalHealthDay, please remember to look after yourself. Your wellbeing matters too 💙

You can find advice and support here: anti-bullyingalliance.org.uk/tools-inform...

Roundup of some of our latest involvement opportunities, deadlines in Jan.

National Clinical Audit of Psychosis (NCAP)
https://ow.ly/vXsu50Y1Nus

CIRCuiTS
https://ow.ly/hxZi50Y1Nuv

The Successful Treatment of Paranoia (STOP) study
https://ow.ly/puPx50Y1Nut

Careloop
https://ow.ly/4fjw50Y1Nuw

Mental health admissions to acute medical wards rose 65% for young people in England (2012-2022) 📈

Adolescent girls most affected.

Eating disorders up 515%, anxiety admissions doubled.

Self-harm accounted for 53% of admissions.

#MentalHealth #YouthMentalHealth

🧵 THREAD

looking forward to this one! We'll be there 👍

Flyer. Importance of Public Involvement Research Webinar Series. Webinar 4. This webinar will share findings from two evaluations of young people’s advisory groups (YPAGs), both co-produced with young group members. It will highlight lessons for meaningful and inclusive Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement (PPIE) with children and young people (CYP) and explore practical implications for PPIE professionals, researchers and CYP involved in research. Chaired by Dr Stan Papoulias, PPIE research theme lead at NIHR ARC South London. Facilitated by Dr Elspeth Mathie, Inclusive Involvement in Research theme lead at NIHR ARC East of England. Speakers: Dr Louca-Mai Brady, Reader in Youth Involvement and Health; Dr Helen Abnett and Lauren Denyer, Research Fellows, UH; and young members of the Herts YPAG. Who should attend? Anyone who is interested or involved in CYP’s involvement in research, including young people. Tuesday 17th February, 12:00-13:30. Register now!

📣 @nihrarcs.bsky.social #PPI webinar: Evaluating #PublicInvolvement with children & young people 🌟17/2/26
Presenters incl me, @helenabnett.bsky.social & @hertsypag.bsky.social + hosted by @skourkos.bsky.social & @elspethma.bsky.social

Info & booking: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/involving-...

Evidence for link between digital technology use and teenage mental health problems is weak, our large study suggests The research found little evidence that time spent on social media or frequent gaming causes mental health problems in early-to-mid adolescence.

Take a look at this article on a recent paper that explores the link between digital technology use and teenage mental health problems tinyurl.com/yeyun2px ⭐ The findings suggest it is not about how much time young people spend on social media, but about who they are and what they are viewing 💡

"WTF, this is so dangerous!" Social media influencers & youth mental health Join our event and hear youth-led insights on what good and bad mental health communication looks like online.

How should professionals respond when young people turn to TikTok for DIY mental health support?

Discover practical insights in our expert webinar!
19 Jan | 1-2pm | FREE

Learn what really works (and what doesn't) in online mental health content ⬇️

www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/wtf-this-i...

Young people describe some online mental health content as 'dangerous' – but what makes other content helpful?

✅ What helps & hinders youth mental health content use
✅ Tips for creating engaging content
✅ Youth-led solutions from researchers & young people

#SocialMedia #YouthMentalHealth

🧵 THREAD

📢 Information Toolkit for Parents & Carers on Bullying! 🙌

Learn:
✅ What bullying is
✅ Schools' responsibilities
✅ Signs your child may be experiencing bullying
✅ Steps you can take to support them
✅ Trusted sources of advice & support

🔗 anti-bullyingalliance.org.uk/tools-inform...

This is fantastic! It aligns a lot with our learnings from our Agency project and Agential stance i.e that young people are active agents in their own healthcare. Your tips can go a long way and turn a negative encounter into a positive one! 👏

A young woman's experience of healthcare - training video This is "A young woman's experience of healthcare - training video" by Laura Tinner on Vimeo, the home for high quality videos and the people who…

Young women want healthcare professionals to
• Listen to them
• Be mindful of stereotypes & power imbalances
• Believe them
• Validate their experiences & emotions
• Explain next steps & offer options
• Work with them as partners in their care

vimeo.com/1122917114

Wishing you a happy holidays. Just a quick update from us, our office will be closed from Thursday 25th December, reopening on Friday 2nd January.

Wishing you all an enjoyable festive period from everyone here on the young people's team at @mcpinfoundation.bsky.social 🎄

We're signing off now, we'll be back on 2nd January ready to kick start 2026 with another exciting year of youth involvement and transforming mental health research! 🎉

CBT-E Guidance for the Holiday Season This guide provides general advice for people with eating difficulties, and their friends and family, on how to cope over the holiday period.

Check out updated guidance to support people with eating disorders and their families over the festive period.

It was produced by the CBT-E Training Group & the Centre for Research on Eating Disorders at Oxford (CREDO) contributors.

Read 👇
www.cbte.co/2025/cbte-gu...

@rebeccamurphyox.bsky.social

If you haven’t already, check out the full zine to find out more about the role of the YPAG, and see their creative projects on music & mental health 👉 mcpin.org/project/b-li...

Here are just a few of the things the B.Life YPAG wanted to achieve, from the very personal to the global.

"In an ideal world, with unlimited time and budget, what would we like this project to achieve or represent?"

We began with the question: “In an ideal world, with unlimited time and budget, what would we like this project to achieve or represent?”

This helped the group decide the project aims and values, and what skills they wanted to develop from being involved.