No. At the height of my depressive episodes, I only thought about myself. I was utterly preoccupied with how unwell I felt – I was in screaming agony, in a fetal curl in bed, holding onto my husband or mother or a nurse or whoever was nearby… it felt as if I was falling into a bottomless pit of darkness and if I didn’t hold on, I would die. Another analogy – it felt as if I was on a plane which was going to crash… as if an emergency landing had been announced and I was hanging on for dear life. The feelings were terrifying and continuous. My heart raced; I felt nauseous; and my thoughts were darker and darker and darker … it felt as if taking my own life would be a relief. It all sounds dramatic, and it was… so no, at that point I didn’t think of others at all. Only when I began to get better did I want to share my experience and the reality of severe mental illness, how it could happen to anyone, and why charities like SANE are lifesavers to those who were desperate like me. On to the book itself; this is a book of poems that have been put together by Rachel Kelly, who is a Sunday Times bestselling author. Rachel Kelly is a writer and a mental health campaigner and ‘an advocate for the therapeutic power of poetry’. She has published several other books and is an ambassador for several mental health and wellbeing related charities. She introduces the book and includes some detail around how poetry has helped her psychological wellbeing and has a healing power. In sharing the poems and arranging them by season she hopes to help other’s wellbeing and also to highlight that it’s perfectly acceptable to have a variety of different feelings, including both highs and lows, both of which are equally valid. Mental health campaigner and journalist Rachel Kelly has published a new book You"ll Never Walk Alone

We've loved dipping in and out of You'll Never Walk Alone: A poem book for all life's ups and downs by bestselling author, Rachel Kelly. Really inspiring - it's like a hug in book form. If you're looking for thoughtful mother's day gifts, you won't get much better than this. * UK Mums *From probiotics to poetry: how Rachel Kelly keeps depression at bay". www.newstatesman.com. New Statesman. Rachel loves poetry. Poems help us to feel deeply and to connect. ’ I think of it like a handshake with the poet’, said Rachel . Her new book ‘ You’ll Never Walk Alone: Poems for Life’s Ups and Downs ’ is about how verse – both reading and writing it – could become an unexpected part of your mental health toolbox and help you manage and allow all types of feelings to come to the surface. Poetry can help you to honour those emotions and to possibly explore them further. Are we going to have to radically reappraise how we approach mental wellbeing more broadly, given that the level of demand raises the possibility of the NHS never being able to solve the growing mental health crisis?

Rachel is also a well-known media commentator and former Times journalist as well as an official ambassador for mental health charities Rethink Mental Illness, SANE, The Counselling Foundation and Head Talks. Like Rachel Kelly, I passionately believe in the power of poetry to reach the soul. In times of heartache and joy, this wonderful anthology will help and delight all through the year. Kelly's brilliant introduction and explanations of each choice make this an indispensable companion, always.'The second poem I want to share is for anyone who finds it hard to love themselves. Love after Love You’ll Never Walk Alone is a collection of the kind of inspirational texts – mainly poems – that can accompany us, whatever we are feeling, from sorrow to delight. The texts are not just about words which can console us or comfort us – though they often do this too. Rather these are poems that allow us to enjoy a full range of emotions. The poems are organised according to the season in which they ‘belong’: we all have seasons of our minds, be they wintery and dark, or more spring-like and hopeful. Comprising 52 poems, with analysis by Rachel, You’ll Never Walk Alone introduces a poem for each week of the year plus tips on bringing poetry into your life.

Since then, I’ve been running ‘Healing Words’ poetry workshops, for mental health charities and prisons, and in schools, and have discovered first-hand the lovely feeling of companionship which poetry can bring. The workshops take place across four sessions. In each, we share poems which reflect the different ‘seasons’ of our mind, from the winter of discontent to the spring of hope, on to the summer of joy, and ending with more reflective poems with an autumnal feel. Unsurprisingly perhaps, given my belief in the power of poetry to help us feel more connected, I’ve called my new book which explains which poems might help and why You’ll Never Walk Alone: Poems for Life’s Ups and Downs. Poetry can be like a salve to the soul if you find just the right one to read in the right set of circumstances. This inspirational and soothing collection, organised according to the season, not only provides great comfort but acts as a friend, too, when there are times to celebrate. As the title suggests, you'll never walk alone when you have this trusty companion by your bedside. -- My Weekly Kelly's brilliant introduction and explanations of each choice make this an indispensable companion. -- Bel MooneyAlmost no one believes that now. The new paradigm is that we all have mental health, just as we all have physical health, and we affect each other’s wellbeing. Our day-to-day mental fitness depends hugely on our environment and immediate experiences.