Author: Helen Sharpe

Week 50 – Disability, inclusion, mental health, support – bringing all the work together ❤️🏹

Helen Sharpe Announcement, Event recap, Health, Joining forces for strength, News, weekly update

So, I am excited and have news to share, some explaining too! It’s long but you have had some short blogs the last few weeks 😉😂

As you will know I am a huge advocate of disability, mental health and inclusion. I passionately believe that sport can help change lives, I have seen it and I have been a part of it. It takes commitment not just from the individual but those working and supporting to make it happen! Now I am in a place to pull several things together so grab a cuppa and let me tell you 🤗

You will be aware that both myself and my son have disability – his epilepsy, mine doesn’t have a one word label!
I’ll explain me a little –

My bones are twisted, puts a lot of strain on my joints which don’t all work or sit quite how they should, at 20 I was offered the choice of two surgeries to try and help my left knee – one was on the knee itself and especially the ligaments around it to try and make it easier, or more radically they could plate and screw some bones in my legs to set about straightening them and see if that improved things! They were not entirely convincing about what would come of the more major surgery and if there would be any improvement at all so I went for the knee option, and following that initial surgery have had a further three surgeries on that knee.

I am clumsy, my balance and co-ordination vary but I can fall over fresh air and have literally been stood talking and just fallen as my balance goes! Remember – I meet life with humour so sure make sure I am ok but we are going to laugh at these things!

Broken bones – feet, hands, fingers and my left shoulder blade!

Nerve damage from various things lower back, thoracic spine, feet, left lower leg and for added “fun” some sciatica!

I often say everything is fine, my left elbow and my eyelashes don’t hurt! Remember – humour! But pain is definitely one of the biggest barriers I face and I am incredibly grateful to have a superb physio in Ben 😊

I have a hearing impairment in my right ear as a result of damage, for a while there was talk of metal plates in my skull but I managed to avoid that. It is one of the reasons you might see me in my bobble hat even in summer, drafts hurt it and impact the ability to hear, hats stop drafts.

Several health issues, the two that impact my shooting – asthma which can be triggered by a number of things but especially heat, cold and hay fever – did I mention I am allergic to straw bosses 😂😂😂😂🫣🫣😱 I have a blood disorder, we ruled out the serious stuff that kills you but I am left with a reduced ability to store folate and iron, so I eat a lot of food that helps this and take some industrial grade, prescription top ups, but this can create huge fatigue and on bad days being awake is an incredible challenge – let alone moving!

Mental health? Anxiety and PTSD pretty much see that as a daily thing, some days I can plan for months, some days let’s see if I can breathe for 10 minutes. I have been to the very darkest places in my mind, in fact, they literally sit there daily, but when things are going well, I’m just carrying it with me, as I brave the world and smile. I am blessed that my counsellor is awesome and a tight circle of friends are there constantly 🤗🥰

Why do I tell you all of this, it’s so that you can gain a little understanding for why disability, inclusion and mental health are such an important focus for me.

Archery has given me ways to help my mind, if I don’t clear the messy head space those arrows are going nowhere useful. The process and routine are soothing, calming. Ranges are my safe space.

That’s not to say it’s easy, I have been challenged by people who have questioned my right to be there, on a range, on a shooting line – apparently I look ok – so why do I need to sit to shoot, have an agent? On a good day I might explain a little and try and educate, on a hard day I may tell you it’s none of your business, on a rough day, I might step away, think you are right, I have no place, I am an inconvenience and spiral, if we go back to my longest spell in the house, I literally didn’t leave for many months, long before you could get everything delivered to the house. Every day I have a process to step out of the door, might your unthinking words shut me inside?

However there are also many, many amazing people to be found on ranges who welcome, and support and help, these people question but because they want to understand so they can help, so very different.

Over the last several years I have done a lot of work around health and inclusion and supporting people to step on to a range, but also in other sports too. It’s amazing to watch people try something that they thought would reject them and find they are welcome, archery is one of the most adaptable sports there is and I am lucky to have friends who have worked in many areas, I find it unlikely that if you can tell me what you need that I can’t find it for you in that pool of amazing people.

I am told that I think outside the box, I just see me as me, but it’s definitely helped when thinking of ways to help people come to the range, our own voice in our mind can be the biggest battle we face and it takes different things for different people to push their own boundaries.

I have supported existing archers who have found themselves in a place where maybe they might have to consider their ability to stay on the range, some it’s been adaptions, some changing bow styles and some moving to seated. It’s always a privilege when someone reaches out and says can we talk, you might be able to help me, I know that reaching out for help isn’t easy. Some take the information and go off and do their thing, some keep in touch and some remain as part of our growing support network to give and receive support on our tough days.

With all of this and more in mind, I can now announce a plan we have.

Who are we? Let me explain.

I work with lots of coaches to deliver my projects and support groups who want sustainable archery, getting it set up and then mentoring in the long term. It works, our reviews show this. Northamptonshire carers contacted me to help put archery back into their disability inclusive sports sessions that they run for children with disabilities and their families.
The coaches who help me with this are Nick and Jackie from Towcester Archery Club and a great job they do too.

Early in 2023 I had some conversations (thankful as ever for the technology that allows us to be in different spaces and hold meetings and conversations) around a number of different ideas we have and things we can do together with Nick Wilson, who many know as the Disabled Adventurer. We made arrangements for him to come to Towcester Archery Club who kindly offered to host me, Nick and other exiting archers who wanted to come and shoot and talk about the impact of our sport on their disability and mental health.

Nick had a great time as did coach Nick, this was also a great example of how sometimes we fear what we don’t know, I have seen people turned away from clubs because of their disability and speaking with coaches, clubs and archers I am firmly of the belief that whilst a minority is about exclusion for many it’s the worry that a lack of knowledge might mean they can’t help or what if they injure a person? However we’re as many don’t say that and don’t ask for help with improving their own knowledge they just say no. I have managed to get the odd coach to discuss this and been able to link them with coaches who have the knowledge to mentor them.

This very idea now sees Integr8Archery and Towcester Archery Club come together to offer Nick Wilson a bespoke beginners course and coach Nick who was worried about his own knowledge is taking the opportunity to learn alongside him. The 2 Nicks will learn from each other and I have some coaches experienced with a huge variety of disabilities waiting to help amend support and coach Nick is attending the disability inclusion training being hosted in the midlands. I am excited to see what comes of this for both of them.

When I posted that I was holding the session and invited people along, I was blown away by the messages that I received from archers who would like the opportunity to have a safe space, where occasionally they can come together in an inclusive setting regardless of their physical, learning disabilities or mental health, where they don’t have to explain why they do x,y,z. But to be in an environment with others who love this sport, who enjoy shooting and the things it gives us, but who occasionally feel isolated or uncomfortable and we accept that the person who creates that doesn’t always know and we aren’t always strong enough to speak out.

So after some conversations around what we can do, Towcester Archery Club and Integr8Archery will be hosting sessions inviting those who consider they have a disability and or want a space where they can feel their mental health is safe, to come together and shoot every 2 months. We are just pulling together the first list of dates and will announce these in the next few days along with some information around what we have planned for some of those dates along with the ones that we can just chat and shoot and share a cuppa. There will also be instructions on how to join us.

I am excited as I am not aware of anything else offered that is similar to this so I think Towcester Archery Club and Integr8Archery are hopefully going to show what we can achieve and others may set up similar sessions.

So watch this space over the next few days and follow the instructions if you would like to join us, let’s grow this community I have started, for archers who want support and also for coaches who want to learn how to help. Thank you so very much to Dean and Nick for your help and support so far, let’s create change together 🥰🏹❤️

Sunshine and arrows ❤️🏹

Helen Sharpe Quick catch up

Ok so it’s gonna be a hot weekend folks, please stay safe, sun hats, sun cream, hydrate and when you can get out of the sun and into the shade, difficult for archers I know and even more so for those of us who sit and have agents. Think carefully about both short and long term risks please – I became a sun ambassador and I push this often so you likely stopped hearing me and see it as nagging but it’s important 😎

Another month done for the #greatarrowcount and my stats have been submitted for May to AGB. Still not found the balance between the new job and my shooting so April saw me shoot 60% of my desired arrow volume and May only 54% but lots of arrows planned for this weekend so hopefully I can get back on track soon. Across the 2 months I have had 5 scores to submit and things seem to be starting to settle after the required tweaking though I think there’s still a bit of fine tweaking to do.

I have lots of news and though it’s different it all links to a particular topic and I am going to save it for Tuesdays end of week blog as that feels appropriate. So far this week it’s been lots of meetings and I have lots of emails to send over this weekend so please bear with me 🤗❤️🏹

stay safe and enjoy the weekend

Week 49! Eek! That 1st anniversary is so close!

Helen Sharpe weekly update

So what’s been happening this week? Lots of meetings! Planning and some great things coming which I will be announcing from next week, but inclusion, health, disability and more schools news are all in there as you would likely suspect.

I have had time to process the decisions I had to make last week and come to terms with having to hand it all over to the correct people and they are dealing with it all going forward, whilst sad it reached that point I mostly felt numb for a few days but now it feels lighter, I can concentrate on what I am doing and the aims I have for Integr8Archery and my projects. Thank you to those who reached out and supported me, knowing the decisions I made would not have been easy for me.

I always thank those who work with me on any projects and that shall continue, I am not happy that some people have asked not to be thanked publicly as they get to be made to feel bad for working with me, particularly strange when the person in question who is creating that is still working at some of the locations that I invited them into as part of the education project! So they can do it but others can’t? Interesting theory!

I have been asked to share my knowledge with other people doing similar things, some in archery and a couple in other grassroots sports, I always enjoy sharing ideas and trying to cut down those early planning stages, being involved in the long run isn’t necessary in all cases and some people keep me in touch with how they are getting on, always lovely to hear. So many people across so many sports trying to achieve the same things and by working together we can achieve more. Celebrating and supporting each other is all that we should be doing not trying to bring each other down or refuse to share knowledge.

I have actually found a little bit of time to do some planning for my own shooting this week too! 😱😂❤️🏹

This coming weekend will be packed with my own arrows so that will be great for my headspace.

Enjoy your week and I look forward to seeing some of you on the range soon. Take care of yourselves please.

Well if the week was a weather forecast I’d go with severe thunderstorms and a dash of sunshine!

Helen Sharpe Announcement, Health, News

I started volunteering in archery in 2015, little things which grew and grew into huge things, committee roles at club, county and region levels. The work I was doing included many things but as anyone who knows me would expect, these definitely centred around safeguarding, equality, diversity and inclusion. 2018 saw me apply to become an Archery GB ambassador primarily around disability but with all of these principles at the core of whatever I was to do in that blue shirt if I was given one.

Over time my projects grew and grew, I collaborated with others and worked on their projects and looked at joining things together where our aims and objectives met. This led to 2022 when things were coming together and my calendar from June 2022 to October 2023 was full of launch dates and amazing things – huge, huge plans. The person I was collaborating with was out there talking and sharing and inviting people to join us in some of those plans, so as spring 22 hit I started to drop bits of information as a taste of what was to come.

However that person walked away, no warning, no explanation. This is something many of those people do not understand – you stopped getting information? No details? You came to me for answers, I understand why, but I also had no communication- no information to share. I helped those I could, with their plans which had grown from the conversations that they had with that person, pleased to say several are doing well and a couple have stayed in touch to let me know how they are getting on, it’s always nice to hear their news.

Some needed someone to blame, they weren’t getting answers from the person they were contacting so it fell on me, I took the brunt and despite my replies that I could not help with their queries they didn’t stop. On more than 1 occasion I have posted here to say enough is enough and I gave notice that I would no longer reply to those individuals or to anything abusive. For 2 people this didn’t stop them – continue they have! This week it reached a new level from one, a suggestion that my walking away and destroying work and plans last summer (none of which I did) means, in this person’s opinion, I should kill myself – their words! Who even thinks it’s ok to write such messages to another person I do not know!

I was advised to raise a safeguarding and a bullying complaint to the NGB, however this is far beyond that and so I handed it to the police. They have picked it up and I have an investigating officer who has has taken my statement and lots and lots of communication from the last 5 years from a number of people, it just the one who sent the message. This is one individual but there are little pieces of information contained that they had to get from somewhere, so whatever happens next will happen, but going forward I will not be dealing with unpleasant communications. Any from anyone will be passed on to whoever is the most appropriate person to handle it, safeguarding, bullying, criminal – each will find its level.

Me? I shall continue forward, I am proud of what I can accomplish in my limited capacity. Of how I do my bit. Integr8Archery will continue to do what I want, safely set up to allow me to do just that. As I approach the 1st birthday of Integr8Archery I am busy making plans on how to celebrate this year’s achievements, to thank those who have been involved and continue to move on with plans and events for 2023 and beyond.

Thank you to those who have supported me in anyway, but for those who have been there this week, I am grateful that I am stronger now than I was a year ago because otherwise the week may have had a very different outcome.

For Integr8Archery I am only half way through my week, my weeks as you know finish on a Tuesday 😜 so here’s hoping that the end of week blog will be so much brighter than this mid-week one! It will because there’s already things to go in it! 😎

Week 48 – wow, busy everywhere ❤️🏹

Helen Sharpe weekly update

When I consider where I was last year, mentally, emotionally and how very close I was to giving up everything from my sport to living it’s amazing to me as I sit here reviewing the first 12 months of Integr8Archery and what I have achieved.

Years of working hard for my sport and the belief in what can be done as long as I choose the right people for each event to get the very best I can. No longer settling and risking a poor set up, rather saying no than getting it wrong. That’s huge in itself being brave enough not to risk my reputation by saying no, it’s a pleasure to not have to some times wince or apologise because I sent the wrong person. One of the most beautiful things I have heard and how often I have heard it – thank you for getting this/these people to deliver for us! The core values of a service user matched with a service provider – makes the event so much smoother and I am blessed that this means the coach to mentor roles work so much more naturally by getting it right first time.

A long week of squeezing in meetings to review and plan, setting and adjusting aims and targets for each group. Closing some as the self sustaining fledge with the knowledge that they can send a message when they need to. It’s not sad as we step back, rather a sense of pride that we have given them the skills to flourish. Reassurance to a couple that had expected to be moved on by now but haven’t – we can still achieve it.

I was brave enough to open my project book from spring 2022, wow – how many of those plans have I achieved! Those I haven’t- why? I am ok with the reasonings – not my losses actually 🤷‍♀️ and I don’t regret that I made plans that someone other than me threw away.

Luckily the relationships I had built to create those opportunities are not lost, in some cases from friendships many, many years old – so I am grateful that open and frank dialogue has allowed some things to be closed and others to remain future possibilities if I am ever brave enough to take giant leaps. Who knows maybe my passport will see me become a frequent flyer 🫣😉

One of the greatest privileges was definitely being allowed to sit at the table and help source new recipient’s for the large donations for the fund, I stood by my belief that it didn’t feel right to accept any of that for Integr8Archery and whilst it would definitely have made my projects fly, I am thrilled to hear from people who have benefited – what may be a loss to grassroots archery has definitely been a gain for others.

So the coming week or 2 will see more meetings take place around the day job and I am grateful that my hoodies can hide a multitude of things 😂😂 as I chase around from A to B to C and so on.

I am also immensely proud of 3 young people who I have been supporting for significant periods of time in my role as safeguarding officer, wellbeing is such an important part of this and to be trusted to be part of a person’s team/network of support is humbling but anyone who knows me also knows how very seriously I take this, safeguarding is one of the most important responsibilities we all have.

So as we swiftly approach 1 year!! Thank you and see you soon ❤️🏹

Busy, busy, busy – planning 🧐😉🥰🏹

Helen Sharpe Quick catch up

So very much to plan, exciting things, buzzing with what is happening and as details are firmed I will of course, share. Also catching up on a number of things as it was a crazy few days in the day job and I literally struggled to keep my eyes open in the chair at the hairdressers as we waited for the colour to take! Whilst a sign I am in a place where I can relax also a reminder that I have taken my eye off the ball and stopped paying proper attention to my blood whilst running around after everyone else 😱🫣 annoying because I have worked so hard and it will take weeks to fix what I have upset in days, so whilst disappointed in myself I promise I am getting back on it! I know someone in particular who reads these who will rightly be a little cross with me. 😬

So, remember – look after yourselves please you are just as important as everyone else 🥰

So as I sit here with my portion of the world’s worst breakfast cereal 🤢 that is great for me but I swear is the same experience as eating gravel 🤔😂 I have made my list of things to do this weekend and I have 23 important emails on there – so please be patient if you are one of them. You should hear from me by the end of Monday, but lots being planned for schools and community groups.

Not had a great deal of time to shoot properly this week so thankful for the short rounds and my clingy band that at least keep the body thinking about how to shoot an arrow.

I have managed to log into good old teams for 3 different multi sports get together to discuss aims, issues and ways forward for grassroots sports and how we can achieve things together. One of the great things that came from the pandemic – the ability to come together virtually.

Enjoy your weekend, let me know how you are getting on, no matter if you are practising, competing, recovering and a big shoutout to my friends and family in Northants – busy weekend with the first round of the inter club and the first Caswell this weekend ❤️🏹

Week 47 – Children’s Coaching Collaborative, Play Their Way

Helen Sharpe Announcement, Blog with a message, Joining forces for strength, News, weekly update

As you will be aware from the information that I published I signed up to the Children’s Coaching Collaborative last autumn. This year the Child-First Coaching Coffee Catch Ups began. These sessions are for anyone who’s signed up to join together at the sessions as and when they can, to discuss important topics but over a virtual coffee session, the sessions are kept to an hour per session to allow people to fit them into busy schedules.

I find these particularly interesting as it is one of the initiatives that I am involved in that sees people from many sports come together and discuss common issues and share ideas.

The has been a very strong theme throughout – voice, choice and journey. Very much linked with the theme behind any good coach around listening to and coaching the individual.

As a coach this is of huge importance but also in my safeguarding role this is a massive issue. A large amount of my time is taken when voice and choice are removed. Surely something that we should all have taken from the publication of the Whyte report and the subsequent reform 25. Do not sit complacently believing that issues are only in other sports, there are examples of issues across all sports. It is with these in mind that I was interested in the Children’s Coaching Collaborative.

Today the next step is launched – Play Their Way. Please see above my statement that Integr8Archery CIC has signed up to the movement and I would ask you to take the time to consider signing up yourself as a coach but also your organisation and lead those you work with to look at joining too.

This week’s meetings and reviews, which I frequently complete on my projects and with the coaches and groups we deliver to, are about safeguarding and delivering the right service, in the right way to help achieve the goals. This is what the Children’s Coaching Collaborative and other groups that I am part of are aiming to achieve across all levels of all sports.

Midweek catch up ❤️🏹

Helen Sharpe weekly update

So fat this has been a busy week of reviewing projects, predominantly schools but others too. It’s an important part of the process to see how we are getting on with the aims and targets that were originally laid out and how these may have evolved.

As Integr8Archery is essentially one person, me, I am blessed to have a group of coaches who work with me and I carefully select who is appropriate for a group, event or project. I cannot be in all places at all times and I rely on good communication between myself and the coaches and also myself and the representative of any group. These meetings are therefore especially important for me to ensure that we maintain that communication and continue to work together.

There are processes that need to be followed and steps that need to be taken to put on sessions and keep everyone safe, they may not always be obvious or seem unnecessary but they are there for a reason. Meetings are a great way of explaining what is needed and why.

So this weeks meetings have been a chance to celebrate success and discuss room for improvement and ensure we are all still working for the same aims. As ever lots of work comes out of these but, it’s looking like some exciting things ahead for many of the projects.

As I am fast approaching the first year of Integr8Archery I also started collating data I keep to be able to share the achievements, I am glad I did as there were a couple of things this week that again pushed me to consider what and why I am doing this, if I needed a reason, motivation, those stats have definitely helped give me a boost and I am blown away by what has been achieved, I look forward to sharing the information in a few weeks. Keeping stats and figures was important to me from the start as I am doing things a little differently and I get challenged by those who don’t like change and I knew I would benefit from seeing numbers as I am an evidenced based creature.

Anyways I have a session to go to now that I am quite excited about and I will tell you more about it in Tuesday’s blog drop.

Apologies for this being a day late, whilst at work yesterday, as my shift was ending a colleague who was coming on duty took a call regarding a family bereavement and I stayed to do his double shift, I am out of the house this morning but then back for my own rota’d 25 hour shift, as you know mine is not a job that we simply can’t cover.

Take care and enjoy your shooting, catch you on a range soon, Helen

Week 46 – start archery completed … and breathe 🧘

Helen Sharpe Event recap, Numbers and stats, weekly update

Start archery is finished for 2023! Our two days on the 8th May and the 13th May saw 72 and 103 people join us and a total of 129 people across the two events picked up a bow for the first time! That’s great news for our little club and my community interest company.

Thank you to Weavers School for our great partnership, Wellingborough Muslim Community for trusting me and Northamptonshire Sports for helping us get the 4 sessions on for the WMC group. I never take the support of others for granted, and as these figures show, together we can achieve amazing things.

It is also a good time to thank Archery GB who in 2021 gave me a little pot of money (£1000) to see how I could use it for my projects, much of this was used to fund training for workforce, two instructors (£450) and half funding for 2 sessions coaches (£250) The remaining monies (£300) was put toward the cost of my indoor netting and frames to allow sessions to be out on at schools and other venues.

Why is it a suitable time to thank them again? Because those two sessions coaches who do work within my education project this weekend helped with the second start archery session.

A large focus for this week was of course the charity abseil I was doing on Friday at Millers Dale viaduct and I thank everyone who has sponsored me and my cousin, the help we had from the palliative care car that is funded by the hospice was invaluable and these things are the least I can do.

I managed to shoot at the Wellingborough Open Archery Club competition on Sunday. Purely for fun as the sessions to sort my bow out in the week had to be cancelled due to the storms, I was asked if it was really necessary to cancel – erm yes! We don’t shoot in thunder and lightening – and just to prove why, a house along the way from us did get hit and had quite the fire as a result! Thankfully no one was injured.

I managed to catch up with some friends and enjoyed the day at WOAC so that is all good. As expected the score was poor but a badly set up bow was always going to see that happen. Hopefully to be sorted this week, time booked so let’s hope the weather holds off!

in the five years I have been shooting my OCD traits have been very obvious! I shoot in nice number volumes ordinarily 30’s, 60’s etc, so this week’s total of arrows shot for the #greatarrowcount is hurting my eyes with 486 arrows 😱🫣🤷‍♀️ but hey what can you do?

Right, off to do lots of planning for club, groups and sessions and my own shooting.

Take care and look after you.

This week is mental health awareness week so please take a look at the link and see what you might be able to do for yourself or others.

Am I talking or Am I communicating? Can you see the difference? I would suggest you cannot!

Helen Sharpe Blog with a message

This has been something I have been thinking about for some time, it’s due to comments that I here often, have done for years!

Oh ask Helen, she’s not doing anything she’s only talking.
I have introduced the coaches but as you can see Helen is only here to talk!
Are you here to work or to talk?

Some of the very many comments I hear.

So let’s consider, you see me talking but I know that a lot of what I am doing is communicating.

The second of those comments was made at a club who was helping me host a taster event for over 80 out of school educated children, whilst the coaches were showing how to shoot, I was talking to parents, carers and children. Finding out what the individuals wanted, what were their concerns and how I could help answer those. Discussing specific needs around disabilities.

The first of those comments I have heard in a number of places but often when I am volunteering for Archery GB. At the Grand Prix, 2 specific examples – I was talking to someone who had dropped in to see me, but that took 5 minutes, the rest of the time was about why I volunteer and what it involves and how they might take part, how they register. Then how they could bring juniors from their club to watch the finals, how did spectators attend events.

The second example was me talking to an athlete who I have supported through some safeguarding and wellbeing issues and was feeling stressed by the occasion and some triggers. A very important conversation that I am not going to explain to onlookers for obvious reasons.

I can give examples of individuals when I am volunteering where I see archers upset for various reasons and I reach out, I have helped them in the moment and at future events they speak with me about how things have improved or they may be wobbling again and they remember that I am a safe person to reach out to.

Speaking with people at events allows me to help them get what they want from sessions, or to allow me to support those already shooting in whatever capacity they need might be a quick hug for reassurance or it might be a safeguarding issue.

At a recent event, sat chatting with a group whilst coaches were introducing people to archery we talked about some ideas they had for groups and activities they wanted going forward but also the conversation flowed around and we spoke of domestic violence, bereavement and mental health to name a few topics. How sport can empower and help change lives. I have seen this in sessions that I have put on for a group from refuge and a group of foster children through to the education project and disabled people who have asked for help to access sport.

Just Monday I was speaking to a lady who felt she might find help with her mental health and grief following the loss of her dad in December, just 2 weeks before I lost dad – we stood in the middle of the field crying and hugging.

All of the things I do see me chat a little but communicate a lot. Without a doubt the conversations I have are I think, rare on a range and definitely part of who I am, I have been told more than once that I “attract these conversations”. I don’t see that as a bad thing, it is without a doubt in part due to my personal and professional experience and my willingness to be me, to put myself out there and be vulnerable because that’s what some of those conversations do.

Some of these topics are heavy and emotionally draining some make me buzz and the excitement makes me bounce with ideas – something those around me find draining and some try to quiet me.

All that I ask is, if you see me talking, stop and think, ask yourself am I talking or am I communicating?

I can tell you that when they have been draining to hear “she’s only talking” is demoralising. If I have achieved something and someone was taking the time to thank me – to hear it is demotivating and has on more than one occasion made me considering walking off the range and wondering why I bother, because some of these conversations make me vulnerable so to be dismissed because you saw me talking hurts, some days – a lot.

So ask yourself next time do you need to say it? It might seem harmless to you, but it stings! Please do not dismiss what is happening when “Helen is just talking”!