Written By: Emma Ross
Every year we celebrate World Mental Health Day on 10 October. The theme for 2023 set by the World Foundation of Mental Health is ‘Mental health is a universal human right’, and at Seas the Mind this is our fundamental belief.
Having lived and worked on yachts for many years, first as a stewardess and then a chef, and now as a mental health training provider, my experience and love for the yachting industry have only deepened over time. Following these many years and incarnations, during the Monaco Yacht Show this year I was honoured to present at Yachtie Minds Matter: A Mental Health Conversation with Captain Kelly Gordon.
The event was organised by ACREW and hosted at the Oceanographic Museum. Founded by HSH. Prince Albert II of Monaco's great-great-grandfather Prince Albert I, it was a beautiful and fitting venue which has been watching over our oceans for more than a century.
Mental health is a very broad arena but in the context of yachting, the topics that continue to surface (also during the recent Pearls of Wisdom event in Antibes), are harassment, bullying, and sexual harassment. However, when confronted with these behaviours themselves, crew are often reluctant to call it out, or don’t know who to turn to. Captain Kelly Gordon and I therefore decided to focus our presentation on empowering crew to speak up, and to make the session as interactive as possible, we included Q&As throughout.