A Meeting of Minds

Since we began in 2015,Unichef has done more to raise the awareness of Mental Health Issues in Catering than any other Union.

At first even we were not truly aware of how deep and widespread the issues were. We learned “on the hoof” ignorant of much of the pain and suffering our friends and colleagues were going through.

Then things changed dramatically when we began our Facebook Page and then chefs from all over the country began to tell us their stories.

They opened up in a way we never expected and I, like many others, sat crying at the anguish and pain endured by chefs who simply wanted ( needed ) to go to work but had the daily battle with an illness no one could see and few appreciated.

These chefs wanted nothing from me, just the opportunity to share their struggle and have someone listen and understand.

Similar other “listening posts “ sprung up, many only to fall by the waste bin through lack of commitment or support, and we knew that to help and succeed in bringing about awareness we had to be there 24/7 for those who needed us.
 

A while ago I was contacted by such a listening post, and a chef dedicated to helping similar chefs who had issues like his own and shared our values and vision of a better way. Steven Mercer had went further than most, he had dedicated time and money into his site and he wanted to Unichef to advise him further.

Amazingly Steven took our advice and now has the proud honour of having his Blog site fully endorsed by the National Chefs Union.
 

Steven has worked tremendously hard, dedicating his own story to help and inspire others. His story will echo that of many and now he brings his life experiences and unique way of dealing with those issues into a fascinating forum for all to share and be inspired from.

Cooking in Mind is very different. Real chefs with real issues and someone who listens, understands and can help with support in new ways and with new ideas.

For those who believe the only way to cope is to turn to Alcohol or Drugs should visit Cooking in Mind and see that there is a better future for them.

Unichef is proud to endorse Cooking in Mind, please visit and support Steve whenever you can at www.cookinginmind.com

Brian Mcelderry