Every year for the Guardian and Observer Christmas appeal, our writers visit a selection of amazing charities and inspire us with their words to dig deep and donate. But this year, we don’t think that’s enough: so, for the first time, we’ll be running a daily blog, right through to the new year.
We want to bring you closer to our nine fantastic charities, the people who volunteer and work for them, and the people they work with: from the Samaritans who pick up the phone at 4am, to the people who live with schizophrenia, and to the children who care for their mentally ill parents.
These are the nine charities we are supporting this year.
We’ll be considering all matters mental health, through data, film, audio, galleries and music. We’ll also introduce you to some amazing mental health bloggers and activists as well.
And we want to hear from you – about mental health and why it matters – because, as many of the charities have told us, the stigma surrounding mental health can feel like the greatest hurdle of all. This is about hearing your stories and answering your questions, especially the ones you feel too embarrassed to ask or too confused to answer.
So tell us: why does mental health matter to you, what are you curious about and what needs to change?
It won’t all be serious – we’ll be getting festive with Christmas cards, and animals where you least expect them. I’ll also be blogging my way through the great annual Guardian telethon.
For last year’s Future Africa Christmas charity appeal, Guardian and Observer readers raised more than £200,000, with added match funding and gift aid making a grand total of £340,000. This year, can we raise even more?
Let us know in the comments below, get involved on twitter (@SocietyGuardian) with the hashtag #GuardianChristmas or send me your suggestions directly (@EmmaEHoward). Let me what you want to see more (or less!) of.
So, over to you – what do you want to talk about?
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