“Sometimes a simple conversation or question can really change the course of what someone’s feeling”
Danny Rahim is an actor and life coach. He has appeared in the nation’s favourite TV series including Eastenders, DCI Banks, Primeval, Vera and Citizen Khan. He is also a qualified mental health coach and ambassador who speaks openly about his personal experience around mental health.
Working as a carer, Danny Rahim dedicated his life to improving the wellbeing of others and making sure they were equipped with the skills to take care of themselves when faced with difficult situations and the pressures of life.
Through facing the devastating effects of suicide and mental illness, as well as his own journey of recovery and rehabilitation, Danny is now committed to helping others realise that there is support available to them and that suicide is never the only option.
How are you feeling today?
Today I’m feeling good, I’m feeling positive, I’m feeling nourished after the weekend. I slept well, I ate, I walked, I exercised, all the positive things to make sure I’m fully recharged for this week.
What can you see from your window?
I can see trees, the park, sky, nature which I love, so always a nice way to wake up.
What makes you happy?
What makes me happy is seeing other people happy. Seeing other people smile, achieve their goals, that really has a knock-on effect on the way I’m feeling.
We all need support sometimes – where do you get yours?
When I get my support I tend to go to friends, go for nice long walks and grab a cup of tea and just take a nice stroll in the park and use that as an opportunity to vent and clear my head.
“Those simple questions can be life-savers.”
Why is preventing suicide important to you?
It’s a subject very close to my heart and I feel that many lives are lost which don’t have to be and sometimes a simple conversation or question can really change the course of what someone’s feeling and sometimes we lack the confidence to ask those questions because we feel uncomfortable, but really those simple questions can be life-savers.
Why should I join the Ask Now Save Lives campaign?
I think everyone should join a campaign which spreads awareness and removes stigma around the subject of mental health. As I said before, the simplest conversations and questions can really save lives and we need to be in that space where we feel comfortable and confident to ask those questions and also feel the same way about answering them, and not have the default response of “yeah good thanks, everything’s fine” when actually perhaps it’s not, and feel like we can be vulnerable with friends.