Mother and daughter behind teddy bear toy for children suffering mental ill health launch Christmas offer

The pair were crowned Greatest Britons by GB News and after appearing on the programme were inundated with orders for the toy.

Many came from grandparents who wanted to buy their grandchildren a special toy with a unique meaning. In a new Christmas promotion, to further help raise awareness, GB News viewers and listeners can now get their hands on the bear for the specially reduced price of just £10.

The price is correct at the time of writing. Mum Lynn, the author of Hope With Depression, added: “In today's technology-fueled world I think this helps kids to go back to basics, and it just helps them to process things better by writing it down.

“We’ve known that some children have written their troubles down and then just left the bear on the side, gone to school, knowing that the parents are going to take the troubles out.“It's in schools too, in the libraries or the cosy corners or the different places that they can go for nurture. Everyone's so busy these days. It's quite hard to be in the right place at the right time to listen. And he just works as a safety net."

How to approach the topic of mental health

Sam and Lynn have shared concrete advice on how to approach a conversation about mental health with a young person.

They said: “Teenagers can seem reluctant to openly communicate with those closest to them, thus making an accurate diagnosis quite challenging and difficult.

“Confronting them head-on and throwing specific questions at them, such as ‘Do you have a mental illness?’ or ‘Have you self-harmed?’ may be counter-productive, causing them to clam up, run away or shout back."

Instead, the mother and duo continue, creating an environment where they feel trusted, safe and respected is much more likely to help them open up.

“This means making mental health a subject that you talk about little and often. It is just as important as physical health, and if we can begin to talk about it in the same way as we do other illnesses it will not be pushed to one side and get worse. It also means that youngsters are less likely to bottle it up because they will not have fears about how you may react.”

They continued: “There will be times when you have specific issues to address and where and when you to do this is up to you but choose a place to talk where they feel relaxed and unpressurised.

"Some parents find that a car journey can be a good place to conduct tricky conversations, allowing youngsters to talk without the full glare of their parents’ attention on them.

"Adults, too, may feel more at ease than they might do facing their teenager over the kitchen table or in the naturally defensive environment of the teen’s bedroom. Talking on a car journey also makes it harder to slam doors or storm out.

"Wherever and whenever you decide to talk, start the conversation without accusation or assumption and try to ask open questions rather than homing in on specific issues. This might mean opening up the conversation by saying something like. 'You have been very quiet lately…is something troubling you?' Or 'You have not seemed like yourself recently, is there anything wrong?'.

“It is important not to judge your teenager, even if you do not necessarily agree with what they are telling you. Even though your mind may be racing and your heart hammering, it is important to stay calm. When they are looking to you for guidance, showing panic will only unsettle your teen further. Perhaps you can share a situation in your own life where you felt worried or stressed to show them that their feelings are understandable and natural.”