Today (May 1) marks the beginning of the Green Ribbon Campaign, which aims to get the nation talking about mental health.

The campaign will run throughout the month of May and has been organised by See Change, the National Stigma Reduction Partnership. It wants to get people talking about issues surrounding mental health in an attempt to reduce or end the stigma and discrimination associated with this area.

Some 300,000 green ribbons will be distributed nationwide free of charge. They will be available at train stations, MABS offices and Citizens Information Centres. A number of local and national events will also be held, thanks to the support of 90 various organisations, hundreds of volunteers and 50 campaign ambassadors, who have decided to share their stories.

"You don't have to be an expert to start talking about mental health and wearing the Green Ribbon is a simple way of standing up to the silence that breeds stigma," commented John Saunders, director of See Change.

Research has shown that almost six in 10 Irish people would not want anyone to know if they had a mental health problem, while at least half feel that if they were open about problems they were having, it would hinder their career prospects.

One in four people experience a mental health problem at any given time. In Ireland, this is equivalent to more than the combined populations of Cork, Clare, Limerick, Waterford and Galway.

Members of the public can get involved in a number of ways. They have the option of downloading the online supporters' pack here, adding the Green Ribbon to their Facebook profile here or tweeting using the #GreenRibbonIRL.

They are also encouraged to take part in National Time to Talk Day, on May 16. This involves simply taking the time to have a conversation about mental health with family, friends or colleagues. You can tweet using #TimetoTalk.

A list of Green Ribbon events is available here

For more information on depression, see our Depression Clinic here