A family in Surrey have created a star-studded film…helping shine a light on eating disorders and mental ill health.

Author and counsellor Lynn Crilly is producing A Day With An Eating Disorder in a bid to raise awareness around the issue.

The film features Lynn’s daughter, the poet and actress Samantha Crilly, who has battled an eating disorder and OCD in the past.

Samantha’s twin-sister Charlotte, her dad Kevin and Lynn’s two grandchildren also appear in the production which was filmed last month in Surrey.

Lynn, who trained as a counsellor to support Samantha, has managed to pull together a huge number of famous faces to support and take part in the film.

They include the legendary actor Sid Owen, who played Ricky Butcher in Eatenders. Sid, 52, who also lives in Surrey,  has a small role in the film.

Sid is among a number of celebs who have agreed to appear in the new film for free.

Also taking part is the actress and reality TV star Jessica Impiazzi; Missing actor Paul Cooper, the dad of This Is England star Daisy-May; comedy legend Bobby Davro, and the former Hollyoaks star Mikayla Dodd.

Surrey-based radio legends Neil Long and Nicky Patrick – who present on Radio Jackie – also feature.

A Day With An Eating Disorder is being produced by filmmaker Lynn Crilly, an author and counsellor who specialises in supporting those living with conditions including anorexia and bulimia.

Lynn, who has appeared on national TV to promote the film, said: “I’m so grateful to everyone who has helped me on this very important project. We all came together last month to record the film in Surrey, and there was a wonderful atmosphere among all of those taking part.

“Friendships were formed which I think will now last a lifetime. This film will help shine a  light on a very important issue. Although we’ve made progress in recent years to address stigma, far too many people are still suffering in silence and not getting the support and help they vitally need.”

Sid said: “Mental health and eating disorders affect lots and lots of people.  “I know someone who has gone through an eating disorder and it’s really tough. So it’s great to be able to take part in a project which looks to break down stigma and help people.”

Neil Long: said: “Mental health is one of the greatest challenges of our time, but it is encouraging to see more and more of this important conversation happening.  I believe good mental health is ultimately available to all of us, and being part of this project is a privilege, And of course I love a bit of acting.”

Nicky Patrick said: “The fact that Samantha has experience and worked through an eating disorder and challenges OCD on a daily basis makes her an incredible ambassador and role model on how not to let mental health issues prevent you from achieving your goals while also providing support in a very sensitive and entertaining way’.

The film will be released next year. For more information visit www.lynncrilly.com

A wellbeing expert has shared her advice on the best and worst things to say to someone who is battling mental ill-health.

Finding the right words can often be the hardest part of starting the process of offering a friend or relative support.

But, ahead of World Mental Health Day, author and counsellor Lynn Crilly, has now offered some tips on how to best approach the topic.

Ms Crilly, who is in the process of making a new film, A Day With An Eating Disorder, said: “Despite all the great progress we’ve made in recent years in breaking down stigma, far too many people are still suffering in silence with mental ill health.

“One reason for this is because it can often be hard to make the first step and start a conversation with a person struggling with their wellbeing.

“It can be really hard to know what to say to someone who is suffering from a mental illness. You do not want to ignore the illness, but sometimes you just do not know if you are saying the right or wrong thing.”

What not to say

• Try not to apportion blame or anger by saying things like: “Why are you doing this to us?” or “Look at the effect this is having on the rest of the family”.
• Try not to minimise the problem by saying “What do you have to worry about?” or “This is all in your head”.
• Try not to ask someone to “Snap Out of It” or “Pull yourself together”. Anxiety disorders can be a complex, deep-rooted issue and cannot be switched off just like that.
• As hard as it is sometimes to not say ‘How can you be so selfish? ‘or “I cannot see why you cannot just ignore it”, we have to remember that anxiety disorders are a serious mental illness and like any physical illness it is not the sufferer’s choice.
• Try not to judge them, whatever they confess to you. Tell them “I respect your viewpoint” even if you do not agree with what they are saying.
• Try not to say “I do not know how to help” as they are looking to you as someone to take their pain away.

What to say

• You might ask questions such as: “Can you tell me what is happening?” or do you feel you would rather talk to someone else?”
• Give them space and time to express themselves, asking: “Would you like my advice or would you rather I just listened?”
• Encourage your loved one by saying something like: “There is nothing you can say that will stop me loving you”
• Praise them for every small step forward by saying: “This must be hard for you, but you are going to get through it “or “I am so proud of you.”
• Help by taking away their fear by telling them “You are not alone, and I would like to help you in any way I can.”

Lynn added: “A lot of the time, simply just listening can be helpful. It is important to talk to the sufferer in the same way you have always done, remembering they are still the same person that they were before the illness.

It can be useful having certain code words between you. These can be words that the person with the mental illness  can use to demonstrate when they want to talk or when they are struggling, or they may use their words to talk about their anxiety and how they are feeling without actually naming the illness. Perhaps this is where the ‘Black Dog’ or ‘dark cloud’ associated with depression came from, as it is hard to say the words ‘I’m depressed’ or to pronounce ‘I need help’. “

A mother and daughter who have created a star-studded satirical film about living with an eating disorder have said they wanted to address misunderstandings around the subject.

‘A Day In With An Eating Disorder’ features actors such as Sid Owen, This Is England icon Paul Cooper, Strike actress Jessica Impiazzi, and Hollyoaks’ star Mikyla Dodd.

Speaking to GB News’ actress Samantha Crilly, whose battle with an eating disorder was the inspiration behind the film, said:

“We wanted to create something for the entertainment industry that wasn’t just another kind of dull documentary. Some of them are brilliant, they’re very informative, but you kind of leave a bit bewildered and a little bit kind of flat.

“I’m quite passionate about comedy, and we laughed a lot during our rock bottom times, and I think a lot of people do.

“If you can laugh in the face of adversity, you’re very much bulletproof.

“So we thought, I’ve got a passion for writing, and [Mum Lynn’s] obviously got an unbounded knowledge on the subject.

“So why don’t we recreate a film with a kind of satirical look on eating disorders? It’s a bit of a risk. It’s never been done before, but equally, it’s kind of threaded through with a lot of information and awareness about the subject. And also, we’ve made it very non triggering as well.

“I was diagnosed before [eating disorders] were really spoken about. So 20 years ago I was underweight and it went around the school that I had cancer, because no one had been informed and knew about eating disorders.

“I think it’s hard because mental health is so spoken right now; sometimes it almost becomes people’s identity, and it’s almost cool to have something when it’s quite really disastrous.

“And I think sometimes that probably brings a stigma to it nowadays, is that it’s almost overused and used so easily.

“Because behind the scenes [of the film], everyone’s talking about their experiences, and we’ve obviously had caterers in and everyone said, ‘I had to leave the table, just because I was going over to overeat’.

“Everyone had some kind of link to the project, so everyone was talking about their struggles with it behind the scenes, but then obviously playing different characters that had different eating disorders. So it was quite close to everyone’s heart.

“I think it is a risk doing a satirical look with something as delicate as this. But I think if you almost put it out of the brackets of comedy, it kind of puts a stigma on it in a different way of not being able to touch it.”

Samantha’s mother Lynn, an author, is the producer of the film. She trained as a counsellor after her daughter began suffering with an eating disorder and OCD.

Talking about the film she said:  “We spent a bit of time in the system, and I realised that it wasn’t working for us, so I took it on myself to learn as much as I could about the subject, and we worked with Sam at home, and our story has blossomed from there.

“It is a tragedy. Mental ill health and eating disorders destroy the lives of not only the sufferers, but their families as well.

“It’s amazing, really, that 20 years ago, our story was just beginning, and 20 years on, we’ve done what we’ve done, but I have to say that very little has changed in the system, and I think that’s what we’re passionate about.

“I work with families every day, and I see the destruction that eating disorders and other mental illnesses, not just to the sufferer, but the whole family.

“And I think that’s what really passions me, because obviously, 20 years ago, we were there, and I just feel that so much more needs to be done.

“And I think with eating disorders, there is still a lot of misunderstanding around the subject. And we were very lucky. And I will name names of the people like Mikyla [Dodd], Paul [Cooper], Ben Jardine, Bobby Davros Sid Owen’s in it and Susanna Page.

“They’re passionate for their own reasons. They’re passionate about the subject, and they all gave up three days of their life to come and do it for nothing.

“We’ve still got a little bit of filming to do, but we’re hoping that it comes out during Mental Health Week.

“We did it all in three days so it was quite stressful, but I have to say thank you to everyone that took part, and they all came with good grace and new friendships were formed.  It just was a real feel-good feeling as well, that we all came together to support it.

“People can watch it on my website, which is LynnCrilly.com or there’ll be updates on my Instagram @Lynn_Crilly.”

FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE FILM VISIT https://www.lynncrilly.com