PUPILS at Haberdashers’ Monmouth Schools learnt some important lessons from author Jeremy Thomas last week.

The author and speaker delivered the talk, ‘How to Stay Sane in an Insane World’, which is about his battle with bipolar disorder.

The former record label manager overcame his own battle with the disorder and went on to make the BBC documentary, Stephen Fry: The Secret Life of the Manic Depressive.

Mr Thomas spoke at three separate events throughout the day at Monmouth School and HMSG, drawing from his extensive experience of mental health, the music business and novel-writing.

The aim of his talks was to normalise the subject of mental illness and over the last five years he has visited schools across the country to share his history of manic depression, addiction and loss.

Mr Thomas offers practical and useful tips on how to stay mentally healthy and get the best out of life, demonstrating that prevention is far better than cure.

“In the last two years the talks have really grown a lot and I’m quite zealous about it,” he said.

“I really believe in it and I think it should be in the school curriculum. This makes mental health a truly normalised subject for children.”

HMSG pupil, 17-year-old Katie Davies, said: “It was really interesting. His personal story really put into context what mental illness is actually like, rather than what you see in films and on TV.

“It was useful for us, learning how to deal with stress during exams.”

Visit jeremythomastalks.co.uk for more information about Mr Thomas and his talks around schools and other venues.