Fourteen years’ experience writing about mental health.
I am a freelance features writer, copywriter and digital production journalist with bylines at The Guardian, Vice, The Independent, the i paper, The Huffington Post and the BBC. I am a member of the Medical Journalists’ Association and was shortlisted for the Dr David Delvin Award in 2023. I specialise in covering mental health.
Editor Milly Evans says: “It’s truly a joy to work with Ellie. Her work for Patient has been wide-ranging and tackled difficult subject matter in an engaging and digestible way. On mental health in particular, she’s explored innovative and challenging areas such as dialectical behavioural therapy, intrusive thoughts and the links between diabetes and eating disorders. Her work is of a consistently high standard, which is appreciated both by myself and our readers. I hope we’ll continue working together for some time to come.”
Senior production editor Craig Scott says: “I've worked with Ellie for a number of years and have always been impressed with her ability to bring complex subjects to life in her writing – and to spot interesting and original angles on a range of topics. She's also a pleasure to work with.”
For rates and availability, email elliebroughton@gmail.com.
Articles about mental health: lived experience, evidence-based interventions, and therapy
UKCP backtracks on conversion therapy (The Lead)
Healers in crisis: how psychotherapists can help NHS workers (Therapy Today)
A piece of the pie: how the 2024 election result affects counsellors (Therapy Today)
Why therapy should not be ‘colourblind’ (The Lead)
You don't just 'grow out of' self-harm (Refinery29)
Reckoning with the damage of purity culture (The Revealer)
What to say when someone starts using therapy speak at you (Vice)
This pilot aims to keep addicts out of jail – but some fear the opposite will happen (the i paper)
More than a third of doctors in crisis show ADHD traits (Doctors.net.uk)
The ‘alcopause’: how sobriety is solving menopause hangxiety (the i paper)
Stress and burnout: why midwives are leaving their jobs (Refinery29)
How, exactly, therapy stops you body-shaming yourself 🔒 (Stylist)
Living with IBD: a new study is exploring how CBT affects inflammatory bowel disease (Stylist)
Manage climate anxiety with these Cold War coping techniques (Lifehacker)
The climate experts who burned out (Deutsche Welle)
Brexit is a nightmare for farmers’ mental health (Vice)
Move over, mindfulness: it’s time for ‘finefulness’ (The Guardian)
Why are our bad habits worse in lockdown? (Refinery29)
Can happiness courses really make you happier? (Lifehacker)
The yoga retreat subsidising breaks for refugees (The Independent)
‘Throwing yourself in cuts through everything’: winter swimming in London (Time Out)
Dealing with stress through exercise (Patient)
What are the symptoms of burnout? (Patient)
Peer support: what it is and how it could help you (Patient)
What’s the link between eating disorders and diabetes? (Patient)
What should I do if I feel suicidal? (Patient)
What's the link between mental health and heart disease? (Patient)
How to make the most of a virtual therapy session (Patient)
What is dialectical behavioural therapy (DBT)? (Patient)
‘An almost 100% increase’: the pandemic surge at doctors’ counselling services (NASGP)
What to do if you get the urge to self-harm (Patient)
How to eat well when it’s hard to shop and cook (Patient)
What are the symptoms of burnout? (Patient)
Peer support: what it is and how it could help you (Patient)
What to do when you're waiting for drug or alcohol services (Patient)
What mental health support is available to veterans? (Patient)
Can apps help you manage your mental health in lockdown? (Patient)
Coping with OCD as lockdown eases (Patient)
What you need to know about intrusive thoughts and OCD (Patient)
What health support is available for carers? (Patient)
Mental health: keeping track of symptoms, and early interventions (Patient)
Why borderline diagnoses are still hurting women (Therapy Today, coming soon)
Q&A with Dr James Fish, NHS GP (Tricycle, coming soon)
Photo: Gabby Jones. Credit: Refinery29.
More articles
2024
The 'noctor' will see you now: why physician associates are causing a ruckus (The Lead)
Women with cancer are being barred from a life-extending drug (Glamour UK)
Vaping made me feel stupid. This is how I quit – and you can too (the i paper)
NHS Staff Survey: Recovery from pandemic but concerns over harassment (Hospital Healthcare Europe)
Feasibility of using search data to detect malignancy confirmed (Hospital Healthcare Europe)
HRT: fact-checking risks and benefits (Patient)
How to eat a calcium-rich vegetarian diet (Patient)
Are the weird claims yoga teachers make real? ‘Resetting your endocrine system’, ‘detoxing your pituitary gland’, ‘balancing hormones’ – yoga teachers weigh in (Stylist, coming soon)
2023
Police are trying to access period tracker app data to investigate ‘unexplained pregnancy losses’ (Glamour UK)
Is Gillian Anderson’s new anthology of women’s sexual fantasies too restrictive? (LitHub)
Q&A: Dr Julian Treadwell, project lead, GP Evidence (NASGP)
How does race affect menopause care? (Patient)
What are postbiotics? The gut health buzzword explained, and if we should all be taking them (the i paper)
Why spending £300 on a poop 'microbiome' test might be a solid gold waste of money (the i paper)
New app aims to reduce blood clot risk and prevent hospitalisation (Hospital Healthcare Europe)
On-call should be opt-in for senior doctors aged over 60, Royal Colleges advise (Hospital Healthcare Europe)
Discharge funding in England comes with strings attached: King‘s Fund (Hospital Healthcare Europe)
2022
My dad was dying alone in hospital while I obeyed Covid-19 lockdown rules (Glamour UK)
How to break up with 2022, the right way (Refinery29)
Why 100,000 nurses are going on strike this winter (Glamour UK)
‘It’s the opposite of censorship’: How sensitivity readers are changing publishing (the i paper)
Eight glasses of water, 10,000 steps, five a day: healthy rules or marketing myths? 🔒 (the i paper)
Spending £300 on a poop ‘microbiome’ test looks like a solid gold waste of money 🔒 (the i paper)
What are postbiotics? The latest gut health buzzword explained 🔒 (the i paper)
Menopause: why aren’t Black and Asian women more included in the discourse? (Stylist)
Why are women under 40 more at risk of developing diabetes now? (Stylist)
How to hibernate like a pro (Stylist)
‘Time to tell this story about the relational within general practice’: Polly Morland (NASGP)
2021
The hidden strain of being a midwife (Refinery29)
What’s the link between eating disorders and diabetes? (Patient)
How to hang on to a lockdown lifestyle (Patient)
Shielders: how can vulnerable people stay safe as restrictions end? (Patient)
Can I treat chronic pain with CBD? (Patient)
What is cancer 'prehabilitation'? (Patient)
2020
Anti-vaxx parents exist in the UK too – here’s what it’s like to grow up with one (Vice)
Teacher trainees are more likely to misread black children as angry than white children (BPS Research Digest)
Why are Black and Asian people at greater risk from COVID-19? (Patient)
What are the long-term health impacts of coronavirus? (Patient)
‘An almost 100% increase’: the pandemic surge at doctors’ counselling services (NASGP)
Feature: Time Out, 2019.
2019
Europe to Australia, without flying (Deutsche Welle)
How Nwando Ebizie shows neuro-typical audiences what ‘visual snow’ looks like (Litro)
Things you only know if you’re a Big Issue seller (Time Out)
‘Many Janeites discovered Austen when they were struggling’: community in fandom (LitHub)
What to do if you get the urge to self-harm (Patient)
Can spending time in nature benefit your mental health? (Patient)
How to eat well when it’s hard to shop and cook (Patient)
Is it safe to take opioid painkillers? (Patient)
Does obesity really cause cancer? (Patient)
How to cope with isolation after a stroke (Patient)
Can you reverse type 2 diabetes? (Patient)
How to stay body positive over Christmas (Patient)
2018
‘I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis at 29’ (Refinery29)
The yoga retreat co-subsidising breaks for refugees (The Independent)
Positive News, 2017.
2017
The inmates who teach other prisoners to read (Positive News)
What it was like to go to the doctor in 1610 (Vice)
Why we can’t stop watching Doctor Foster (The Pool)
“I just wanted to do it just to prove her wrong”: Fodhla Cronin O’Reilly of Lady Macbeth (The F Word)
What’s Done Is Done: Lady Macbeth reviewed (The Quietus)
Top of the Lake: a crime drama that truly explores violence against women (The Pool)
The UK’s free healthcare system isn’t doing much for its STD problem (Vice)
We sent a feminist to the UK’s first porn film festival (Refinery29)
“Be vigilant. Don’t give up. Save your work. Keep your sense of humour”: Lynn Hershman Leeson on !Women Art Revolution (Litro)
2016
‘Most women still have a terror of fat, even if they are allies’: why feminists still can’t handle fat girls (For Books’ Sake)
‘Sound is powerful… like our sense of smell’: an interview with Chris Watson (Caught by the River)
One woman’s ‘clean’ diet where she literally eats dust is eye-opening - but so is the shockingly cruel response (The Independent)
Pulse magazine, 2015.
Photo: Laura Chen. Credit: Refinery29.
2014
‘Prevention is relatively simple, and ultimately quite boring’: the overhype of wearables (Raconteur)
Dear Katie Hopkins, research shows that losing weight won’t make you happy (Metro)
How many people are hungry in London? (Londonist)
A Dry January guide to London’s booze-free venues (Londonist)
2012
Diffusing the time bomb: why joint pain and stiffness are affecting more and more of us (Raconteur)
What affects my cardiovascular risk? (Raconteur)
Services
I am an experienced copywriter and content producer, and I specialise in health and mental health content.
Clients include:
NASGP, a GP-run membership organisation (2020-present).
Gleen, a period underwear website (2022).
Arkyard (Wiston Wines relaunch, 2021).
ProblemShared, a counselling directory set up by an NHS doctor (2020-21).
Expert Self Care, a GP-run app certified by the NHS Information Standard (2020).
Guardian Labs (Women’s Engineering Society’s ‘Women in engineering’ list, 2019).
The University of Greenwich (‘Portraits’ series, 2018 and 2019).
An independent GP author (2018).
Independent UK publishers Canelo and Survival Books (2017).
The Rugby School (a guide to its London estates, 2017).
Publishers including St James’s House, Club Oenologique, Raconteur and Global Trade Media.
Commercial divisions at Time Out and The Telegraph.
Agencies including Karmarama and The Backscratchers.
To find out how my skills and experience might support your work this year, please email elliebroughton@gmail.com. My CV is available to read on LinkedIn. For an example of my original commissioned photography used in an editorial feature, please visit Vice.
Elsewhere journal.