Free community events
Until fairly recently, mental illness was hardly talked about in New Zealand. That all changed in 1992, when Sir John Kirwan began talking about his battle with depression.
The change has been incremental since then, but with the release of the new Health & Safety in the Workplace Act, in 2015, and with funding for mental health services being hotly contested in New Zealand, it would seem that mental health could be out of the closet for good. Or is it?
The stats are sobering: one in six people is likely to experience a mental illness within their lifetime. But research by the World Health Organisation shows that more than 50 per cent of people needing help, do not get treatment.
The reasons are varied, with inadequate government policies and funding for mental health the main factors, alongside discrimination in health insurance coverage for mental health problems. Sadly, I believe, the mystique and misinformation that surrounds counselling and other mental health treatments still significantly contribute to this ‘‘treatment gap’’.
In New Zealand, the thought of seeing a professional for emotional issues is something with which many people struggle. All too often, when suggested it might help to talk to someone, I hear people say ‘‘I can fix it myself’’ or ‘‘I have to do it on my own’’, somehow suggestive that a person is weak, or worse, even crazy, if they were to see a professional.
This seems reflective of Kiwis’ ‘‘do it yourself’’ mentality, where, as suggested in the Mitre 10 advertisement, to get someone in to help you, is to admit your inadequacies, and is simply frowned upon by others.
I’d love to say that this DIY mindset applies only to handyman projects, but this is not the case.
Add to that the assumed stereotypes of the sort of people who seek treatment. Don’t you have to be suicidal? Don’t you have to have lost touch with reality? Don’t you need to have stopped functioning in the world around you? Of course, these extreme presentations are often portrayed in the media, and not surprisingly, it leaves many people with the perception that their problem isn’t anywhere near bad enough to need support.
Even when it is considered helpful, there are the interesting ideas of what ‘treatment’ looks like. There was shock treatment in One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest ;; merciless confrontation and challenge on Dr Phil, and neverending sessions over years and years, with questionable effect, in The Sopranos.
There’s also the idea of the couch, and the unethical professional who sleeps with their clients. Really, why would anyone seek treatment based on such amazing ‘role models’?
Psychology Week gives us professionals a chance to debunk some of the misconceptions, and address the mystery surrounding
Monday, November 13, 5.30pm-7.30pm, Wellington City Library, Mezzanine Room, Level 1.
Wednesday, November 15, 6pm8.30pm, Staff Room, Hutt Valley High School, Woburn Rd, Lower Hutt. Live Life Well: Give Mindfulness a Go: Saturday, November, 11am-1pm, Frank Kitts Park amphitheatre. For more information, see psychology.org.nz/pd-events/ psychology-week.