LETTERS & FEEDBACK
itiatives mean more people know what the signs and symptoms of mental health issues are and how, when and where to get help.
So along comes wretched COVID-19, and mental health initiatives and awareness has been supercharged to another level, with mental health impacts being taken as seriously as physical, social and economic impacts.
The Commonwealth and states have stepped up. For example, the NSW Government recently committed an extra $73 million for 180 additional mental health clinicians and peer workers and a suite of bang-for-buck programs delivering enormous cost-effective outcomes.
Simple things such as a virtual technology to reach people in remote areas and more staff to help people in their homes (as opposed to hospitals) means a difference between people getting help early, and worlds of economic and social pain if individuals end up overwhelmed and unwell.
On the matter of extra support, it’s nothing short of inspiring to see peer workers – people with a ‘lived experience’ who have their own journey of recovery to where they can make a career of supporting others in need of help – stepping up across the mental health sector to do their bit. Who better to support those struggling than those with ‘insider knowledge’?
Awareness of mental health issues and early intervention are the biggest weapons in the fight.
That phone call to a help line could result in the anxious young woman from a remote country town feeling more assured about her lot and being guided to support services that could be life-changing.
That peer worker contact with the middle-aged man in the suburbs could be the difference between the man staying ‘on-course’ with clinical or counselling assistance, instead of falling through the cracks and cycling through hospitals and homelessness.
That smile with an acquaintance in the street, that pleasant chat over the fence with a neighbour – at a time when mental health awareness is high – could be the spark that brightens your day or week, and gets you thinking that things might not be so bad.
The facts are almost half (45 per cent) of adults will experience a mental health issue at some point in their lives, and each year around one in five people will, but with the right information and support most will get better or go on recovery journeys resulting in fulfilling and meaningful lives.
Sure, what we’re going through with COVID-19 is extreme, with people being affected in different ways. But understand there’s nothing unusual about feeling unsettled or anxious in the face of uncertainty – that’s part of being human.
If it’s persistent or debilitating though, take the next steps – talk to a friend, your GP, a counsellor, call a support line, such as the 1800 011 511 Mental Health Line.
Thankfully, we’re far better informed and equipped as a society to deal with mental health issues. When we come through the other side of COVID-19, we’ll probably be another ten paces ahead, freer to engage with each other and have better senses of wellbeing and social connectedness. Catherine Lourey, NSW Mental Health
Commissioner (left)
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