Staples relishing return to fray
RECOVERED FROM MENTAL ILLNESS, CHAIR OF ROSSLARE FRANK STAPLES WANTS TO SHOW THE HUMAN SIDE OF THE CONDITION
HAVING emerged from one of the darkest periods of his life, Cllr Frank Staples is looking forward to a happier 2021 and to making up for lost time.
In November of last year the current Cathaoirleach of the Rosslare Municipal District (RMD) revealed how a change in his medication had caused him to spiral into depression and that he had been ‘breaking down crying for no reason’.
Because of his poor health, the councillor had been forced to take a break from his role in the RMD and had been unable to attend the majority of meetings since becoming chair.
However, he is now ready to return to the chair for the last six months of his tenure.
‘I’m feeling much better now, I came out the right side of it,’ he said. ‘I’m actually just back from an appointment in Summerhill there today. But I found it very difficult this time, I’ve done this many times, and have been in the psychiatric ward at one point, but it was very difficult this time around.
‘At one point I had an offer, or a potential offer, of a bed in St Pat’s and, even though I’m better now, I wonder should I have taken it.’
The first meeting of the RMD in 2021 took place yesterday and Cllr Staples said there was a lot he wanted to get done between now and the summer.
‘I have six months left as chair in the Rosslare District and I’m looking forward to that. There’s a lot of things I’m looking to do for the local community, it’s a massive district; we need to look at the roads for one, there’s some very poor roads across the area. The budget for that will be out this week.’
Although he admits to still feeling the effects of his bout of illness, another issue high on the councillor’s agenda is removing the stigma which still attaches itself to those who suffer from mental illness.
‘It went on for a few months, I felt exhausted by the end of it. Even my wife Trish said she found it tough this time around,’ Cllr Staples reveals.
‘Normally it creeps up on me slowly over a period of time, but on this occasion it was just continuous from start to finish. People hate going into psychiatric wards but looking back over the six months I think I might have been better off going into a ward.
‘Yet, if someone has been in a psychiatric ward people tend to look differently at them, but you’re still the same person as you were beforehand.’
Underlining the sheer scale of his condition, Cllr Staples said that if someone had ‘offered to break both my legs in exchange for getting better I would have taken that’.
‘It’s very hard for people to understand what it’s like, but I accept that,’ he said as he outlined plans to get the ASK campaign up and running again.
First launched in 2017, the ASK campaign sees posters displayed throughout the county, reminding the public to ask for help if they are feeling low or in difficulty.
‘It’s been a tough time for everybody, a lot of people are struggling at the moment because of the pandemic and its associated impact,’ Cllr Staples said.
He may have just emerged from a particularly difficult spell, but already the councillor is looking to the next election and to representing the people of the RMD again.
‘I will probably get another bout of this illness before the next election, but I will be running again,’ he confirmed. ‘When I’m sick I’m not as effective as I’d like to be, but as a councillor I think I can put a face to mental health, and when I’m well I love the job.’
‘I want to try and show the human side of it, show that I live with this. Some people might say I shouldn’t be doing this kind of work given my circumstances, and at times they might be right, but I want to make a difference and I think can make a difference in my position as a local councillor.’