Page 57 - Print 21 magazine Jul-Aug 2021

Associations
period; only 35 per cent of people living with a mental health disorder seek professional support; suicide is the leading cause of death in males between the ages of 15 and 44; with 25 per cent of all suicides female; and in 2019 some 3300 people in Australia died by suicide.
Against this backdrop, Gamble and Whyte took the audience through the basics of the mental health – at any given time we all sit somewhere on the spectrum between being mentally ill and healthy – and guided us through the difference between stress, distress, and crisis.
Stress, they explained, is not a bad thing, it is a normal response
to pressures and challenges. In an interactive session, the audience was asked to consider factors that cause stress, and its impact on the body, mind, emotions, and behaviour.
Distress was defined as unpleasant feelings triggered by something that impacts our capacity to cope in the moment, while crisis, they said, is usually triggered by an event and defined as a crisis because the person experiencing it does not have adequate coping skills.
Everyone copes differently with stress, distress and crisis.
Maladaptive coping, which commonly includes substance misuse, often exacerbates the situation and is unsupportive to the individual. Adaptive coping, like exercise, breathing techniques, meditation and seeking help from a counsellor or friends, improves the person’s functioning and is supportive.
The pair talked about the barriers to getting support and to giving support, whether it is at home
or in the workplace or the wider community.
“Reaching out for help can be a really difficult thing to do,” Whyte said, noting that often, those who are seeing their friend or loved one in crisis don’t know how to help. She said the best thing you can
do is not to try and ‘fix’ things, but rather ask “how can I best support you?”.
Cost was identified as one of the barriers to seeking professional support, and Gamble noted that one of the silver linings of Covid is the increase in the Medicare rebate for psychology services.
Addressing the notion that ‘stigma’ and ‘shame’ holds people back from seeking help, Gamble said
(and made the audience say it out loud in unison) “health is health".
After all, he said, if you have torn a hamstring, you wouldn’t hesitate to go to the doctor for help. There should be no difference in getting medical assistance when any part of your health is in jeopardy, especially mental health.
Whyte added that just like physical health, it was better to address symptoms sooner, before the situation worsens to a point beyond help.
This led to a discussion on
the importance of self-care, and strategies for maintaining good mental health, which are different for everyone. They said it is is important to work out what self care means in your life, and to make time for it.
“Reaching out for help can be a really difficult thing to do.” — Liz Whyte, Life Foundations
Perhaps the strongest takeout for everyone in the room was this: to be an effective leader, and an effective human in society, you have to practice self care. And when you take care of yourself, you are well placed to support others. 21
Main
Well attended: The 2021 Breakfast Series attracted crowds around the country
Patron: Debbie Burgess, joint MD of Bright Print Group opening the Sydney event
Above right
Above centre
Take time to take care: Liz Whyte
Above left
Mental health: Steve Gamble
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