From the Wellness Centre
This week includes a must-watch SBS documentary which investigates how Loneliness is a scourge and a new venue for Youth MHFA courses and Conversations about NSSI.
As you appreciate, I am a proud flag flier for Mental Fitness, and this past week has featured some excellent opportunities for professional learning and broadening my knowledge base. I have been incredibly fortunate to have viewed a Mental Health First Aid Australia webinar highlighting the work and lived experience of two incredible humans: Gus Worland from Gotcha4Life (Gotcha4Life-Programs-.pdf (mhfa.com.au) and Joey Fry, men who work tirelessly in eradicating stigma and sharing practical mental fitness tips. They do save lives – including their own.
This week I’m eager to foreground the story of 26-year-old Joey Fry who also features in The Great Separation (The Great Separation | SBS On Demand) and his raw, honest, and curious fashion shares with us the context around his mental unwellness a couple of years ago, which resulted in a leg amputation. This is not a navel-gazing, sentimental appeal for validation by a self-absorbed human … Joey’s courageous insights and curiosity around how to live a life of meaning and vitality are the drivers in this transformative documentary; he gathers around him his beloveds, some experts, and creates a plan for connectedness. It's a heart wrenching authentic must-watch.
What follows are some excerpts from this article The Great Separation: Australia in the grips of health epidemic we’re all ignoring | news.com.au. Joey Fry was just 23 when he fell victim to an increasingly common health issue that almost killed him and totally altered his life. While alone in his apartment on Christmas Eve in 2019, a distraught Joey Fry decided to end his own life.
The rock-bottom moment came after several difficult months of isolation, following the end of a long-term relationship and the departure of his housemate. “It had been a long downward spiral,” Mr Fry, now 26, told news.com.au. “I was severely lonely.”
He woke up six days later in intensive care, his mother by his side. He had survived, but Mr Fry was unconscious for some time before being found, with the full weight of his body on his right leg. “Mum looked at me and said: ‘Sweetheart, you’ve lost your leg.’
The precarious state he found himself in before that fateful Christmas Eve isn’t uncommon, with health experts describing it as a “loneliness epidemic”.
A powerful new documentary called The Great Separation follows Mr Fry as he meets everyday Aussies and experts to uncover the true extent of the crisis. “There are so many people going through this,” Mr Fry said. “But it’s not spoken about. It was comforting in some way to realise that I wasn’t alone, but it’s scary too – this is so common.”
Before that Christmas Eve, Mr Fry worked as a plasterer. A chance encounter last winter has thrown him on a dramatically different path. “Before I lost my leg, I loved snowboarding. Now I ski. It was always a goal to be able to get back to the snow. I’m almost inspired by myself that I can hit the slopes with one leg.
“I was there [in 2022] and someone tapped me on the shoulder and said, ‘You’re ripping. How long have you been skiing?’ I said, ‘This is my fourth day’.”
“When we don’t eat or drink, there’s a physiological response, and the same can be said for loneliness.” The changing state of the world means becoming disconnected and experiencing loneliness is becoming more prevalent.
We must start living as if this is the society we want it to be – and if enough of us start living like that, it’s the kind of society we want it to become.
Hugh Mackay AO
I wish to extend a huge thank you to the GSG mother who recommended this documentary.
Lifeline: 13 11 14 or lifeline.org.au
Beyond Blue: 1300 22 4636 or beyondblue.org.au
Kids Helpline: 1800 55 1800 or kidshelpline.com.au
Headspace: 1800 650 890 or headspace.org.au
13YARN: Speak to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander crisis supporter on 13 92 76 or visit 13yarn.org.au
Are you anxious? Take the Beyond Blue quiz to see how you’re tracking and whether you could benefit from support
The Great Separation | SBS On Demand
Youth MHFA Training - New Venue
Later this term, on two consecutive Fridays (see flyers below) GSG is hosting and sponsoring, with Palmerston, this essential training.
Please let me know via email if you have any questions and/or wish to register your attendance.
When: Fridays 7 and 14 June from 9.15am to 4.00pm
Where: Beryl Grant Community Centre, Townsend Road, Lockyer
Why: to learn about Adolescent age/stage phases; mental challenges of youth; and to build personal confidence in having a wellbeing conversation
Cost: Free
How to register: sheryl.moncur@gsg.wa.edu.au by the last week in May
Conversations about Non-Suicidal Self-Injury
Again, in partnership with Palmerston, this four-hour course is being offered this term.
When: Tuesday 28 May 9.30am to 2.00pm
Where: Beryl Grant Centre, Townsend Road, Lockyer
Why: To learn why young people, self-injure and to understand up to date support options
Cost: Free
See the flyer for details.
Thriving Boys
WEBINAR: Helping Boys Thrive at School – Overcoming Setbacks, Building Confidence and Cultivating Resilience
As per last week’s column, I am excited to offer this worthwhile opportunity. I have unlimited access to this webinar and would really like to share it with GSG community. Both Maggie Dent and Susan Stiffelman are beacons in the world of child and adolescent well-being and parenting.
If you'd like to participate in an afternoon of camaraderie and a little learning, please email me to register your interest and for catering and seating purposes. I will send each participant and email closer to the date with details of venue and also asking for any dietary requirements.
Maggie Dent - Home | Resources for those who live & work with children
When: Friday 31 May 2024 from1.00pm to 3.15pm
Where: GSG room TBA
Why: Adult learning is fantastic
Grief and Loss Meetings
Amity Health is hosting this initiative for people to explore the journey through grief and loss in a safe space, in the company of those who have walked a similar path. This will be occurring every Thursday 10.00am to11.30am from 9 May 2024 to 11 July 2024.
To register your interest:
Please call Amity Health 9842 2797
Time: 10.00am to 11.30am
When: Every Thursday from 9 May 2024 to 11 July 2024
Where: CWA Hall Serpentine Road, Albany
Have a curious and gentle week.
Ms Sheryl Moncur | School Counsellor/Teacher