David's Message
Dear Sunny Heights Community,
TRIGGER WARNING: PLEASE NOTE - this article discusses suicide and mental health
It is important to note that today (Saturday 19th November) is International Men's Day. Contrasting with International Women's Day, which is focused on equity and recognition, today seeks to address the major concern impacting men - that of mental health. I have been unfortunate enough to lose two friends to suicide over the past twenty years, and I have also seen two close females friends and colleagues lose their husbands, leaving behind young families. There is a major stigma against men and boys discussing mental health, and this idea that boys don't cry and should be in control of their emotions begins before primary school. Suicide is unfortunately the leading cause of death for Australians between 15 and 44, and 75% of suicides are by young men. This is something we have to change.
With this important topic in mind, I am pleased to announce that next year we will be using resources, lessons and support from Open Parachute, a series of resources from Dr Hayley Watson, a clinical; psychologist and educator. Dr Watson completed her PhD at Macquarie University looking at ways to combat bullying in schools. There is a clear link between not only bullying and mental health (for both perpetrators and victims) as well as the impacts of social media, setting boundaries and coping with changes at school and home. We are therefore truly excited about this proactive learning resource that has been completely funded for Australian Schools by the Sebastian Foundation. As well as lessons for teachers and students, there are parent resources that will coming home next year, including support for conversations with your child about social media, bullying, anxiety and much more.
At Sunshine Heights we are making some commitments to all our students, but especially to boys and the male role models in their lives, to combat stigma around mental health on International Men's Day:
- we will support boys to recognise, understand and label their emotions
- we will support boys with strategies to express emotions and create a culture that embraces and develops emotional intelligence
- we will support boys to label, accept and manage their mental health, and normalise conversations around these
- we will support boys and fathers to form deep connections to their family members, knowing this is one of the high protective factors available
I hope you join me in putting these commitments into practice in the coming years, and if you have been impacted by any of the topics discussed here please use the resource link below to beyond blue.
Best wishes,
David and the Sunny Heights Team