Pastoral Care and Wellbeing News
In our last newsletter, we focused on ‘Mindfulness’. This time, we are looking at ‘Sleep’ as one of the ‘hidden heroes’ of good wellbeing.
Be a Mate ~ Be Kind on May 8!
Acts of kindness, being a great friend and helping others are gestures we encourage all year around. This year on May 8, ‘Dolly’s Dream’ are reminding us of the importance of this and are encouraging people to come together as a community in kindness and unite in taking a stand against bullying. Although ‘Do It For Dolly’ looks different this year, people are still encouraged to wear blue and undertake acts of kindness. Some examples are:
call to check in on a family member/friend or send them a friendly text message
make a music playlist or card for someone you care about
cook a meal for the people in your house
write a positive online review for a small business
start an online fundraiser
get your neighbourhood involved by getting everyone to put something in their window to mark #DoItForDollyDay. Facebook groups are a great way to reach your community!
check out The Kindness Pandemic for other community acts of kindness.
SchoolTV
During this time of Coronavirus, many of us have experienced a variety of emotions ranging from fear to anxiety. All of these are considered to be normal and natural responses to any challenging situation that can often result in our minds telling us all kinds of scary stories. This can be especially true for teenagers and senior students for whom ‘what if’ stories will often predict the worst.
Adolescents are considered to be more at risk of anxiety and depression disorders which may affect their mood, thinking and behaviour. Although this is completely understandable given the current situation, any unusual behaviour that lasts for more than 2-3 weeks, may be a cause for concern. Adult carers need to remain vigilant for any signs of distress, even though your adolescent may not have any prior history of mental illness. Early intervention, diagnosis and treatment have never been more important.
If you do have any concerns relating to your teenager’s mental health, you may wish to consider using the assessment tool provided by Beyond Blue. The checklist aims to measure how your teen has been feeling over the past four weeks. After completion, the results can be printed for your records, or alternatively, provided to your medical practitioner.
The link for SchoolTV and this special report on Wellbeing is available on PAM/SIMON, our website and below.
https://sje.vic.schooltv.me/launch
Social Media
It is a timely reminder to ensure that if your students have access to social media, that there are discussions around rules and social etiquette. At St. Joseph’s we encourage and teach our students to PAUSE (Is it Positive, Accurate, Useful, Supportive and Ethical?) before posting or sending.
It is important that we have regular conversations to assist our students in navigating social media and providing support and resources that enable them to develop and enhance their skills and be a positive force on social media platforms and in the online world.
Please remember that the minimum age for Social Media platforms is 13.
There are some fantastic resources available at:
esafety.gov.au
Online Course (Anxiety):
The BRAVE program; a free online program that provides young people with information and skills to build strategies that assist coping with worries and anxiety. This program includes 10 sessions to work through in your own time, and at your own pace. There is also a 7 session program for parents who might be interested in helping their child cope with worries or anxiety.
To complete the free program, follow this link:
https://brave4you.psy.uq.edu.au/teen-program
Some additional resources and supports
Websites
BIte Back: https://www.biteback.org.au/
Beyond Blue: https://www.beyondblue.org.au
Life Line: https://www.lifeline.org.au/ 13 11 14
Kids Help Line: https://kidshelpline.com.au/ 1800 55 1800
Local Face to Face Direct Support
Echuca Moama and surrounds has a variety of psychologists, social workers and counsellors that provide support to community members for issues relating to mental health, relationships, anxiety, stress, mood disorders. Grief and loss, self-esteem and a range of other issues. People may obtain a mental health care plan through their GP to receive a number of fee subsidised appointments.
Thrive Wellness & Consulting Ph: 5482 3143
N8 Health (Psychology) Ph: 5480 2981
Echuca Primary Care Clinic (Counselling) Ph: 5485 5800
Country Wide Psychology & Counselling Ph: 5480 0622
In the event of a mental health emergency, please contact:
Victorian residents (Mental Health triage) 1300 363 788
NSW residents (Access Line) 1800 011 511
Or attend your local emergency department for assessment.
Apps:
Self Help for Anxiety Management (SAM): offers a range of self-help methods to help you manage anxiety. It has been developed by psychologists and provides 25 self-help options on anxiety, relaxation and health. You are encouraged to use the resources and tools in SAM to build your own anxiety toolkit that will help you cope when you're feeling anxious.
MoodMission: helps you learn new and better ways of coping with low moods and anxiety. Tell MoodMission how you’re feeling and it will give you a tailored list of 5 Missions that can help you feel better. Missions are activities and mental health strategies that are quick, easily achievable, and backed up by scientific evidence.
Smiling Mind: is a meditation app for young people. It has been developed by a team of psychologists and uses mindfulness to boost calmness, contentment and clarity. Mindfulness meditation has been shown to help manage stress, resilience, anxiety, depression and improve general health and wellbeing.
Calm Harm: provides tasks that help you resist or manage the urge to self harm. You can add your own tasks too and it's completely private and password protected.
Headspace: is meditation made simple. The app takes you through the basics of meditation, with progress pages to track your stats and reminders to help you with your practice.
The Check-in: is for anyone who wants to check in with a friend but is concerned about saying the wrong thing or making the situation worse.
Recovery Record: can help you manage your journey to recovery from eating disorders. You can keep track of your progress, get affirmations, set personalised reminders schedules and use other self-help activities.
Breakup Shakeup: provides ideas for fun, easy things to do to help you cope after a breakup. The app teaches you that planning activities and increasing your social support will help you recover faster.