Mental Health “I am here” is an initiative I would like to give a mention to two great speakers I came across today.
One is from Prof. Jordan Peterson and a lecture he gave entitled The Reason for Almost All Mental Illness .
If too many things are happening
His analysis is based on the concept that if there are too many things happening in one’s life then they can very well have severe consequences for the person experiencing them. Professor Peterson says that lives are complex and there is alot always going on with every one. Examples could include the political system and economy being shot, or one’s finances are not currently enough, or a person looses their job, or someone that its loved dies, or maybe two people die around the same time, or the person gets cancer. Often these things can all happen within a small space of time and then they can almost spin out of control with night sweats, anxiety, loss of appetite etc. People are like balloons where is there is too much pressure they will explode.
Why do we come to a psychologist ?
Professor Peterson says that people do not come to a psychologist because they have mental illnesses but because their lives have started to collapse and they cant stay on top of all the moving element of their lives. When all of these things happen it is completely possible they will get physiologically ill, maybe they’ll start drinking or develop an anxiety disorder or get an obsessive-compulsive disorder and depression will inevitably occur.
Mental Health “I am here”
Today I came another new great initiative in Ireland called Mental Health I am here. “I am here” which is led by Jim Breen. Jim is another great advocate spokesperson for mental health, and in particular, our understanding of suicide in Ireland. I have been familiar with Cycle Against Suicide for a long time but it never captured my imagination as well as today’s presentation. Mental health I am here, gives a starting framework and steps a concerned person can take towards identifying someone they know that may be struggling with underlying issues that are displayed through exhaustion, apathy and other unusual signs of out of character traits.
The mental health “I am here” campaign provides some tools to carers, friends, supervisors that are genuinely concerned for a person that is struggling and not coping well. Some people that may be at such a low ebb that suicide for them may “reasonably” be seen as a possible solution to their trials.
The mental health I am here campaign works with a CLEAR acronym which include Compassion, Listening, Empathy, Listening, Acceptance, Real. By demonstrating courage, confidence and “clear” skills it will be possible that a concerned individual can point a distressed person to the right location for help. Asking for help is totally ok.
Disclaimer:
I am not a mental health expert and the materials for this blog have been referenced to the “I am here” campaign through https://iamheretribe.com/ . For more information please have a look at their site. The Reason for Almost All Mental Illness is taken from Prof. Jordan Peterson YouTube lecture