Picture: BROOKE LITTLEWOOD
ARMED with paint and brushes, community members have turned to the healing power of art to express their emotions in celebration of Mental Health Month.
Millicent’s Mental Health and Wellbeing Group (MHWG) – which partners with The Junction – hosted the arts and crafts workshop last week, supported by Minimisation of Suicide Harm (MOSH) and funded by the Mental Health Coalition of South Australia.
The activity gave participants the opportunity to reflect upon and share what they were grateful for in life using art.
MOSH founder Jill Chapman said the event was a great way to get people affected by mental illness together in a comfortable and non-judgemental environment.
“At MOSH we run two drop-in centres, very similar to the Junction in Mount Gambier and the MHWG in Millicent,” she said.
“The centres bring people together over an activity because they are more comfortable to chat with those around them while they are doing something.
“Sometimes people do talk about mental health issues and sometimes it is just a place for them to be.
“Loneliness is a huge factor for people.
“Activities like this are about creating connections and opportunities for conversation, as well as looking at a positive outlook on life.”
Millicent MHWG coordinator Leanne Langton said the group jumped at the opportunity to participate in a Mental Health Week event.
“The activity was presented as an opportunity to us, which is awesome,” she said.
“The whole purpose of the mental health and wellbeing group is for those with mental illness to go somewhere where they feel they belong.
“It is a non-judgemental place of acceptance, where people feel safe and comfortable and they know they fit in.
“There are a lot of people that come because it is the only social place they actually go to.”
Volunteer Colleen Cruise added she was grateful for the life skills she had gained since joining the group.
“The reason I started attending group sessions was because it gave me a reason to leave my house,” she said.
“I did not leave my house before I started coming here.
“I started as a member, then I became a volunteer and now I have my first paying job in 15 years.
“Without this I would never have had a paying job.”
Currently, the MHWG meets weekly on Tuesdays and Wednesdays and participates in a range of indoor and outdoor activities.
On Tuesdays, the group hosts a guest speaker at the community health meeting room, or participates in a learning activity outdoors.
Meanwhile, Wednesday activities focus on arts and craft and members are free to let their imaginations run wild on their individual projects.
People interested in joining the group should call 0477 886 450.
