A new mental health and wellbeing service for communities in west Cork, The Wellbeing Network, was recently officially launched by Senator Joan Freeman; mayor of Cork county, Cllr Patrick Gerard Murphy; and Olympic Irish race walker, Rob Heffernan.
In addition to a mobile service that will visit up to two communities in west Cork per month at the request of local stakeholders, a new website – www.thewellbeingnetwork.ie – was also unveiled, offering tips on general wellbeing; information on support services; activities in the community; self-help videos and podcasts.
The new service aims to get rural communities talking about mental health topics and will encourage people to get familiar with the five ways of wellbeing: be active; take notice; keep learning; connect; and give.
Speaking at the launch, mental health activist Senator Joan Freeman said that the initiative represented the core of what she had been trying to do all her life.
These five ways of living – being active; taking notice; keeping learning; connecting; and giving – equal wellbeing. Physical health is very much attached to mental wellbeing.
Olympic medal winning Irish race walker, Rob Heffernan, who took part in RTE’s ‘Dancing with the Stars’ earlier this year said that he completely believed that mental wellbeing is linked to being active.
“In the early days, if I took a month off from sport at the end of the competitive year, I always felt bad; I was drinking more, and eating worse. Now, I try to get out and be active five days a week.
“My personal target is to run 10km five times a week and if I’ve done that, I feel I can enjoy myself at the weekends,” he said.
Tough Times
“I’ve had some really tough times in sport and in terms of mental health. When I didn’t win a medal in 2008, I suffered massively the year after with anxiety. I didn’t want to do anything. I didn’t want to go outside the door.
“You can get into dark places when you race because it’s really, really tough, so you have to train yourself to focus on what’s important and to stay positive.”
Commenting on his experience in ‘Dancing with the Stars’ where he was described by professional dancing partner, Emily Barker, as initially having “two left feet”, the former world champion athlete said: “After my sporting career, I wanted to know if there was anything else I could do.
“Marion, my wife, always mocked me for my dancing because I was so bad, so it really was a challenge to take part in the show. I was absolutely terrible at the beginning and it was so tough trying to learn something new. But once I started getting better at it, it was such a good feeling.
“My confidence grew massively and it was a really positive experience. I would encourage everyone to try something new,” Rob said.
Taking Ownership
Priscilla Lynch, head of health and wellbeing, Cork Kerry Community Health Care, said that an important part of the ‘preventative approach’ is the provision of information so that everyone can be fully informed about what is available in their community; what things might work to help them through difficult periods; and most of all, to empower people to take ownership of their own wellbeing.
On a practical level, the Wellness Network will offer guidance on how to treat common mental health ailments. Just as actions can be taken to improve physical health immunity, there are relatively easy steps that can be taken to bolster mental wellbeing, the gathering was told.
For some people, feelings of negativity and anxiety can be transient and they pass once the source of stress is alleviated; whereas, for others it can be a more difficult and ongoing battle where their mental health is challenged, the meeting heard.
One of the central aims of The Wellbeing Network is to increase awareness of the supports available and how people can access them. The Wellness Network has the ability to refer people to clinical and medial supports within the statutory services.
Last Thursday night saw a questions and answers session with former Cork senior football manager Conor Counihan. It covered the five ways of wellbeing, with nutritional advice from Karen Duggan of the HSE.
The community event in the BEDA hall included a showcase of recreational and voluntary groups and a talk with Mark Gaffney of West Cork Development Partnership.
If you would like to organise the Wellbeing Network to host an event in your area, contact: [email protected].