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E K Newsletter A quarterly newsletter compiled by Even Keel Support Association (Winter 2019)
20 Small Ways To Care For Yourself Today
Ways To Look After Your Mental Health and Well Being
Real People, Real Stories
Did You Know
Have Your Say
TOP STORIES ARTICLES IN THIS ISSUE
Quotes to soothe the soul
Your feedback is appreciated. Please email enquiries, contributions and comments to [email protected]
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Even Keel BiPolar Support Association
Perth Locations
Cannington The Leisureplex
Corner Wharf & Sevenoaks Streets 4.30pm, 2nd and last Saturday of each
month
Fremantle
The Meeting Place 245 South Terrace, South Fremantle 1pm, First Saturday of each month
Joondalup Joondalup Public Library
102 Boas Ave, 1st Floor Meeting Room 1 1pm, 1st Thursday of each month 1pm, 3rd Thursday of each month
Mandurah - In Recess -
Midland Midland Library
45 Helena Street, Ground Floor 11.30am, 2nd Thursday of each month 11.30am, Last Saturday of each month
Riverton/Willetton
Willetton Uniting Church 16 Herald Ave
3.30pm, 3rd Sunday of each month
Rockingham Private Room in Dome, Waikiki
Waikiki Village Shopping Centre 1-9 Gnangara Drive
2pm, 1st & 3rd Sunday of each month
Yokine Yokine Community Centre
287 McDonald Street 1pm, 1st Saturday of each month 1pm, 3rd Saturday of each month
CALL US……
Office
M/W/F 9:00—2.30pm
08-9274 8200
After Hours
0408 202 747
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Happenings at EK… We are on Facebook and our webpage
(www.evenkeel.net.au) are now up and running.
Even Keel Board, Staff, Facilitators and Volunteers, braved the icy cold morning and several top up runs to the shops for their most recent fund raising event at Bunnings in Midland. 844 Sausages and buns later we turned down the fire and cleaned up the area! It was a fantastic day and we would like to thank everyone who came to buy a sausage sizzle and those who donated to the cause in addition to the purchase. If you missed the opportunity to volunteer for this event please keep an eye out for our next fundraiser.
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20 SMALL WAYS TO CARE FOR YOURSELF TODAY
Self Care is not a selfish or frivolous thing.
It is time we stopped looking at this practice as a luxury.
If we are to be our best and most useful selves, caring for our souls is a necessity. A happy and healthy person can accomplish twice as much as one who is fighting burnout.
1. Forgive yourself for small mistakes. Treat yourself with the same compassion and kind-ness that you would a close friend.
2. Ask someone you look up to to be a per-sonal mentor. You will make their day.
3. Leave 15 minutes in your day as white space. Allow yourself to slow down and be si-lent. This is especially nurturing if you have active children or a demanding job.
4. Listen to at least three songs you love each day.
5. When you feel your self-esteem start to slip, write a love letter to yourself.
6. Journal every night. Even a short entry counts. Draw cartoons, write poetry, or keep a gratitude list. Mix it up. Make it your own.
7. Resist pressure to spend your free time in a way that pleases others. If you are an in-trovert, don’t apologize for needing solitude. Nurture your soul in a way that feels right to you.
8. Give yourself permission to experience your emotions. Feel your feelings, even (and especially) if they are painful.
9. Do something creative each day. It doesn’t matter how small. All creativity feeds the soul.
10. Give yourself three compliments each morning. Start off the day by working to-ward a positive self-image.
11. Don’t attempt to do everything yourself. Tell people what you need from them. You’ll be surprised at how willing they are to help.
12. Learn to receive a compliment in a way that makes you feel empowered, rather than awkward. This is surprisingly hard.
13. Cultivate gratitude. Take note of small joys in your life as you go about your day.
14. Learn to say no.
15. Take deep breaths when you are angry, stressed, or afraid.
16. Eat something delicious each day without guilt. You have my permission.
17. Listen to the way you speak to yourself. You’ll be surprised at the messages you may have internalized. Make an effort to engage in positive self-talk.
18. Take note of one thing you love about your body each day.
19. Set boundaries. Encourage others to do the same. Respect them without criticism.
20. Learn to meditate. It’s surprisingly easy!
“Self-compassion is simply giving the same kindness to ourselves that we would give to others,” observed Christopher Germer. Treat yourself with kindness today. You de-serve it, and your loved ones deserve to ex-perience the best version of you.
https://iheartintelligence.com/emotional-self-care/
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Ways to look after your mental health and wellbeing There are many simple ways to look after your mental health on a daily basis. We are all different and what works for one of us may not work for another. There are little things you can do daily which may help.
Here are some things you can try that may help to look after your mental health and wellbeing:
Do things with others. Spending time with family or friends, meeting new peo-ple and getting involved in activities can make a difference to how you feel. Get involved in community activities, kick the footy around, go for a bike ride etc.
Do something creative. Activities or
hobbies can keep you distracted, have a positive impact on your sense of mental health and wellbeing and can help in-crease your confidence and self-esteem. This could be building something, playing an instrument, gardening, art, doing a puzzle, painting, cooking, writing etc.
Invest time in relation-
ships. Connecting with people and in-vesting in good relationships are im-portant for your mental health. Get in touch with people who you trust or feel good around. Give them a call, send them a message or organise to catch-up with them.
Focus on strengths. Having positive
thoughts can help you feel better. Take time out. When you relax, you
give yourself permission to let go of worries for a while. Relaxing gives your mind and body time to recover from the stresses of everyday life.
Sleep well. We cannot function properly
without sleep. Sleep helps us to repair
and restore our bodies and minds. Keeping active. Your physical
health plays a key role in keeping you mentally healthy. Being physically active can improve your mood and reduces stress.
Eat well. Nutrition and eating well can
make a difference to the way you feel and in-turn may improve your mental health.
Mindfulness. Mindfulness can help you
feel better and reduce stress. It is easy to fit into your day. You can do it one minute at a time.
https://www.thinkmentalhealthwa.com.au/about-
mental-health-wellbeing/ways-to-look-after-your-
mental-health/
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Declan
When I first started talking to people about having borderline personality disorder, it was hard to open up. I was trying to ‘be a man’ about it, and not show my emotions. It was usually at a party when I’d had a few drinks that I’d start to tell people. I started to drink a lot.
Things started to change for me when I was 16 or 17. I started not enjoying the things that I used to, like playing sport and hanging out with friends. I became scared in social situations and in big public places. At the time, I'd just come out of a relationship and I thought that was the reason I wasn't feel-ing good. After a while, I started realising that it wasn't that; something was actually going on and I needed to get help for it.
Before my diagnosis, my knowledge of men-tal health was limited to what I’d seen in the movies and the media. The thought of me having a mental health issue was terrifying. I thought, ‘I have a great life. Something like this shouldn’t affect me.’ I thought what I was going through went on in everyone’s life; that everyone felt this kind of day-to-day sadness.
I remember in my first year at university I was seeing all the people around me and just being absolutely terrified. I thought every-one was looking at me; I thought everyone was judging me. It felt like everything was being taken control of by this feeling. There was no time during the day where I could just forget about it. I’d be lying there at night just tossing and turning, and that would just stress me out more and compound the problems. It’s debilitating.
When I was diagnosed with BPD, I felt a sense of relief. The way I interacted with other people, the way I felt about relation-ships – it all made sense. I started to realise that I could be quite erratic.
When I was first put on medication, for once I felt like things were a little bit nor-mal. And I remember thinking, ‘Is this what I’m meant to feel like? Am I meant to not feel terrible all the time and not anxious?’ It did take a bit of time to get there, but for once I felt like I wasn’t being plagued by my thoughts constantly.
When you have a mental illness, you want the negative feelings to stop, not your whole life. I’m 23, I recently graduated from uni-versity and I’m working. I have to take the good with the bad.
When those familiar feelings build up, I just try and distract myself. I try and play some sport, I try and put on a movie, and then I wait it out. I might feel a little bit better tomorrow. And if not, I know what’s available to me if things do get worse.
If you’re struggling, don’t be afraid to get help. No matter how small you feel the issue is in your head. Although you may feel right now like things aren’t as good as they should be, they will get better. I’ve been there, a lot of us have been there. You don’t have to feel alone.
Declan is a participant in Young Faces of Mental Illness, a collaboration with SANE and batyr supporting young adults to share their stories. The project is supported by The Future Generation Global Investment Company.
https://www.sane.org/information-stories/people-like-us/
declan
Real People, Real Stories
Living with mental illness
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Jessica Marais Australian actress Jessica Marais has been open about her ongoing struggle with bipolar, saying: "I never as a public figure think that I can instruct people on how to deal with issues like that. But what I will say is that I’ve learnt to be more open with the people close to me when I’ve had struggles of my own." Marais pulled out of the Logies last-minute earlier this year, reportedly seeking treatment. Marais' Love Child co-star Miranda Tapsell accepted an award on her behalf. Roxy Jacenko
Sydney-based PR queen Roxy Jacenko has previously opened up about how the arrest and sentenc-ing of her husband, Oliver Curtis, took a toll on the mother's mental health.
“It was the worst 12 months of my life,” Jacenko said in an interview with news.com.au.
“Five days I’d come to work with puffy eyes and miserable... I’d then have to go to a function or an event and I’d have to turn it on. And yes I would turn it on, but I was crumbling inside," she said.
She continued: "I couldn’t cope anymore. I was very depressed... I hid it [but] I was miserable." Curtis was eventually released from custody, helping Jacenko to reach a happier place.
“I went from being very depressed... now, I am very focused on my work, my children are happy and I’m happy," she said.
“I am calm, I’m collected, I’m not all over the place running everywhere to try and make myself happy." Buddy & Jesinta Franklin Having come out publicly with his mental health battles back in 2015, popular AFL player Buddy Franklin is back on the field these days. However, that doesn't mean that he and his wife, model Jesinta Franklin, have stopped advocating for those fighting depression. "I am not ashamed to say that I see a professional regularly myself," Jesinta said in an interview with OK! magazine.
She continued: "I don't have any fear of talking about it and being open about my mental health or helping those around me feel more comfortable talking about it."
Discussing the benefits of seeing a psychologist, the 27-year old said: "I've found it really helpful and feel so much better after a session," adding that she always "feels lighter" afterwards.
Back in 2015, Jesinta took to social media with a touching message for her husband following The Sydney Swans' loss at the AFL Grand Final.
The post read: "What a week!! My heart swells with pride for your victorious year. What you have achieved personally I admire far more than any goal, milestone or win you could ever be a part of!! It was amazing to witness you play in another GF this year and although the loss is sad, I feel like we've won on so many different levels this year and that's what truly matters in life. You have inspired me so much."
https://www.sbs.com.au/topics/life/health/article/2018/09/24/14-famous-people-who-have-opened-about-living-
mental-illness
Did You Know?
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John :“It is really good to have some-one to talk to about Bipolar. I tend to bottle it up. I have had bipolar explained to me today; the professionals don’t explain anything.”
Ted :“Anyone considering going pluck up the courage and go, I am so glad I did and I al-ways look forward to my next meet. Great people, no judging, just regular guys and girls getting together for a chat, I love going to my group.
Hi my name is Caryn Sullivan, I live with my partner and our son, our dog Ro-meo and our two budgies, Phoenix and Missy Griffin. I have lived experience of depression and anxiety which started in early ado-lescence.
I have worked as a professional musician for over twenty-five years and I still love per-forming and teaching, mostly as a percussionist. I have a degree in creative arts and a Master's in Counselling and my special interests are trauma, mindfulness and art and music therapy. I love spending time with my family, gardening, kayaking, roller skating, bike riding and taking my dog for walks. I have always had lots of pets, including a horse, goat, ferret, rat, sheep, pig, dogs and cats. I (obviously) love animals and enjoy being in nature from the beach to red dirt country, but I'm not too keen on the heat! My son has dyslexia and I am a member of the board where he attends school. I am pas-sionate about advocating for students with disabilities and disadvantage of any kind. I am thrilled to be a part of the Even Keel team and look forward to meeting other mem-bers.
Hi I’m Brett, diagnosed Bipolar 2004, and came across Even Keel in 2008 while living in Perth studying Psychology at Curtin University.
I have had great times and met many great people through Even Keel sup-port groups as well as working administration at the Subiaco offices.
I am now currently finishing my Cert IV Peer Support qualification in Perth and am very excited to become an Even Keel Support Group facilitator and assist them and others in their quest to maintain an Even Keel :)
Have Your Say… (a page dedicated to our consumers)
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Police/Ambulance/Fire : 000
Nearest Police Station : 131 444
Lifeline : 131 114
Mental Health Emergency Response Line (MHERL) Metro : 1300 555 788 Peel : 1800 676 822
Men’s Line Australia : 1300 789 978
Suicide Call Back Service : 1300 659 467
The Samaritan’s Crisis Line : 9381 5555 / 1800 198 313
Open Arms Veterans & Family Counselling : 1800 011 046
Family Help Line : 9223 1100
Domestic Violence Help Line (Women) : 9223 1188 / 1800 007 339
Domestic Violence Help Line (Men) : 9223 1199 / 1800 000 599
Crisis Care Counselling Service : 9223 1111 / 1800 199 008
Alcohol & Drug Support Line : 9442 5000 / 1800 653 203
Beyond Blue : 1300 224 636
QLife (LGBTI) : 1800 184 527
Some Important Telephone Numbers
