Help and Support

Get help and support for yourself and others. Know who to turn to

Knowing who to turn to and that you are not alone in managing your own or other’s mental health and gaining and sustaining well being can be a great relief. There is no doubt that accurate information can improve our understanding and effective management of mental health issues.


An important tip is to acknowledging that helping someone who has a mental illness can be difficult, especially if they refuse to acknowledge their illness.

Some general do’s and don’ts are:

Do this to help a person with a mental illness:

  • Listen non defensively to them, without judgement
  • Make the time to be with them
  • Let them know you have noticed a change in their behaviour
  • Encourage them to seek professional assistance
  • Go with them when they seek assistance
  • Encourage them to eat well and regularly exercise
  • Encourage other close friends and family to maintain contact 
     

Don't do this to help a person with a mental illness:

  • Tell them to snap out of it
  • Just forget about it and party more
  • Pass judgement on how they feel and act
  • Distance yourself from them

 

Need more help – here’s some options

We are fortunate in Australia to have access to a range of freely available counselling services and web material.

In November 2006 the Better Access to Mental Health Care initiative was introduced. This initiative enables the provision of Medicare rebates for a number of mental health care services such as consultations with GP’s, psychologists, psychiatrists, paediatricians, social workers, occupational therapists.

For more information about this initiative and Medicare Rebates, click here.

More Information

Key web sites that offer mental health information and advice on how to manage mental health issues include:

> beyondblue > beyondblue.org.au
> Mental Health Council of Australia (MHCA) > mhca.org.au
> Mental Illness Fellowship of Australia (MIFA) > mifa.org.au
> Mood Gym > moodgym.anu.edu.au/welcome
> SANE Australia > sane.org

A free national telephone information and referral line is:
beyondblue on 1300 22 4636
Information and referral by trained metal health professionals on a range of mental health conditions.
Assists with finding accessing evidence based treatments in the community.
> beyondblue.org.au

A national telephone counselling service is:
Lifeline Australia on 13 11 14 
24-Hour Telephone Counselling
> lifeline.org.au