Mental Health Concerns grow in The LGBT Community

LAST year in Ireland saw a record number of calls made to The LGBT Helpline. The helpline is a national support service for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.

Speaking at a volunteer recruitment drive, Paula Fagan said “The LGBT helpline is struggling to meet demand for its services,” Adding to this the Coordinator of the helpline said “We could have answered significantly more calls last year if more volunteers had been available,”

The helpline is calling on more people to get involved to combat the growing concern in calls relating to people’s mental health.

Ms Fagan added that 60 per cent of calls to the service last year were focused on mental health.

“In some cases, callers got in touch because their fear of coming out was causing them anxiety, in other cases, it was to speak about the impact on their mental health of homophobia,” added Ms Fagan.

The LGBT helpline thanked The National Office of Suicide Prevention, for the financial support they have given the service this year. The funding enables the service to continue providing mental health support to LGBT people.

The LGBT helpline received about 10,000 calls last year, but due to lack of funding and volunteers, only a quarter of those were answered.

“Our volunteers do excellent work and thanks to them we were able to extend our opening hours last year” said Ms Fagan.

The demand for the service at the moment is much higher than the service can cope with and this has led to the incentive for the recruitment drive for additional volunteers.

Another issue was also highlighted at the drive and this was the growing need for female volunteers in Dublin. “We have significantly more male than female volunteers in our Dublin centre,” said Ms Fagan.

Surprisingly out of a group of 48 existing volunteers, only 10 are women at the centre.  The LGBT helpline added that they were happy to accept volunteering applications from men, but they urged more women to step up and help out if possible.

The main issues arising in the mental health area for LGBT people were negative reactions from family members or friends. Adding to this was the pressure of isolation, harassment and bullying.

“Unfortunately, some LGBT people feel they don’t get the same level of support as heterosexual people during times of emotional distress added The LGBT helpline.

“The death of a partner can provide a double blow for an LGBT person, because in addition to dealing with their grief, they may not get the same reaction or support that a heterosexual person gets when they lose their spouse.

The LGBT recruitment drive for volunteers will run over the next four weeks and will see a nationwide campaign take place. The service is calling on members of the LGBT to volunteer to help others in need of support.

The LGBT Helpline can be accessed on 1890 929539 or e-mail info@lgbt.ie

LOVE AND OTHER DRUGS

Roses are red, violets are blue, and we all know how that one ends. Yes it’s that time of year again, when women start leaving early hints that they want a grand gesture from their other half, that declaration of love. It’s all about recreating the New York love affair Mr Big and Carrie had in Sex and The City, or is it?

For men Valentine’s Day brings about the shame and embarrassment at having to buy the perfect card that says ‘I love you’. Luckily now the internet solves this mild embarrassment with online sites dedicated to creating the perfect card, and in some cases the entire romantic night. Pass the bucket, I feel ill already.

Eason’s becomes a sea of pink and red, shelves stacked with clichéd romantic cards that make many singletons want to sit in the dark and eat spaghetti hoops while their housemate is being wined and dined by the ‘love of their love’ even though he has given you the eye on occasion.

“Till death do us part” Yeah Right! More like until the next piece of ‘meat’ catches our eye or we go through a midlife crisis and have an affair, but its okay all can be forgiven on Valentine’s Day, with a bunch of roses and a Teddy bear that says “I love you”. Well that’s what happens in the movies so it must be right? WRONG

Whether or not we buy into the most pointless day of the year or not, (Yes I maybe as cynical as a single Carrie Bradshaw from Sex and The City) but this is allowed on occasion.

Stop! Behind that second layer of chocolates you are about to cry into because you’re single there is light at the end of the caramel tunnel.

It turns out St Valentine was in fact a real person, one that didn’t wear a nappy and have a cross and arrow that struck people with the infamous ‘Love Bug’

Did you know that St Valentine was the patron saint of epilepsy? It was news to me too, and no epilepsy is not connected to the devil? This yet again is another myth dispelled by the Catholic Church.

While you are gearing up for the most romantic let down of the year, spare a thought for those affected by an illness which St Valentine himself is said to have been effected by.

To have epilepsy is to have a tendency to have recurring seizures. A seizure is a brief and temporary malfunction of normal brain activity and is often compared to a computer crashing.

Research carried out by Epilepsy Ireland in 2009 found that there are 37,000 (1 in every 115) people with epilepsy in this country and that this number may be increasing.

The exact reason for St Valentine's link to epilepsy is not known for certain; we do know that the link has been reinforced by Christians throughout the ages ever since February 14th was declared to be the Feast Day of Saint Valentine as far back as 496AD.

In parts of Europe, common names for epilepsy have included "Saint Valentine's illness" and "St. Valentine's affliction". There are also hundreds of iconic representations existing today from the 15t century onwards of St. Valentine healing people with epilepsy, particularly in Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Italy. They often show the Saint with an adult or a child having a seizure or recovering from a seizure.

St Valentine is also often represented by the symbol of the Rose. Every year, Epilepsy Ireland marks St Valentine's connection to epilepsy through our Valentine's Roses fundraising appeal.

Speaking to a young woman who suffers from the disorder, she spoke of how she went from partying like any other first year to suddenly having no control over her world. It puts the whole notion of love into perspe

ctive.

“It’s hard to deal with sometimes, I only got my first seizure four years ago at a time I was in my prime and starting college. I went from a care free existence to suddenly being very health conscious and I feel this is a condition that young people are not fully aware of,”.

Adding to this she” I now have  to take two tablets twice a day and take much better care of myself than I would have been 4 years ago when my seizures first began,”

It has taken this young woman four years for her seizures to be completely under control but for others this can take longer.

So for all you love sick puppies out there this Thursday put the chocolates and spaghetti hoops away. Being single is probably a blessing at least you don’t have to be that consumer of an all singing and dancing ‘I Love you card’.

The 3rd annual European Epilepsy Day takes place on Monday, February 11th 2013, three days before the feast day of St Valentine, the Patron Saint of Epilepsy.

‘Breaking the Silence’ – Why seeking help is still considered taboo in Irish Society

“We each have a role to play, teachers, friends, parents. We are all developing”

Education Minister Ruairi Quinn has announced training for parents of school children as part of the Government’s plan to educate Ireland on the dangers of Cyber bullying.

 It is time for Irish people to step up and play their part in solving one of Ireland’s most frightening problems in the history of the state.

Bullying in schools and the work place has long dominated the Irish existence but the emergence of ‘cyber bullying’ in the past 12 months is a new wave that has gripped society.

As a nation we discussed the economic downturn trying to emerge from the failures of a problem that we chose to brush aside and continued living the Celtic Tiger Lifestyle in which we all had a sense of security within.

The problem which we should have been examining was attitudes to mental health in Ireland and protecting those most vulnerable in society; sadly this did not happen.

As individuals we all struggle to survive from time to time; for many of us it is easy to invest our darkest secrets to those who love us but for many Irish people this is sadly not the case as pre-existing ideology within the Irish diaspora means we are supposed to brush aside the pain and hurt and keep the pretence that life is okay

 Sadly this brushing aside the Irish emotions has tragically seen the rate of Irish suicide increase drastically in the past 14 months in Ireland. The Young Men and Suicide report issued by the cross border Men’s Health Forum in Ireland has found:

Suicide now ranks as a major cause of death among young males in both The Republic & Northern Ireland. The report outlines 12 key recommendations, including the development and promotion of positive models of mental health aimed at young males but this must now be applied on all genders across the island.

In 2012 Cyber bullying was a contributing factor in the deaths of Ciara Pugsley, Erin Gallagher and Minister Shane McEntee who all died by suicide following pressures from online tormentors.

In the Irish context what is needed is to eradicate the ideology of masculine Ireland. Jigsaw Galway is one resource in the West of Ireland that is helping to combat taboo in Irish society regarding mental health.

The organisation particularly deals in teenage mental health issues. It focuses on ‘guided self-help’ and ensuring proper advice and guidance is given to adolescents and parents who have concerns about certain issues facing them and their children.

Research & Community Development Officer at Jigsaw Galway Sarah Simkin says: “Jigsaw Galway is a free and confidential support service for 15 to 25 year olds living in Galway. One of the main aims we have is to help young people to feel stronger and to face whatever difficulty they have.”

The advice coming from JIGSAW Galway and for parents, who have anxieties with the online world that their children are growing up part of, is to approach online bullying the same way as traditional methods were dealt with.

And that official stance was echoed again by Ms Simkin who said:” The approach and advice is very much the same in dealing with online bullying as it was with traditional methods of bullying”. 

Ms Simkin further added: “They best way to deal with online bullying is to ‘block, ‘defriend’, and ‘report’ the online bully.

She further added: “We each have a role to play, teachers, friends, parents. We are all developing”. Incidents of teenage suicide raised an alarming rate at the end of last year. The advice coming from Jigsaw Galway is to talk to a professional.

When a person is distressed enough, they can carry out an act of extreme anger such as suicide. This may be in response to an impulse that may easily be talked out if people break their silence.

Jigsaw Galway has the following advice to offer to people who may have concerns about the behaviour of a friend or family member who may be struggling in life.

“Pick up the phone to Jigsaw Galway or the family doctor and seek advice about how best to approach the situation. Do not be put under pressure to have all the answers, You have to think about what you have noticed, quite often people think everyone is getting on fine but sadly this is not always the case.

Use whatever words are natural for you to that person and this will allow this person the opportunity to open up about issues in their life.

 Often time offering supporting such as attending an organisation like Jigsaw will help to break the taboo that the person may have built up”.

The role Non-Government Organisations (NGO’s) play in the development of a topic such as mental health is vital and the support they offer those falling through the cracks of society.

Another organisation trying to paint a new picture for speaking up and breaking the silence that Ireland has succumbed to for too long is SpunOut Mental Health.

Youth Engagement Officer with SpunOut Ireland John Buckley explains that “Over the past five years we have been in a position where by we provide health information online and give young people an opportunity to have their voice heard in a different way.

The organisation has seen a rise over the last year in aggressive and abusive behaviour online. The role of SpunOut mental health is to give young people a place to express themselves around that behaviour but to also make sure people have access to good quality information and advice to deal with cyber bullying or any online abuse.

The advice Mr Buckley is offering to those affected by online bullying is “Under no circumstances is such abuse acceptable. No one deserves that kind of abuse put on them

“The second piece of advice would be to talk to someone, a trusted adult or friend. The third thing is to record it, take a screen shot on your phone or laptop and save it or print the messages”.

Echoing the message from Jigsaw Galway John adds: “report, block and walk away from it”. The key thing to remember is that when we engage in an online sphere we need to do it in a place we feel safe.

Mr Buckley urged people “Before you click send or type that message think about the impact your words can have on someone, because your words do have a very big impact on other people”. The Youth Engagement Officer spoke of the hurt and pain words can have and can lead to a detrimental effect on people’s mental health who may be struggling.

The advice to parents on issues relating to bullying and mental health is to engage from an early age with your young person. It can be difficult for parents to do this SpunOut realises as young people are the experts in the online sphere and this can take parents a little getting used to.

He urged parents to set good firm boundaries and to ensure children have human empathy. The most important thing to do is to keep dialogue open and trust your young person. The Youth engagement officer further added: “The main message is that under no circumstances is it your fault or is it acceptable” (Cyber bullying).

In the wider mental health spectrum we are vulnerable people, we are all sensitive. In the Irish context we have to have a sense of wellbeing. John Buckley summed up the debate on Irish mental health attitudes “The Heathers {band} have a song “It’s all right not to feel okay”. If only more Irish people would realise this concept then perhaps one of the country’s worst problems would be solved.

Oranmore Native Nuala Keher to spend 6 months volunteering in South Sudan

“I’m at an age in my life and I have been very lucky and had a very successful career, I have done lots of things here in Ireland so I just felt it was the right time

Many of us see retirement as the silver lining to years of hard work and excelling in careers. For many who are now forced into early retirement the thought of endless days of not having their daily routine is quite a daunting prospect. Instead many people are opting not to pick up the golf clubs for endless days on the golf course but instead are using their years of expertise and skills and venturing on a new path, of volunteering abroad

Nuala Keher, originally from Oranmore in Co Galway is about to embark on a six month volunteering programme in South Sudan with VSO Ireland.

The executive Director of EQUAL Ireland and former director of NUI Galway’s open learning centre and CEO of the Lionra Network is taking a career break and moving to one of the world’s newest countries, namely South Sudan in East Central Africa.

Nuala is well known in education and training circles in Ireland. Speaking of the upcoming journey and of the inspiration and influence behind her decision to become a volunteer with VSO Ireland.

 Ms Keher said: “I’m at an age in my life and I have been very lucky and had a very successful career, I have done lots of things here in Ireland so I just felt it was the right time.

“I had the experience and skills and VSO are looking for people with these skills, and they are very interested to transferring those skills to developing countries.”

VSO Ireland is an international development organisation that works through volunteers. Their approach to working and volunteering abroad is quite different to working for other Non-Government organisations.

The oranmore native affectionately referred to her daughter as a “role model” who inspired her to make the decision to go to Sudan and use her expertise to help others. Ms Keher’s own daughter has spent time volunteering in Ethiopia and Kenya. She added that her family have been extremely supportive in her decision as has her employers at EQUAL Ireland.

The Galway educator will be working with the Department of Education in South Sudan and will assume the role and responsibility for teacher training and for developing the capacity of the department to deliver training throughout the country. Her work with EQUAL Ireland has provided hundreds of adults with routes back into education.

Ms Keher says:” The work I am going to be doing is about is about training people there, who in turn will train others” adding to this: “I feel it is the right time to make a contribution, if I can, to people worse off than ourselves, I know this will not be easy but equally I am convinced that it will be worthwhile” said Ms Keher.

The Galway woman spoke of what an exciting opportunity it is for her and added; “I’m hoping from my experience I will leave behind some skilled people who can maybe train others and be able to establish a good education system for their people”.

Ms Keher says:” I am nervous, but also looking forward to it, VSO Ireland has done a lot of training around the culture change”. Adding to this she says:” You never can be prepared for everything”.

The temperatures will be soaring into the high 40’s so this is one part of the journey that will take some getting used to for the Galway woman.

Marketing and Communications Advisor Donnacha Maguire with VSO Ireland explains that the NGO works in 19 countries across Africa & Asia. On an international level VSO is working in over 33 countries. The main area of focus is within health, education and securing livelihoods ensuring people have an adequate income to pay for education and health services.

A key focus area under these three sectors is gender equality and climate change which are interwoven. The NGO wants better equality in terms of women in developing countries and to ensure young girls have access to education.

An emerging trend in volunteers for overseas projects has seen a surge in early retirees applying. Mr McGuire remarks on the change in image of the type of volunteer they now receive. This has seen a shift towards early retirees offering up their services as public sector redundancy plans in the past two years have awarded such people the options to spend time volunteering. Adding to this he said: “This has increased the pool of applications,” he says

 With the current economic climate still at a low, people’s commitment levels have changed. There are now people who cannot commit to voluntary programmes because they have mortgage repayments to meet, and other such obligations to fulfil.  A lot of people are struggling to meet mortgage repayments in this country. VSO has seen increases in private sector applications and a lessening to the public sector. This is largely to do with our economy at present in Ireland.

“We feel that sending people skills and abilities over the developing countries have a far greater and longer lasting impact in terms of fighting poverty than simply sending cash resources” says Mr McGuire.

Echoing this sentiment says: “We feel a person’s time and skills and resources are of far greater importance than the cash they can raise”. 

VSO organise fundraisers prior to volunteer’s departures to raise awareness of the organisation. VSO do ask volunteers to do some fundraising which is about 1500 euro.

One of the striking elements is that people being forced into early retirement due to fears to cuts in redundancies and pension plans are not ready to retire in the majority of cases. Work is often a social element to many people’s lives and the keen upsurge in retirees going abroad to volunteer shows their willingness not to be defeated by bureaucracy.

Those who are choosing to volunteer through VSO will be lucky enough that the NGO supports their volunteers financially throughout the duration of the project. VSO provide a living allowance for volunteers while they are working in a country to fund such things as work, travel, vaccinations and on-going care.

VSO Ireland looks at the ‘long term’ as projects are usually between one and two years in duration. Mr McGuire says “We send volunteers for longer periods as it has greater impact”. In comparison to other NGO’s VSO don’t send teachers to teach in a class or nurses to work directly in a hospital. We would send those professionals to work in either the teaching training or nurse’s colleges to help train other professionals. This helps improve the overall standards of care and education.

The vision for 2013 from VSO Ireland is to increase the number of volunteers going to Africa and Asia.

“Ireland has a strong tradition of volunteering overseas, historically through the missions but lately through lay organisations” says VSO’s Marketing and Communications Advisor.

Adding to this Mr McGuire adds:” I think despite economic conditions in Ireland there is still considerable interest to volunteer overseas and to improve, share skills and improve the lives of people

“I think it’s something within the Irish psyche that we like supporting other countries and developing organisations because we know how hard it is to get off the ground and get going as a country”.

VSO Ireland is currently recruiting experienced, qualified professionals in the area of health, education, business management and IT for one or two year placements. If you are interested in finding out more information on VSO Ireland visit www.vso.ie or call 01 640 1060. To support Nuala Keher’s vision you can visit her mycharity.ie to make a contribution