This week, Rebecca O’Neill highlights Irish organisations offering a big help to the public in terms of mental health awareness.
I think it is so important to highlight these organisations so people know that there is always help out there. It is also even more important to show what these organisations do and what they offer. Whether yourself or a family member may suffer from mental health, this week’s column could be helpful for you.
Grow.ie
This organisation involves a community of people with experiences due to mental health problems. These people have come up with certain ways to help others with their mental health problems such as creating a programme called “The Grow Programme”.
Every week there are meetings involving this programme held across the country using their 12 Step programme to recover from various forms of mental health problems. Their main goals are to create hope for others and provide education for people.
This organisation offers programs within the community and in the workplace. The idea behind this is to increase the awareness of mental health and to show how important it is to maintain it.
Founder Con Keogh came up with the idea of setting up a special group specifically on recovering from mental health problems. This idea was born because, when he had his own mental health battle, he attended Alcoholics Anonymous even though he wasn’t an alcoholic.
Grow now has online support groups for anyone that may be struggling currently. These support groups contain people talking about their personally experiences and how they feel during this pandemic.
Website: Grow.ie
Support line: 1890 474 474
Email: info@grow.ie
Aware.ie
This is another very supportive organisation that offers help in all areas of mental health. They help you understand and explain why you might be feeling anxious or depressed especially during the current pandemic.
They offer information about bi-polar disorder, depression and anxiety. Dr. Patrick McKeon founded Aware in 1985 along with a small team of volunteers that had personal mental health experiences. Their own volunteers share their personal battles which allows other to realise they are not alone. This could even motivate you to share yours and help others relate to you.
You can watch videos of the volunteers stories on Aware.ie. Aware also holds a Zoom support group during this time. They also offer a support line and a support email for anyone that might need it most. All information can be found on their website.
Website: Aware.ie
Support Line: 1800 80 48 48
Email: supportmail@aware.ie
