Callers flock to mental health centre

ALMOST 1,000 people experiencing some form of psychiatric difficulty or depression have used a free mental-health centre in Ennis over a six-month period.

In fact, over 1,900 hours have been provided by volunteers at Emotions Peer Support at Clonroad, offering a wide variety of courses and support to people seeking help, The Clare Champion has learned.

 

It costs about €25,000 annually to run the centre, which is raised through funds from Ennis Mental Health Association and other fundraising initiatives.

In addition to discussing problems with people on a confidential one-to-one basis, the drop-in centre has trained 11 Wellness Recovery Action Plan (WRAP) facilitators, including three local HSE staff following a five-day workshop and there are plans to train more over the coming year.
The unexpected surge in visits has prompted calls for more volunteers to carry out finance and administrative duties as the centre continues to expand its services.

Volunteer Daniel Meehan, who suffers from schizoaffective disorder, said there has been a huge positive reaction to the centre, which has helped a broad cross section of people, most of whom have experienced some form of mental health difficulties.
“The centre has helped a huge amount of people to cope with their problems. A lot of people come because they want someone simply to listen to them and talk to them.

“I see so many people leaving the centre with a smile on their face. It has helped me to turn my life around and has made a big impact on a personal level and the wider community.

“A lot of people are disillusioned with hospitals, bureaucracy and treatment. Some people feel there is a tendency, by health professionals, to give out medication far too easily, rather than come up with solutions to the cause of the problem. In some cases, there is a feeling that doctors are too quick to hand out a diagnosis and medication is being overused,” he said.

Mr Meehan said he met people in the run-up to Christmas who stated they would not relax over the festive period because of financial difficulties and other worries.

The WRAP programme puts the power back into the hands of individuals to do their own recovery plan. It is based on the peer support principle, which allows people to think creatively and non-judgementally about the way they experience and make meaning of their lives. The primary goal is to responsibly challenge the assumptions about mental health and wellness and, at the same time, support individuals to enable and empower them to make changes and decisions to enhance their lives.

The centre currently runs from 11am to 3pm, Monday to Friday, and there are plans to extend this to 10am to 4pm next month.

Mr Meehan provides a creative writing course on Monday mornings; another volunteer, Angelina Peach provides meditation on Wednesday mornings; artist Hazel Gilcrest teaches art on Tuesdays, while a knitting group meets on Thursdays.

The recent rise in Clare people seeking help for mental health issues is also reflected in other voluntary ogranisations. Official figures reveal the number of dialogue contacts made to the Clare and Ennis branch of the Samaritans increased by about 16% from 15,000 in 2009 to 17,383 in 2011.
The steady increase in the number of phone, face-to-face meetings and emails delivered to the Ennis branch was reflected in 2010 when 15,922 contacts were made.

It is estimated that between 15 and 20% of all calls made to the Samaritans are from people who relay suicidal thoughts.

Further evidence of the surge in the number of people who are contemplating taking their own lives is also reflected in the number of referrals to Pieta House, the Mid-West Centre for Prevention of Self-Harm and Suicide, in Mungret, Limerick.

In total, 348 people from Clare, Limerick, North Tipperary and North Kerry used this centre in 2011.