Tag Archives: mental health

AN Ennis mental health support centre is on the brink of closure unless funding can be secured. An extraordinary general meeting takes place in Emotions Peer Support Centre on Monday at 12 noon to see if funding can be secured to save the facility. Since the centre opened in May 2012, it has had 7,200 visits from people seeking support from volunteers. It costs about €18,500 to run the centre annually, which pays for expenses including rent, electricity and other items. Liam Minogue of Emotions Peer Support said the centre has been a huge success. He said the HSE staff have participated in a Wellness Recovery Action Plan (WRAP) Peer Support Group workshop at the centre, which could be provided for clients in day facilities run by the HSE in Ennis, Shannon, Lisdoonvarna, Ennistymon and Kilrush. He said the drop-in centre had provided a vital lifeline for hundreds of people experiencing mental health or psychological difficulties. Stating that closing the …

An investment of approximately €700,000 per year will see Jigsaw provide a new mental health service for young people in the Mid West. News of the investment was announced by Kathleen Lynch, Minister for Mental Health, Social Care and Primary Care and recruitment of a Project Manager for the Limerick project will commence in February. Jigsaw will provide early intervention and prevention services and also help to integrate existing resources to better support youth mental health. Minister for Education and Skills and Labour TD for Limerick City, Jan O’Sullivan, warmly welcomed the establishment of the new youth mental service for Limerick. “Jigsaw is a fantastic service, provided by the organisation Headstrong.  It is already making a very positive impact on youth mental health in ten communities across the country and I am delighted that my colleague Minister Kathleen Lynch has provided the funding to extend the service to Limerick this year.” “Jigsaw is based on the principle of “somewhere to …

Minister of State at the Department of Health Kathleen Lynch, has launched a campaign aims to get everyone talking about mental health. Suicide or Survive (SOS) is calling on everyone in Clare to get involved in the High Tea and Talk campaign in September and start talking about mental health. SOS has been running the campaign for three years, and this year it’s going to be even bigger with more people supporting it across every county nationwide. World Suicide Prevention Day takes place on Thursday, September 10 and to mark it SOS, with the support of Newstalk and Rabo Direct, the straight talking savings bank, will be bringing ‘High Tea and Talk’ to the nation for the month of September, in the hope of raising awareness and opening up the conversation around mental health. SOS wants to encourage the entire nation to take some time out and have a cup of tea with friends, family or workmates and when doing …

Scariff adventurer Joanne Treacy has sucessfully raised money for a national mental health charity, climbing 26 peaks in 10 days in the process. While donations are still being collected this week, the London-based neuroscientist believes the final amount should be in the region of €6,500. Joanne is thrilled with the figure raised for the Headstrong charity and the public awareness her peaks challenge has generated about the help that is available for people suffering from mental illness and depression. Although Joanne said she was physically and mentally tired at the end of her charity climbs, she was energised by the huge support she received from family, friends and other hill walking enthusiasts who joined her in the different challenges. Having climbed Knockboy in Cork and Carrauntoohil on Saturday, Joanne travelled to Twomilegate a few miles from Killaloe, where she climbed Molussa, the highest peak in Clare, with a group of 30 people. One girl got up at 5am to join …

While there was a drop in the suicide rate in Ireland in 2014 compared to the previous year, a long-time advocate on the issue has warned against complacency. Central Statistics Office data has confirmed that 459 deaths by suicide were registered in 2014, compared to 475 in 2013. “A reduction of any kind is to be welcomed, but very cautiously,” said Limerick TD Dan Neville, founder of the Irish Association of Suicidology. The chairman of the Fine Gael party said, “Any indication of a downward trend in the rate of suicide must be welcomed but when it comes to suicide, we must always question the accuracy of the figures. It is a fact that in some cases a definite cause of death cannot be determined and a number of these cases could be suicide. This has always been the case however, so we can accept that the trend is moving downwards, though it still remains unacceptably high. “Males accounted for …

A call has been made for countrywide support for a march for suicide prevention and mental health awareness that is taking place in Dublin this Saturday. Organised by Action for Suicide Prevention, the march will set out at 2pm from the Garden of Remembrance and finish at Dáil Eireann where there will be various speakers and musicians. Action for Suicide Prevention was set up to put a spotlight firmly back on the lack of support and funding to the mental health services in Ireland. Spear headed by two young men, Luke Clerkin (23) from Tallaght and Jamie Harrington (16) from Ballymun, the group’s aim is to highlight the Government’s lack of support to the mental health services in Ireland and to also let people suffering in silence know that they are not alone! Saturday’s event is their one year anniversary march for suicide prevention and mental health awareness. They want Government funding for Teen-Line Ireland to be restored, and for …

IT’S a sobering reality that there are few GAA clubs that have not been touched, in some way, by suicide. With this scourge in mind, the GAA and the Samaritans have launched a partnership, which aims to reduce the stigma around the issue of mental health and to encourage help-seeking behaviour. In its next phase, clubs are being encouraged to get in touch with Clare Samaritans liaison volunteers, who can arrange awareness talks for their members. The Samaritans exists to offer confidential, emotional support to people who are experiencing feelings of distress and despair, including feelings that may lead to suicide. This is done, primarily, by providing those who are having trouble with a safe place to talk. To achieve this, the charity operates a helpline, which is available 24/7, at a free-to-caller number 116 123. They may be contacted by email at jo@samaritans.org, or people can also call to the centre on the Kilrush Road in Ennis, between the …

The Union of Students of Ireland (USI) has launched a new campaign that highlights the mental health impact of harmful drinking on young people. The USI’s new resource on alcohol and mental health, mentaldrinking.ie, contains easy-to-understand information on the risks that alcohol consumption, particularly binge drinking, pose to young people, and the impact this can have on their mental health and wellbeing. As part of its campaign, the USI is also encouraging third level students to lead by example and pass on the truth about harmful drinking and the many problems it causes to the next generation, particularly their younger brothers and sisters. Alongside its information and awareness-raising campaign, the USI will be providing alcohol brief intervention training, beginning with student union welfare officers and then extending to student counsellors and other relevant groups. The USI will also be working with students unions throughout the country to implement new alcohol policies and improve best practice, particularly around events and their …