For all those who had been looking out for the 2017 Glove Box Guide to Mental Health, it’s here.
The new guide, produced by The Land in partnership the Rural Adversity Mental Health Program, was launched in Orange today at The Like Mind office.
This is the sixth edition of the guide, which is also free in today’s issue of The Land. Last year’s edition was a PANPA award winner for best cause related campaign or community service.
The theme of this year’s issue is “Let’s talk”, which is about connections between people and across communities and how this can help equip people to deal with and manage mental health.
Throughout the guide, readers are encouraged to talk about key areas the Rural Adversity Mental Health team have identified as effective in helping mental health in rural communities.
The publication also includes a comprehensive listing of where people can get help.
Among those who spoke at the launch was Orange Mayor Reg Kidd, who himself has been affected mental illness.
He emphasised the importance of removing stigma around the issue and the importance of being able to talk to somebody.
He also pointed out how a project such as the Glovebox Guide played a crucial and practical role in bringing together the community with different departments and services in the co-ordination and production of the product, the end result being a resource the community could use.
“This sort of co-operation puts like minds in the room to address the issues that are out there,” he said.
“I get around the state a lot, professionally with my work and with agriculture, and I go to places where I’m with 30 or 40 farmers, and they talk about it, which is great – over coffee, or over a beer, or whatever it may be, they will talk about it. That was not the case 12 years ago.”
Copies of the guide are available in this week’s issue of The Land.