Anxiety and depression are serious mental health issues. Ignoring the symptoms could lead to serious repercussions.
While anxiety is ongoing feeling of stressed or worried even after passing away of a particular situation or cause, Depression on the other hand is constant feeling of sadness or loss of interest. Both these have a lasting impact and can lead up to the thoughts of suicide.
Indian community in Brisbane was shocked and stunned after some cases of suicide due to mental health issues surfaced within the community.
Umesh Chandra, a senior leader within the Indian community in Brisbane South recently organised awareness campaigns after becoming aware of mental health issues within the Indian community.
“When few such incidents happened, we were totally shocked. We have been living here for such a long time but had no clue that this was happening within our own community,” he told SBS Hindi.
He added, “It is because we don’t talk about these issues. We feel ashamed of acknowledging if there is any Mental health issue. It is a taboo subject”
Recognizing the problem and the need to have an open conversation, Mr. Chandra organised community sessions with the support of Acacia Ridge Community Support Inc , to make community aware of specialised mental health support which is available.
NewAccess Program launch in Brisbane for CALD community. Source: Beyond Blue
One such initiative was to have access to a specialised mental health support by beyondblue
beyondblue had an early intervention support program – NewAcess Program.
It is a free mental health coaching program tailored for the culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities. The program is delivered by trained professionals from culturally diverse backgrounds.
As CEO of beyondblue Ms Georgie Harman says, “ We know, its successful and helping all the communities, and now Brisbane South has access to the program.”
She further added, “ We understand the cultural barriers associated with mental health. There are many communities, which don’t even have a word in their language to describe these issues. So it is very important to reach out to our migrant and refugee communities who suffer from various such issues for various reasons “
beyondblue’s CEO Georgie Harman Source: beyondblue
It is an Australian first early intervention support program provided by Acacia Ridge Community Support Inc (ARCSI) with Federal Government funding via Brisbane South Primary Health Network (PHN).
The program has a special focus on people from multicultural communities over the age of 18 experiencing stress, isolation and early signs of anxiety and/or depression.
Ms Harman said, “ Most people believe depression is the most common mental health condition in Australia, but actually anxiety is. 2 million Australians are living with anxiety and beyondblue has new research to show that one in five people wait as long as six years before seeking support for it. “
Explaining the ‘Depression’ and ‘Anxiety’ conditions, she added, “ We’re really trying to send a message that anxiety is a mental health condition, there is support available for it and people should get help as early as possible because it is treatable.”
Close-Up Of Man Over Black Background Source: EyeEm
Mr. Umesh Chandra said that it is very important to talk about the issues. He added that often, children don’t feel comfortable talking in front their parents and family, hence they organised separate sessions. He said, “ We need to educate our people to recognise the condition, recognise the symptoms and don’t delay in seeking help and support available.
What is Depression?
Depression is more than just a low mood – it's a serious condition that affects your physical and mental health. While we all feel sad, moody or low from time to time, some people experience these feelings intensely, for long periods of time (weeks, months or even years) and sometimes without any apparent reason.
Depression affects how you feel about yourself and makes life more difficult to manage from day to day. The encouraging news is that there are a range of treatments, health professionals and services available to help with depression, as well as information on what you can do to help yourself.
What is Anxiety?
Anxiety is when these anxious feelings don't go away – when they're ongoing and happen without any particular reason or cause. It’s a serious condition that makes it hard to cope with daily life. Everyone feels anxious from time to time, but for someone experiencing anxiety, these feelings aren't easily controlled.
Anxiety is the most common mental health condition in Australia. On average, one in four people – one in three women and one in five men – will experience anxiety at some stage in their life.1 In a 12-month period, over two million Australians experience anxiety.2
Anxiety is common, but the sooner people with anxiety get support, the more likely they are to recover.
