Entries Tagged 'education' ↓

The QLD Government has just released a toolkit Working Together, A toolkit for parents to address bullying aimed at parents and teachers so they are better equipped to deal with bullying.

Education and Training Minister Geoff Wilson said “This toolkit for parents complements the toolkit for schools released earlier this year. Most importantly the toolkit has been informed by the questions asked by parents during the Action Against Bullying Education Series conducted across Queensland by Dr Michael Carr-Gregg.”

The National Centre Against Bullying defines 5 different types of bullying:

1. Physical bullying, including hitting, poking, tripping, pushing or damaging someone’s belongings.
2. Verbal bullying, involving name calling, insults, homophobic or racist remarks and verbal abuse.
3. Social bullying, where lies or rumours are spread, or someone plays a nasty joke, mimics, or deliberately excludes someone else.
4. Psychological bullying, where someone is threatened, manipulated or stalked.
5. cyber bullying, where someone uses technology (for example, email, mobile phone, chat rooms or social networking sites) to bully verbally, socially, or psychologically.

The toolkit gives parents information on how to identify various types of bullying, including cyber bullying, methods of dealing with bullying and how to work with schools to keep their child safe.

Mr Wilson said the toolkits were just one initiative of the Queensland Schools Alliance Against Violence (QSAAV), formed in February 2010 to provide advice on best practice measures to address bullying and violence in schools.

“In addition to the toolkit for parents Dr Carr-Gregg has recorded a series of informative webisodes on bullying and their role in supporting their children and working with schools,” Mr Wilson said.

The 6 webisodes are readily available through the Department of Education and Training (DET) website and the topics covered are:

• What is bullying?
• What are the signs your child may be bullied?
• How do you support your child?
• How can you work with the school?
• What if your child is the bully?
• What is cyber-bullying?

 Dr Michael Carr-Gregg, adolescent psychologist and Generation Next speaker said “many bullies don’t know at a conscious level, that their behaviours are abusive, but unconsciously they know they are taking away the target’s power. Australian research says that 1 in 6 students are bullied weekly and are bothered by it. 54% of Year 7 students say they feel unsafe at school.”

Mr Wilson concluded by saying “It is a positive and practical outcome for schools and parents that will help them to keep children safe in our schools.” he said.

Working Together, A toolkit for parents to address bullying and the 6 webisodes can be found here: http://education.qld.gov.au/studentservices/behaviour/qsaav/index.html

Writer Helen Splarn. Editor Dr Ramesh Manocha
Source: Queensland State Government; Department of Education and Training

The Australian Institute of Family Studies has published What works with adolescents? – Family connections and involvement in interventions. It outlines information and key areas of concern for the healthy development of adolescents as they grow into adulthood.

During adolescence young people have to handle many things at once, it is an incredible time of growth on all fronts; physically, mentally and emotionally. They are no longer children but they are not adults either.

At some stage they may rebel against the constraints of family life, yet it is their family they turn to for security, comfort and reassurance. The power of the family should not be under estimated by parents, carers, teachers and medical practitioners. It is the safe haven that young people can retreat to when the world and all the changes that go with it get too much.

Families and family life is different for everyone and it doesn’t matter how the family is defined. It can be a collection of different people who live under the same roof.

The important thing is that for adolescents that sense of belonging is very important, it is the place from where they can draw their strength and get support, the place where they are accepted for who they are. It is the place they gain their resilience to the ups and downs of life.

As young people go through adolescence they experience interdependence rather than independence, they forge new and deeper relationships with family, friends, colleagues, partners and others.

Topics and issues that are covered in this publication include:

What is Family?
The family offers a “secure base” – safe place to return, emotional, psychological support (caring, connectedness, belonging).

There are five key elements to a secure parent/adolescent relationship, and these elements help build resilience in a young person so they can withstand that knocks in adult life:

1. Availability – helping young people to trust
2. Sensitivity – helping young people manage feelings/behaviours
3. Acceptance – building the self-esteem of the young person
4. Co-operation – helping young people to feel effective; and
5. Family membership – helping young people belong.

Source: Schofield & Beek (2009)

Mental Health
25% of young people aged 16-24 years old have suffered from some kind of depression or anxiety. It is a state that lasts for more than a few weeks, their moods do not life and their performance at school or work suffers.

Young people are more at risk of mental health issues if the following factors exist in their family set up:

• Physical and sexual abuse
• Neglect
• Attachment problems
• Parental mental illness
• Family conflict and stress, and
• Family breakdown.

It is vital that parents be involved in the resolution of any family issues if there is to be a successful outcome in childhood interventions.

Key family protective factors
Young people need enduring connections, if the family is not providing this then it is important to establish who else if offering it. There are 4 key family protective factors that are vital to a young person’s healthy development:

• Caring
• Connectedness
• Belonging, and
• Support.

Involving family – what works?
Improving communication skills
Promotion of family-based problem solving
Addressing negative and critical interactions
Building family resilience and hope
Helping families manage depression and contain suicide risk
Source: Carr, 2009; Larner, 2009

Who makes the decisions?
As young people approach adulthood there needs to be a balance between parental rights and the rights of minors. The desire of the young person to make personal decisions needs to be taken into account while recognising that teenagers are still developing cognitive and emotional skills needed to resolve issues that arise as they get older.

Communicating with adolescents
Building trust is critical.
There is often a focus on a literal response – but behaviours and actions are “talking”.
It is important to engage a young person, so they know they are being listened to.
“Respectful authority” – negotiate where you can, but be clear about the bottom line.
Honesty and straightforwardness are important when talking to adolescents.
Try to avoid direct questions, rather make them open ended.

Family connections
Who ‘surrounds’ the young person, and what is the nature of the relationships?
Explore peer group, sporting, cultural and community connections.
What are they “good at”? Think broadly.
What are the communication/behaviour patterns in the family?

Engaging the family
Parents may be difficult to engage in the therapeutic process.
They may fail to recognise or feel threatened by suggestions of possible role in the problem.
Therapy dilemma – “fixing” young person.
A “therapeutic alliance” with both adolescents and parents will bring the best results.

Conclusion
Understanding adolescent development is important but it is equally important to recognise the vital contribution that parents and the family base provide.

Writer Helen Splarn. Editor Dr Ramesh Manocha.
Source: Australian Institute of Family Studies What works with adolescents?

The International Year of Youth is an opportunity to give young people a say in the world around them and how it is being shaped. This is reflected in the theme “Our Year, Our Voice”.

The 2010 International Youth Day celebrated on 12 August also marked the launch of the International Year of Youth. The theme for International Youth Day was ‘Dialogue and Mutual Understanding’, and reflected the value of dialogue among youth from different cultures as well as among different generations.

International Youth Day was celebrated at the headquarters of the United Nations in New York where they also launched the International Year of Youth with an event seen as a celebration of young peoples’ energy, imagination and initiatives. The UN recognised their important contributions to enhancing peace and development and saw the event is an opportunity for both the international community and the UN system to show their ongoing commitment to young people.

The United Nations Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon said “Youth should be given a chance to take an active part in the decision-making of local, national and global levels.”

Key objectives for the International Year of Youth include:

• Increased commitment and investment in youth
• Increased youth participation and partnerships, and
• Increased intercultural understanding among youth.

It is hoped that schools and youth organisations throughout the world will use this year as an opportunity to guide activities with young people that are related to youth and their issues.

Some of the suggestions for activities include:
Educational radio show - Contact popular local/national radio stations to request a slot to have a discussion with distinguished individuals and youth.
Organize a public meeting or debate - to discuss young people’s contributions to global issues.
Initiate round table discussions – among adults and young people to promote intergenerational understanding.
Organize a youth forum – to exchange ideas and discuss cultural backgrounds in order to help young people accept others and popularize a culture of non-violence.
Organize a concert – to promote International Youth Day and the launch of the Year. Invite your local musicians and combine it with a panel discussion or invite a politician or policy maker to hold the key note speech.
Create an “info point” – about youth-related issues in the centre of town/village, at high schools, or at university centres.
Organize an exhibition – get permission to use a public space for an arts exhibit, which showcases the challenges of young people today or how young people are contributing to development.  Try to involve young people in the domains of culture, arts and music, to raise awareness on youth-related issues.
Write to your Minister of Youth – to inform him or her about the challenges young people face in their daily lives and to suggest solutions.

The International Year of Youth website has lots of information and material to support any ideas and activities. To use the logo for your event, read the guidelines for the logo and fill out the liability waiver form available for download on the site and check the International Year of Youth website for regular updates.

Writer Helen Splarn. Editor Dr Ramesh Manocha
Source: International Year of Youth

A survey recently conducted by Family Planning NSW and Myspace.com asked over 1,000 young people, aged between 12 and 24 years old, where they went to find out information about reproductive and sexual health including:

• body stuff (puberty)
• how to stop getting pregnant (contraception)
• sex stuff
• Relationships

The outcomes of the survey were released to co-inside with International Youth Day (August 12) with some interesting results.

The survey included over 100 questions and the answers showed that teenagers are more likely to turn to doctors, schools and parents for the technical side of sexual health (‘body stuff’, contraception, pregnancy & STI’s), BUT it is their friends and the internet they go to when it comes to the emotional aspects of a relationship (‘sex stuff’, sexual activities and relationship information).

 A male respondent aged 15 years wrote: 
“I don’t know maybe more to do with feelings and emotional attachments after sex as schools only talk about puberty and avoid sex and friend(s) only talk about how it felt physically.”

The Survey found that:
Friends – were the most commonly used source of information for young people with 43% of respondents calling on their mates for information. 
Sexual activities – 50% turned to their friends for information, while only 20% sought advice from schools and parents.
Contraception – 48% of adolescents went to doctors for information. 38% went to friends first.
The Internet – 30% of young people combined the internet with traditional sources for information about sex, and
Schools & Parents – 25% of the respondents turned to these sources for information.

Dr Deborah Bateson, Medical Director for Family Planning NSW said “the results show that young people seem to have an appropriate level of scepticism when it comes to using the internet for sexual health information.”

“We see this kind of information from young people as hugely valuable,” said Dr Bateson. “It certainly has an impact on the way we provide sexual health education and resources to young people, particularly when it comes to safe sex and healthy relationships.

The survey found that although young people are turning to the internet as a source of information, only 21% felt they trusted the information they found and only 16% of adolescents trusted what they saw or read in the media.

On the question of ‘body stuff’ (puberty and body changes) over 50% of respondents said that they talked to their friends, with 45% checking on the internet and about 33% seeking information from parents and schools.

However when it came to medical information about sexual health nearly 50% of young people said they went to a doctor, while 25% of the participants talked to their parents.

One female respondent, aged 13 wrote: 
“I know alot (sic.) from my mum. She tells me everything I want to know and often tells me them if she thinks I should know. We’re really close but sometimes I can’t bring myself to ask some things. I want to know more about pregnancy and because I’m a virgin- how to have sex. I often feel I’ll be really nervous when the time comes and also, the male mind, what emotions they go through.”

Writer Helen Splarn. Editor Dr Ramesh Manocha
Source: Family Planning NSW

As the end of the year gets closer, many students are completing assignments and preparing for the exam period. beyondblue has a few tips on taking care of yourself during this stressful time.

How can I manage my time more effectively?
It can be helpful to create a timetable so you can balance study and other commitments (e.g. sports/work). A good way to do it is to draw up a timetable at the start of each week to plan ahead and create to-do lists each day. To-do lists work well because you can break each task down so your workload becomes more manageable and less overwhelming.

It’s important not to deny yourself a break because it seems like wasting time. Breaks help you relax and stay motivated when you are studying. Try to get away from your desk at least once an hour for 10 minutes. Taking a break can help you to concentrate, be more productive, and has the added benefit of protecting your body from potential ‘study injuries’ like poor posture, headaches and stiff muscles.

I’m having trouble sleeping. What can I do?
Try not to go to bed too early or too late, and try to go at a regular time. Make sure you are not hungry and avoid drinking alcohol or smoking. It’s also a good idea to allow yourself time to wind down – if you are studying, stop at least 30 minutes before bedtime and do something relaxing and away from your study space (e.g. have a shower or bath, listen to some music). If something is playing on your mind, write it down and leave it for the morning.

Why is exercise important during the study period?
While there may be pressure during intense periods of study to put other activities on hold, a balanced approach to study can help to keep you energised, healthy and motivated. Swimming, walking, yoga, cycling, dancing or going to the gym are good ways to reduce the tension in your muscles and your mind and will help you keep a clear head. Relaxation exercises that slow your breathing and relax your muscles can also help to relieve tension.

Does junk food help you study?
While you may be tempted by caffeine or sugary foods, keep in mind that while these may provide a boost in the short-term, they can make you feel tired and unable to concentrate a little later on.

Eating well means having a wide variety of healthy foods including plenty of vegetables, fruit and cereals (like bread, rice and pasta), some lean meat, chicken or fish, dairy products (milk, yoghurt, cheese) and lots of water. It’s a good idea to avoid fatty foods and foods with lots of sugar in them.

If you need help – ask for it
If you are finding it hard to stay on top of your study, it’s a good idea to talk to someone about it. A parent or adult friend can help you get things in perspective or offer advice on better ways to manage.

If the subject is too difficult, consider getting a tutor or discussing the difficulty with your teacher/tutor/lecturer – remember, it’s their job to help you understand what you are studying.

Check out Youthbeyondblue fact sheet 19 Making the Most of Studying at www.youthbeyondblue.com

Take a look around our website www.youthbeyondblue.com for information on a wide range of topics that relate to mental health. You can also order free stuff like fact sheets and wristbands by calling the beyondblue info line on 1300 22 4636/1300 bb info.

If you need to talk to someone urgently about something that’s troubling you, call Kids Helpline 1800 55 1800 on or Lifeline on 13 11 14.

Editor Dr Ramesh Manocha
Source: Youthbeyondblue

ThinkUKnow

ThinkUKnow is a website dedicated to protecting kids online. It shows you how to help kids stay safe and in control when using various forms of new media.

It gives teachers, parents and carers the tools they need to keep children safe while still letting them enjoy using emerging technologies. The site has free tools and resources including fact sheets and videos to download.

ThinkUKnow is an Internet safety program delivering interactive training through primary and secondary schools across Australia using a network of accredited trainers.

Created by the UK Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) Centre, ThinkUKnow Australia has been developed by the Australian Federal Police (AFP) and Microsoft Australia.

School Presentations – Presentations are also available and they will come to your school and talk to parents, teachers and carers.
Fax expressions of interest to: (02) 6132 6063

Useful sections on the website include:

How Do Kids Have Fun? – explores how young people communicate with friends and family all over the world, access information for school work and develop their creativity. It looks at:
Instant Messaging
Gaming
Chat
Peer-to-Peer
Social Networking
Mobile phones
Blogs

How to Stay in Control – This section outlines some of the risks associated with the activities of young people online.
The site encourages adolescents to have fun online and with mobile technologies, but to always stay in control.

Just as you try to protect your child in the real world, you would also like to keep them safe in the online world. Helping to equip young people with online safety skills will help them to get the most out of the Internet and to stay in control whilst doing so.

Protect Your Computer – This section highlights some practical steps which you can take to protect you and your family online.

It is important that you safeguard your computer, devices and home networks. It is also important to practice safe online behaviour to minimise your exposure to online risks.
The website looks at:
Email safety
Firewall
Malware Protection
Updating computer operating systems
Shopping online
Protecting wireless networks

Writer Helen Splarn. Editor Dr Ramesh Manocha.
Source: ThinkUKnow

25% of students are bullied at school
95% of students are bulled more than once

A new study just released by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare has found that there is compelling evidence that young people who indulge in bullying at school go on to participate in further anti-social behaviour as they get older. This includes taking drugs, criminal acts and violent tendencies.

“Those who bullied in adolescence were three to four times more likely to be involved in anti-social behaviour and physical violence by their early 20s,” Dr. Lodge said.

“It seems that once they’re on this trajectory or pathway, it’s something that stays with them into adulthood.”

On the other hand, young people who have been victims of bullying are more likely to suffer from depression, higher absenteeism, lower academic achievement, physical and somatic symptoms, anxiety and depression, social dysfunction, and alcohol abuse in later life.

“What we found with the victims is that once they were established in this role, abuse was likely to continue,” Dr. Jodie Lodge said.

“They also experienced a number of social adjustment problems during adolescence and by their early 20s, were more likely to have higher levels of depression, anxiety and stress.”

Adolescent psychologist and Generation Next speaker, Dr Michael Carr-Gregg said “we know bullying has been linked with self-harm and attempts at suicide so it’s a very, very serious issue and we need to address it.”

In Australia, there is currently no agreed definition for bullying; however, the most commonly cited definition is the ‘repeated oppression, psychological or physical harm, of a less powerful person by a more powerful person or group of persons’ (DEST 2006).

Bullying often occurs because of differences between the bullies and the victims, such as culture, ethnicity, age, ability or disability, religion, body size and physical appearance, personality, sexual orientation, and economic status (Rigby 2009).

The researchers found that bullying differs between males and females; both engaged in verbal abuse and insults with boys taking it to a physical level by becoming physically violent while girls tended to operate on a more indirect/covert psychological and emotional level, through social isolation and smear campaigns (texting, SMS and cyber bullying).
 
Dr. Lodge, who presented the findings at a conference recently, said the study followed 1,000 young people at 3 points in their lives; when they were 12 years old, again at 13 years of age and finally once more when they had entered adult life at the age of 23 years old.

She concluded that bullies tended to perform poorly academically and were more likely to drop-out of school, while both bullies and victims suffered academic and social problems and generally had fewer friends.

Writer Helen Splarn. Editor Dr Ramesh Manocha.
Source: Australian Institute of Family Studies

Both the medical and teaching professions are learning more about the damaging effects of ‘sexting’ and cyber bullying. They are also learning how to deal with the impact that new technologies are having on teenagers. 

Leading experts including Cyber safety expert Susan McLean, adolescent psychologist Dr Michael Carr-Gregg and medical professional Dr Ramesh Manocha have come together for a series of seminars being held all around Australia.

These Seminars, organised by HealthEd, bring teachers and doctors up to speed on the rapidly changing ‘online’ world that teenagers are living in. The seminars highlight the dangers of emerging new technologies and how they are harming our teenagers on a physical mental, emotional and spiritual level. In fact all aspects of young people’s well being are under attack.

Doctors and health professionals are attending The Mental Health & Wellbeing of Young People seminars which focus on the internet’s potential effect on mental health among young people, and the harmful effect cyber bullying is having on teenagers including, depression, addiction and suicide.

Dr Ramesh Manocha said “cyber bullying is emerging as the main issue in schools at the moment, and the evidence clearly indicates that it is not only an unpleasant experience but in fact poses a risk the mental health and wellbeing of the victim”.

“It’s a clear example of how technology in the hands of those without the necessary maturity and understanding can become an unchecked, destructive force. We urgently need to educate our young people about how to use the internet positively while avoiding its many pitfalls” he added.

Dr Manocha said there was an ignorance in medical circles about these new teen troubles “most GPs don’t know enough to even ask the questions of young people, whether they are being exposed to the negative impacts of the internet”.

Increasingly teenagers are seeking the help of GPs and psychologists after becoming victims of cyber bullying. Ms McLean pointed out that doctors needed to understand online issues in order best treat their patients.

“You don’t want doctors to talk about Mybook and FaceSpace (instead of MySpace and Facebook),” she said.

Teachers and social workers are attending Generation Next Public Seminars which offer anyone involved in working with young people the opportunity to hear leading experts discuss the dangers of the internet and its ‘antisocial’ uses by our young people.

Dr Michael Carr-Gregg, an adolescent psychologist and author of Real Wired Child: What parents need to know about kids online said “schools need to help young people develop their moral compass as they stroll through the back alleys of ‘Cyberia’. While most adults can relate to schoolyard bullying, they have no context for understanding how the behaviour manifests itself in the virtual world”.

Former Senior Constable with the Victorian police and Cyber Safety expert Susan McLean said “previously schools did not become involved in things that occurred ‘out of hours.’ It was not their business or concern, however with cyber bullying, harassment and sexting, where the parties involved are often from within the same school or neighbouring schools, the problem is firmly thrust into the hands of the school accompanied by the often unrealistic expectations from parents, that they ‘solve’ the problem”.

Writer Helen Splarn. Editor Dr Ramesh Manocha.

Source: HealthEd

Net Savvy profiles different websites and people that provide resources and information for parents, carers and teaching professionals on a range of issues which affect our youth today.

Inyahead is a website which features the work of Andrew Fuller.

Andrew recently spoke at the Generation Next Seminar in Sydney. He is a Fellow of the Department of Psychiatry and the Department of Learning and Educational Development at the University of Melbourne.

He has also been a principal consultant to the national drug prevention strategy REDI, the ABC on children’s television shows, is an Ambassador for Mind Matters and is a member of the National Coalition Against Bullying.

The website contains information for parents and teachers on a range of issues including:

• Handy Hints for Improving Learning
• Hearts and Minds – how parents and teachers can most effectively guide the education of teenagers
• Valuing Boys, Valuing Girls
• Helicopter Parents
• The Adolescent Brain, and
• Don’t Waste Your Breath – An Introduction to the Mysterious World of the Adolescent Brain.

Building Resilience in Teenagers
The concept of “resilience” offers a coherent framework for the creation of schools that are sensitive to the developmental needs of young people and their teachers.

10 steps to resilience:
Promote Belonging
Resilience is the happy knack of being able to bungy jump through the pitfalls of life. It is the strongest antidote we know of for self-harm, depression and drug abuse and it’s built on our sense of belonging.

Have some mooch time
We live in a world that suffers from attention deficit disorder. We rush children from activity to activity, from lesson to lesson and from one organised event to another. Then we wonder why, when there is a lull that they say” I’m bored”. Be a counter-revolutionary. Find some time each week just to be at home without anything structured happening.

Rediscover some family rituals
It doesn’t matter whether it is the family walk after dinner, the Sunday roast, the Friday night pizza or the Saturday morning clean up; rituals are highly protective. The best rituals often cost nothing. These are the activities you hope that later on your children will reminisce and say “Mum always made sure we did.” or Dad always made sure we did.”

Spontaneity and curiosity
Spontaneity and curiosity are the building blocks of good mental health. You cannot tell someone how to have better mental health and you can’t give it to them by getting them to read a book.

So the really hard message here is that if you want to raise your children to have mentally healthy lives you are going to have to have a good time yourself. If you want your children to succeed you need to show them that success is worth having.

Love kids for their differences
When families’ function well people are allowed to be different and to be loved for those differences.

We all know that children take on different roles. A father of three said “it’s as if they have a planning meeting once a year and say ‘you be the good kid, I’ll be the sick kid and the other one can be the trouble-maker’! And then just when you think you’ve got it figured out they change roles again”.

Having children who are strongly individual and who have a sense of who they are is a sign of good parenting. The problem may, of course be that they will then express their independent spirit in ways that you don’t like. The ideal is someone who has their own independent nature but is comfortable enough with themselves to allow inter-dependence.

Make it clear who is in charge
Families do not work well as democracies. In fact they seem to work best as benevolent dictatorships in which the parent or parents consult a lot with their children but at the end of the day, the parent has the final say.

Some parents fear that if they take charge they will lose the friendship of their children, but often the reverse is true.

Consistency
Consistency is the ideal. Having parents’ who agree on rules and standards and who convey the same sorts of messages and who value compassion over coercion, clearly have the best outcome in terms of children’s well being. It is also important that parents not be open to manipulation; rather they work together as a team.

Sometimes parents have different value systems or can’t come to a consistent way to handle particular areas. In these situations, a second possibility is to for one parent to take charge of a particular area. This is not the most desirable solution but it is better than having parents in conflict over management issues or worse, undermining one another. In single parent families or where parents are separated the same principle applies.

Teach the skills of Self-esteem
Families that work well seem to praise one another a lot. Compliments are made, positive efforts are commented on. Optimism is in the air. Even in these families, teenagers still shrug and say, “yeah Mum” or “yeah Dad” whenever a compliment is made.

Teaching the skills of self-praise is useful. One way of doing this to ask questions about any achievement or accomplishments. Asking questions like “how did you do that?” “How come you did so well at that test?” and “have you been doing homework behind my back?”

Know how to argue
Families that work well know how to argue. It seems strange to say this because we all have the sense those families that work well don’t have conflicts.

The family is really where we learn to resolve disputes fairly. The way that parents teach children to resolve differences of opinion with their brothers and sisters provides the basis for sharing, negotiating and problem solving in the world beyond the family.  While differences of opinion should be allowed to be expressed, children also need to learn that they will not be able to win at all costs

Parents are reliably unpredictable
With young children it is important to provide consistency and predictability. This allows them to feel secure.

As they get older it is important to have structure and consistency but it is also useful to act in ways that your children wouldn’t expect. This keeps them interested in learning from you or least wondering what you are up to.

Finally
Parents in healthy families realise that all of the above is desirable but not always possible and so they look at how to promote good functioning while not wasting energy on blaming themselves for the times when things don’t quite work out as they had planned.

Writer Helen Splarn. Editor Dr Ramesh Manocha.

Source: Inyahead

6 Australians take their lives by suicide every day
65,000 attempted suicides each year
1 suicide every 4 hours
1 attempted suicide every 8 minutes

It is a tragic thing when someone takes their own life. To feel so desperate inside that they opted for total oblivion as the only way out is not how a life should end.

Our community, society and government is sorely lacking in providing both the help and positive constructive attitude that is needed towards mental health issues.

It is not only the loss of a life that is the tragedy here, but also the ongoing affect it has on the lives of those loved ones and friends who have been left behind. These often include young people.

The stigma still associated with suicide and mental health means that many people suffer in silence,  unable to talk about the grief and trauma they are facing as they come to terms with their loss.

The many demands on our youth today means that some young people are now affected by mental health issues such as anxiety and depression, this can lead them to a inconsolable state of mind where suicide seems the only way to release their pain.

Young people can feel isolated and alone, more funding and a change in the community’s attitudes to mental illness is needed if these teenagers are to access the help they so desperately need.

Suicide is a leading cause of death among young people, second only to car accidents. In rural areas twice as many young males commit suicide as their city dwelling counterparts.

Dr Michael Carr-Gregg, psychologist and Generation Next speaker says parents should trust their instincts if they feel their teenager is showing signs of depression but has no explanation for the cause of their behaviour. He suggests they should seek professional help immediately.

Young people may have feelings of hopelessness because of relationship break-ups, family problems, sexual, physical or mental abuse, drug or alcohol problems, mental illness (including depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia), major loss and grief such as a death, and any serious problem that is difficult to solve and won’t go away.

In compiling the recently published report  The Hidden Toll: Suicide in Australia, the Senate inquiry committee heard 248 submissions from people left devastated by the suicide of someone close. In many cases they did not get the support and care that their grief warranted.

Organisations such as Beyondblue, Lifeline and Suicide Prevention Australia are all working to change the perception of mental illness within the community.

The Hidden Toll: Suicide in Australia recommendations:

• A 5 year media campaign to de-stigmatise suicide in the community as a whole
• Compulsory training for police, paramedics and emergency hospital staff
• Improved date collection
• relaxing guidelines on media reporting of suicide
• establishing protocols for follow-up support of people in hospital after attempting suicide
• considering short-term accommodation centres for people discharged from hospital after a suicide attempt, and
• providing affordable help lines accessible via mobile phones.

Mr Michael Dudley, chairman of Suicide Prevention Australia said “there is a crying need for the federal government to get serious about mental health funding and suicide prevention,” Dr Dudley said yesterday. ”We are watching and waiting. The question is, for how long?”

”This is not an election issue,” Mr McGlaughlin, chief executive of Suicide Prevention Australia said ”this is a whole of community issue and a matter of life and death.”

For information or help contact the following organisations:

Lifeline on 13 11 14

Beyondblue on 1300 22 4636

Youthbeyondblue on 1300 22 4636

Suicide Prevention Australia on (02) 9568 3111

Writer Helen Splarn. Editor Dr Ramesh Manocha.
Source: parliament of Australia, Senate.