Your mental health is important.

“How each of us care for our mental health is different,” says Ian McLean CEO of Golden City Support Services

Golden City Support Services is a provider of community based mental health support services.

“We value everyone having a good life in our community. We wanted to share with you a few ideas how other people care for their mental health from our recent research project; ‘Mapping Natural Supports’.

They are easy to incorporate into your day-to-day life to care for your own mental health.

1. Stay connected

Stay in touch with family, friends, work mates, social groups and activities that have the most meaning to you.

Social media can be helpful to stay in touch, but we all need to experience regular face-to-face connection – nothing beats personal interaction.

“Sometimes I’m bored, but not often,” says Frank. Frank loves dogs, but finds relationships with people more difficult. “I pick up the phone if need to. I always have the phone on for calling or texting.”

2. Make physical activity a part of your regular routine

Louise started playing sport at a young age. “I grew up in a family where we used to go for nightly walks together. Walking is a management technique for my mental health and recently gym has been an extension of that.”

Consider what you enjoy doing to stay active and work out how this activity might become a part of your day-to-day life.

3.Pay attention to you

Are you sleeping more or less than usual? Are you eating more or less than usual? Do you feel like getting out of the house?

Paying attention to these things will give you a good indication of how your mental health is traveling. If there is some change its time to talk to someone and address what is underlying these changes.

4. Be aware of what services are available for you to access

Everyone from time to time needs a mental health check from a professional. Your first point of call is your GP and your local community health services.

If you require indivisualised mental health services the NDIS is a new way to support you on your recovery journey. At Golden City Support Services we deliver community based mental health services that are about having more friends, more opportunities and more control.

Find out more about Golden City Support Services at www.gcss.org.au or call 5434 2777.