Sarah Groves - Headspace Community Engagement Officer.
John Gray introduced Sarah as a past Rotary Youth Exchange Student to Denmark, sponsored by Yenda, as Kooringal had a few applications that year - 2010
and was in year 10 at the time.
Sarah is in her last year of a Psychology Degree.
Sarah is also involved with Ronald McDonald House, Country Hope and Sunflower House.
Headspace is a National Youth Health resource centre for 12 - 25 year old youth, and established in Wagga Wagga in 2008.
Responses to enquiries from July 2016 thru Jan 2017 totaled 2230, with 550 becoming clients.
Help is provided free in a youth friendly space, with help for social, health, family planning, doctors' services, study issues and money worries.
At the moment, there is a 2 week or less wait time for an appointment, and as such is not an emergency centre, but is a referal point when needed.
The break-down of issues is thus;
28% Depression
22% Anxiety
23% Mental issues
13% Situational and only
3% Drugs and Alcohol.
eheadspace is a new initiative available on tablet and iphone, and is handy for people living remote, and others who might not be ready for a face to face consultation.
Mental Health begins with Wellness, progresses to a Mental Problem and escalates of a Mental Health Illness, which in turn affects life and family in the long term.
Headspace can be found at booths at O-Week at CSU, a stall at the Marketplace and at Youth Week, which begins the first week of April. This year Headspace will be running a free Yoga in the Park - embodying physical health and mental health.
Youth Mental Health week was derived by "Compact", and is run for a day in June 2017, and educational workshops are run from time to time.
For the forum, 10 students from the high schools attend and discuss "stigmas and mental health" along with "seeking help" and finally, "taking it back".
The Dept of Education, the local Police, CSU and Inter Reach all get involved with the program.
Work shops cover bullying, depression and health topics. Facebook is considered a prime mover in cyber bullying.
Headspace has created it's own reference group, which meets up every fortnight and is made up of past clients who act in an advisory role to Headspace, and the Youth in Wagga Wagga.
John Hawkins gave a vote of thanks for Sarah's talk, after the President asked how Rotary might be able help. He also stated that he could not recommend headspace any more highly for their services to the youth of Wagga Wagga.
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