When we set out on a journey of establishing a communications business based on positivity five years ago a small voice in our heads whispered maybe we were being naïve, even a little deluded, and people would think we were blindly seeing the world through rose-coloured glasses.
Any doubts we had about our passion for spreading ‘good’ news and becoming champions of kind language were washed away last week at our very first live conversation hour dedicated to #spreadingthegoodstuff.
To say we were overwhelmed with the response to our conversation series launch at the stunning Junction Moama would be an understatement and to have the incredible Katrina Myers share her story of how suicide has shaped her life and her choice to shed light where there was darkness was both moving and inspirational.
We always knew Katrina’s story would resonate and the conversation around the stigma associated with mental illness and suicide was one that needed to be had. However, the 75 people who witnessed last week’s conversation hour came away with much more than just words.
Hope and action were two take-homes from Katrina’s words of wisdom, based around the ground-breaking initiative, The Ripple Effect – of which Katrina is an ambassador. The Ripple Effect aims to reduce the stigma of suicide, particularly among farmers, and start a conversation about taking care of our own mental health.
Katrina shared her story of losing her father when she was 15 to suicide and grappling with the beast of mental illness that exists in her family. It was only recently she began checking in with her own mental health, after returning to the family farm and starting her own family that led to her association with The Ripple Effect.
“You have to recognise when you’re not right and take the steps to look after your mental health, just like your physical health,” Katrina said.
Often worried about how she would explain the circumstances surrounding her father’s death and his associated mental illness, Katrina now realises the importance of sharing her father’s story and starting a conversation that breaks down the myths around suicide, often based on ignorance, and change the language and perception about how to support those affected.
Following last week’s #spreadingthegoodstuff conversation hour we have been buoyed with positive feedback about conversations already being had with friends and loved ones about mental health – this is the ripple effect already in action.
Many of our guests walked away with a new perspective on mental health and, despite it being a difficult conversation for many, have already taken steps to check in with their own wellbeing and have chosen an important new perception of the stigmas associated with mental illness.
Katrina’s number one message was to take care of ourselves and reach out to those around us to do the same.
The Ripple Effect is determined to prevent rural suicide and is calling on the community to help share its cause. The initiative is seeking more than 400 men to take part in an online mental health awareness program to secure future funding through Beyond Blue and this was most certainly last week’s call to action.
Visit The Ripple Effect website to find out how you can help and please share the information and help spread the good stuff.
As Katrina explained farmers are the first to put their hand up to help others but the last to ask for help. And this scenario is reflected in the wider community where people suffer in silence and don’t talk about their struggles with mental illness.
Katrina’s conversation gave us hope that we can all help spread the light and help others to realise that it doesn’t have to be this way.
“It is so often viewed as ‘normal’ to be negative these days but it doesn’t have to be this way, we should all be flourishing,” she said.
And this brings us back to the power of choosing good over bad; kind language over hurtful words and rewiring our brains for a better perspective.
Thank you Katrina for being the light in the dark tunnel of mental illness and for providing a platform for a positive conversation that needs to start now. No one is immune to mental illness and, as Katrina urged, it’s up to us to start the conversation today.
We look forward to gathering again later in the year for our second instalment of #spreadingthegoodstuff and feel the associated pressure of filling the very large shoes of Katrina Myers.
We do however, take comfort in the fact that the community is ripe for conversations of positiveness and we’ve barley scratched the surface of an incredible pool of brave and illuminating people who live among us with incredible stories to inspire and uplift.
Stay tuned for more #spreadingthegoodstuff.
Christy and Lee
xo
