Louise recently sat down to share her experiences about her time as a Community Mental Health Worker with MIFWA. Here is what she told us.
I enjoy spending time with participants and am learning so much about mental health and the mental health system which is really valuable for my other role as an Art Therapist.
I especially enjoy seeing the enormous impact NDIS is having on participants.
Several participants have said to me on more than one occasion that they really can’t quite believe how lucky they are that they have been able to ask for and receive all the different kinds of support that they require. Some have said that having struggled with isolation, societal stigma and feelings of worthlessness, they are genuinely surprised that the government, and therefore the Australian people, have deemed them worthy of this kind of support and still can’t quite believe they have a right to it. I really think that this fact alone is having a powerful effect on participants’ sense of self.
I feel it is really important to reinforce this right and support people to feel valued and work towards their highest potential no matter what their challenges are. A mature evolved society should be able to provide appropriate support for all its citizens, not just the privileged or those lucky enough to be healthy.
…it is really important to reinforce this right and support people to feel valued and work towards their highest potential no matter what their challenges are
I am one of those privileged healthy people now, but I have not always been this way. I experienced a lot of trauma in my early life and subsequent struggles with my mental health.
In my case, the things that made the most difference to me were not medication or hospitalisation, although I did a bit of both when it was necessary. The really important things that led to my healing were unconditional regard, lack of judgement, the belief that I was of value and had something to contribute to the world, and most importantly, that I could and would recover. It gives me a lot of pleasure to be able to provide these qualities for our NDIS participants now.
– Louise
Did you know?
We have an open recruitment process for our NDIS team. If you are interested in joining our NDIS Community Mental Health Worker team, you can apply here.
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