The term ‘mental health’ is often associated with mental illness and psychiatric hospitals. In actual fact, mental health implies not only the absence of any illness, but a state of emotional and mental well-being and the ability to cope with everyday situations.

Different factors influence our ability to cope with life. Genetic factors, the environment and our upbringing all play a role. We also choose on a daily basis how to respond to the demands of life.

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HOW DID THE VOLUNTARY MENTAL HEALTH MOVEMENT START

At the beginning of the century, a discharged psychiatric patient, Clifford Beers, wrote a book: ‘A Mind that Found Itself’. In it, he related his experiences in various psychiatric hospitals and proposed the establishment of a voluntary organisation to assist people with problems of the mind, both inside and outside hospitals. This gave rise to the formation of the National Association for Mental Health in the United States. In 1913, a similar organisation was formed in South Africa, which is now known as the South African Federation for Mental Health.

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WHAT DOES THE SA FEDERATION FOR MENTAL HEALTH DO?

The organisation operates in the fields of Intellectual Disability and Psychiatric Disability. In addition, it is concerned with the state of mental health of everyone and therefore has special programmes to promote the mental well-being of people, particularly vulnerable groups.
The organisation has its National Office in Johannesburg, with numerous branches or regional mental health societies and member organisations situated countrywide.

• Community development programmes to empower community members in deprived areas to improve their quality of life;
• Seminars and workshops for the improvement of skills such as communication, problem solving, assertiveness, stress management and coping with changes;
• Therapy for persons with emotional and relationship problems, as well as, victims of violence;
• Social work counselling to families of persons with Intellectual Disability and/or Psychiatric Disability;
• Residential facilities and/or protective workshops or activity centres for persons with Intellectual Disability and/or Psychiatric Disability;
• Special needs education for children with Intellectual Disability;
• Rehabilitation centres and clubs for persons affected by Psychiatric Disability; and
• Home care programmes for families with children with severe Intellectual Disability

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WHAT IS THE ROLE OF THE NATIONAL OFFICE?

The main function of the National Office is to support local community services in the following ways:

• Serve as spokesman on national and international issues - thereby ensuring authority and status for services rendered;
• Negotiate on behalf of the mental health movement with government authorities on policy issues;
• Provide a forum for local organisations to share information and expertise;
• Assist local organisations to give effect to national policy decisions;
• Provide a consultation service to staff of local organisations on mental health administration matters;
• Maintain a national information and resource centre on mental health matters for the use of mental health workers;
• Develop and publish educational material on the promotion of mental health related issues in the form of leaflets/pamphlets, posters etc. These are then made available to community service organisations and other bodies;
• The development of in-service training programmes for staff;
• Facilitate the commencement of community services in areas not served by mental health societies;
• Fundraise for services of the National Office and constituent bodies; and
• Facilitate the distribution of funds from national trusts to constituent and member organisations.

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WHERE TO GO FOR MORE INFORMATION OR HELP?

There are many services and trained professionals one could turn to, that choosing the right one can in itself be a problem.