The Donegal Intercultural Platform has launched a series of videos promoting men’s mental health.
The initiative, supported by the HSE’s Connecting for Life Donegal, wants to reach men from all different cultural backgrounds.
Since last week was Men’s Health Week and this week was Refugee Week, the videos promote positive mental health messages in four different languages: English, Arabic, French and Ukrainian.
According to the HSE, the videos were developed as a way to reach men from different ethnic and cultural backgrounds, including men from refugee and asylum communities. The short videos offer messages of support in men’s own languages.
The short videos were funded by Connecting for Life Donegal and produced through a community work project with a group of men from different backgrounds who came together to share their experiences as refugees and people seeking international protection. Throughout the process, the men agreed on key messages that could help other men seek help and reach out to friends, family, services and the community.
The videos are designed to be shared on media apps such as Whatsapp and Telegram, where men and other family members can share messages of support and hope with others they want to help.
This event was also an opportunity to once again highlight the work between Donegal Youth Service (DYS) and Connecting for Life Donegal (CfL). This initiative began in 2023 and has facilitated the writing and production of songs with mental health themes by young men for youth in the county which will also be showcased at the event.
Paul Kernan, director of the Donegal Intercultural Platform, said: “We are very aware that men are at greater risk of self-harm and suicide and that language can be a barrier to seeking support. With this project we believe we have produced a tool to help raise men’s awareness of services and promote the fact that men are not alone and that there are people there to help.”
Ciara Wray, HSE resource officer for suicide prevention, said: “The need to continually encourage men to reach out and ask for support is a key part of our partnership working under Connecting for Life Donegal. We are all vulnerable to difficulties with our mental health depending on the level of life stress we are experiencing. 1 in 3 of us have a mental health problem at some point in our lives. And yet, we know from research that 1 in 4 people would delay seeking treatment for a mental health problem if they felt others would find out. The messages and songs aim to end stigma and shame around mental health. Asking for help is a sign of strength and courage.”
The launch of the positive mental health messages for men took place at the Century Cinema in Letterkenny on Thursday 20 June 2024.
For more information about free suicide prevention training and registration for scheduled workshops, see:
www.bookwhen.com/suicidepreventiontrainingcho1 or email [email protected]
For more information about Connecting for Life Donegal, please contact [email protected] or call 086 8379909.
Donegal Intercultural Platform launches positive mental health campaign for men was last modified: June 21, 2024 by
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