MENTAL HEALTH PROMOTION

William is a star performer with Holiday actors. Ollie excels in many sports including Aussie rules football, basketball and swimming and Madeline is a talented netballer.

Rose, William, Ollie and Madeline spoke about a mental health promotion that the students will participate in and is scheduled to take place in September.

Mental Illness can affect many people around us, whether it’s a brother, sister, parent, friend, guardian or grandparent. Most people are aware of someone that is affected in some way by mental illness. Some of the types of mental illness include, anxiety, eating disorders, personality disorder and depression. There are many causes of mental illness, these include stress, alcohol, drugs, negative thoughts of self-esteem, social factors and even biological factors.

William, Ollie and Madeline will be part of a group of 20 Warrnambool College students who will take part in the 14 hour event; the students will not be allowed any food, technology, blankets or beds for the duration of the event. They will be restricted to using their gym facilities only as they sleep rough overnight to get a taste of what homelessness is like and in doing so they will be raising funds to aid those who struggle to find comfort every evening, the students will also be going hungry with all food locked away. They will also have no access to social media with their mobile phones switched off.

While the perception is that young people are always on social media, going hungry for 14 hours will be a much tougher assignment than going without their mobile phones.

The students initial goal is to raise $700 with all monies raised going towards our local organisation WRAD (Western Region Alcohol and Drug). WRAD provides support and treatment to those affected by addictive behaviours and associated issues and also supports young people through a range of key services and is a worthy recipient of the students fund raising.