'Create a Better Story' for mental health with headspace

Mental health is the number one health issue faced by young people in Australia, with as many as one in four young Australians experiencing a mental disorder in any year.

The period of adolescence and early adulthood is a high risk transition time in a young person's life - 75 per cent of mental health disorders emerge before the age of 25

However, only 25 per cent - or just one in four young people - of those who experience mental health problems seek help.

Keeping this in mind, headspace - Australia's National Youth Mental Health Foundation - is giving youngsters a voice with a new campaign that aims to create a better story for those affected by mental health issues.

The 'Create a Better Story' campaign, launched in line with Mental Health Week, highlights the importance of sharing personal mental health stories and reaching out to those going through a tough time.

By sharing the stories of young people, headspace seeks to empower communities and individuals to share, learn and start an important conversation that will enact change.

"Telling stories is in our nature. We pass stories from generation to generation and we share our daily experiences around the dinner table. But some topics, like mental health, remain taboo. headspace and the young people it supports have important stories to share," Wendy McCarthy, Chair of headspace says.

"And while it's not always rosy, by sharing and listening we can all do our bit to create a better story – for ourselves and the people around us," she adds.

The stories kicking off the campaign are created by headspace's Youth National Reference Group (hY NRG) in conjunction with Yahoo7.

Yahoo7 staff mentored hY NRG members over three days to help the young people develop their personal mental health story or message using different mediums including photo essays, news and magazine articles, social media, blogs, Q&A style interviews and videos.

"I know it can be helpful for young people to have a story they can relate to so they know they aren't alone with whatever they are going through. I am keen to get my story out there and I hope that it can help someone else going through a rough time,” Kaitlyn Seymour from headspace's National Youth Reference Group says.

Get involved online:

Visit http://www.headspace.org.au/about-headspace/get-involved

Connect on Facebook

Follow @headspace_aus on [www.twitter.com/headspace_aus Twitter]

About headspace
headspace is the National Youth Mental Health Foundation, helping young people aged 12-25 who are going through a tough time to get their lives back on track.

headspace works from a holistic framework providing primary care and mental health advice, assistance with alcohol and other drug problems and vocational support and information for young people their families across Australia.

Since inception, headspace has helped 50,000 young people overcome problems such as stress, anxiety and depression. headspace is designed to ensure young people can get help early, before small problems become bigger ones.

Any young person who needs support, advice or just someone to talk to, can walk into a headspace centre and be treated with respect and compassion, within a confidential and safe environment.

A family member or friend can also seek help for or refer a young person to headspace.