 Global Integration UpdatesCommon Ground for the Common Good Build the world we need--Be the people we need
Special News--October 2019Mental Health for All--Me Too!Bringing our mental health into the light
Image courtesy and ©2019 ENOD
Mental health and behavioral struggles
such as depression, anxiety, and addictions
are part of our lives, organizations, and world.
Let's make it safer to share our struggles.
We are as healthy as our secrets.
We are as sane as our stigmas.
In this Update we focus on the importance of mental health for all, including ourselves! Who doesn't know some one affected by mental "ill" health?! It affects all of us: #MeTooHeTooSheTooWeToo.
We highlight a variety of mental health resources en route to World Mental Health Day (10 October). Examples include two TED Talks (personal account of depression-anxiety, long-term study on happiness), materials for understanding and preventing suicide, and information on upcoming strategic conferences for scaling up mental health in communities-countries and in emergency settings. Have a look!
No shame. No stigmas.
Bring our mental health into the light!
Warm greetings from Geneva,
Kelly and Michèle
Featured ResourcesMental Health for All--Me Too!Bringing our mental health into the light Ensure healthy lives and promote wellbeing for all at all ages.
Sustainable Development Goal 3
By 2030, reduce by one third premature mortality from non-communicable diseases through prevention and treatment and promote mental health and well-being. Sustainable Development Goal 3.4----------
Resource 1: Video about coming out...for mental health
There’s No Shame in Taking Care of Your Mental Health. Sangu Delle, TED Talk, Nigeria. “When stress got to be too much for…Sangu Delle, he had to confront his own deep prejudice: that men shouldn't take care of their mental health. In a personal talk, Delle shares how he learned to handle anxiety in a society that's uncomfortable with emotions. As he says: "Being honest about how we feel doesn't make us weak — it makes us human.”” (Ted Talk description)Note: Thanks to Disaster Ready for sharing this TED Talk with the humanitarian sector and their introductory comments: “Downplaying the effects of stress, anxiety and depression can be detrimental both for you and for your organization…. Delle’s tips on promoting mental health in the workplace will help you address your own anxieties and develop a healthier culture in your organization.”See also: Mental Health in the Workplace (fact sheet, WHO 2019) and Global Mental Health--What's Up? Kelly O'Donnell, Julian Eaton, and Michele Lewis O'Donnell, (Global Insights, American Psychological Association, 2019).
Resource 2: Campaign materials on suicide
Mental Health Promotion and Preventing Suicide. World Mental Health Day (10 October 2019), World Federation for Mental Health. “According to the [World Health Organization], more than 800,000 people die by suicide a year, making it the principal cause of death among people fifteen to twenty-nine years old. It is often believed that it is only adults who exhibit suicidal behaviors, but…many children and young people engage in this kind of behavior as a result of violence, sexual abuse, bullying and cyberbullying. Suicide is a global public health problem…Getting people to talk about a subject that tends to be taboo and about which many hold mistaken and prejudiced ideas will help the community to learn about the risk factors so that they can identify and learn to address them.” (from WMHD--WFMH website)Note: Watch the short video for World Mental Health Day. “One in four people around the world will be affected my mental illness at some point in their lives. Often facing stigma, often losing hope.” See also the fact sheet and resources on suicide by the World Health Organization Department of Mental Health, including the “Depression: Let’s Talk” videos and the information on World Suicide Prevention Day (10 September).
Image from the Speak Your Mind campaign. "We believe in a world where everyone, everywhere
has someone to turn to when their mental health needs support."“ This international conference will bring together experts, academics, policymakers, ministers and those with lived experience from all over the world...[It] is one in a series of international conferences on mental health support launched in 2018 on the United Kingdom’s initiative. The International Conference...aims to: mobilise commitment from countries and organisations to scaling up sustainable and high quality MHPSS during and after disasters and conflicts; increase the level of commitment by countries and donors to long-term financial support for MHPSS in crises, and identify financing mechanisms; [and] present proven, scalable, evidence-based approaches and interventions, and ways to integrate them into humanitarian aid programmes.” (excerpts from conference website)Enhancing Country Action on Mental Health. World Health Organization Mental Health Forum (14-15 October 2019, Geneva). “Highlights in this year’s programme include: Mental Health on the Political Agenda...[to] review the progress, learn about new initiatives and discuss ways to enhance country action; WHO Special Initiative for Mental Health (2019-2023): Universal Health Coverage for Mental Health conceived to strategically advance policies, advocacy and human rights, and scale-up quality interventions and services for people with mental health conditions, including substance use and neurological disorders. World Mental Health Day 2019 [with] a lunch time seminar on suicide prevention;....launch of The mhGAP Community Toolkit, aimed at increasing and facilitating country action and community implementation of mental health, and of the publications Preventing suicide: a resource for pesticide registrars and regulators and Preventing suicide: a resource for filmmakers. We will discuss how WHO tools are supporting the implementation of policies and mental health interventions in different age groups and across different settings, and how we can do better. WHO will present its work and consult with you on a range of key topics relevant to country action. As always, there will be plenty of time for informal networking.” (excerpts from program description-website)
Resource 4: Video on happiness
What Makes a Good Life? Lessons from the Longest Study on Happiness. Robert Waldinger, TED Talk, USA. “What keeps us happy and healthy as we go through life? If you think it's fame and money, you're not alone – but, according to psychiatrist Robert Waldinger, you're mistaken. As the director of 75-year-old study on adult development, Waldinger has unprecedented access to data on true happiness and satisfaction. In this talk, he shares three important lessons learned from the study as well as some practical, old-as-the-hills wisdom on how to build a fulfilling, long life.” (TED Talk description)
Note: What do you think? Does long-term happiness primarily involve self-actualization, quality relationships, a sense of purpose-meaning, and/or compassion for self and others? Or something else?
 Image courtesy and ©2019 ENOD
Member Care Associates Inc. (MCA) is a non-profit, Christian organization working internationally from Geneva and the USA. MCA's involvement in Global Integration focuses on the wellbeing and effectiveness of personnel and their organizations in the mission, humanitarian, and development sectors as well as global mental health, all with a view towards supporting sustainable development for all people and the planet. Our services include consultation, training, research, developing resources, and publications.
Global Integration (GI) is a framework for actively and responsibly engaging in our world--locally to globally. It emphasizes connecting relationally and contributing relevantly on behalf of human wellbeing and the issues facing humanity, in light of our integrity, commitments, and core values (e.g., ethical, humanitarian, human rights, faith-based). GI encourages a variety of people to be at the “global tables” and in the "global trenches"--and everything in-between--in order to help research, shape, and monitor agendas, policies, and action for all people and the planet. It intentionally links building the world we need with being the people we need.
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