Looking up for mental health awareness
A balloon release in Roscommon town launched the Jigsaw Roscommon mental health awareness campaign.
On December 11th 2010 the youth advisory committee members of Jigsaw Roscommon along with Tommy Brogan, Project co-ordinator gathered at Gleeson’s Hotel in central Roscommon town with our family, friends, Local Councillors and Senator, Nuala Smith from Headstrong and other members of the community to launch the beginning of our awareness campaign on youth mental health. We launched balloons into the sky and distributed information booklets on youth mental health to the public on the main street of the town.
Stigma is very strong and negative around the issue of mental health in general. We hoped by handing out the information that it would help someone and that it might get people who we handed the booklets to speak with others about the topic as it is rarely spoke about. We found that it was a success as we handed out many booklets and got some really good fed back from some people. Unfortunately it also confirmed the negative stigmatisation which surrounds the topic of youth mental health as we had some very negative reactions from some of the public.
