When Mark Davis found himself in a psychiatric hospital, he wasn’t concerned about his wellbeing or the state of his mental health. He only worried about how he would be viewed by others when they found out.
There were physical symptoms, such as a chronically upset stomach, headaches, impotency, as well as behavioural symptoms. As someone who once prided himself on his good sense of humour, he became humourless, bad-tempered and standoffish.He was also unpredictable.
Today, the peer support forum is visited by 150,000 people a month , who come to read and share and support each other. In the most recent federal budget, $7.1 million was committed over four years to build and support the lived experience peer mental health workforce, of which Davis is now part. By volunteering on the forum, he can give back to the community that has helped him.
“We need to do work with men around how to be a helpful friend – that’s mental health literacy,” says Martin. “How do you support someone, in a way that doesn’t make them feel you’re treating them differently or are now fragilising them or pushing them to the edge of the group? It’s a skill men need to learn: how to support other men.”