“The Insatiable Moon”- a NZ Movie

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I went and saw this movie on Sunday night. What a great movie it was too. Filmed around Grey Lynn and Ponsonby it is a movie based on the book by Mike Riddell. It is inspired by real experiences. At the heart of the film is a boarding house where ex psychiatric patients live, as the asylums have closed. Arthur, is one of these boarders. He says he hears the voice of God and that he is the second son of God.

A real gem. It is a film that has a very respectful way about it. Showing the importance of compassion in our material world.

You can see the review from the NZ Herald here here is an excerpt

”

And there were the twilight people: mainly men, they were the product of the new “community mental health” initiatives, unreliably medicated psychiatric patients living on benefits in the boarding houses that were a feature of the landscape.

Mike Riddell knows something of that demi-monde because he moved in it. A theologian by training, he was the vicar at the Ponsonby Baptist Church in Jervois Rd, a ministry in which he often rubbed shoulders with the psych patients. I recall a moving funeral service he conducted there for a childhood friend of mine, Alan Stimpson, a florid, gentle-giant schizophrenic who had taken his own life.

“People like Alan would have a social welfare grant to pay for their funeral,” Riddell recalls, “but it wasn’t enough. So we had an arrangement with an undertaker that he would lend us a coffin so we could put on a funeral and then they’d bury him in something more modest.

The Baptist system is a fairly miserable bloody denomination in some ways but the Ponsonby Baptist Church happened to be a group of people who were a bit more broadminded and interested in people. There was so much humanity and humour at those funerals. They were great.”

Just such a funeral is a central scene in The Insatiable Moon and it’s filmed at Ponsonby Baptist – “It was the director of photography’s decision because he liked the inside of the church,” says Riddell.

One character’s eulogy consists of repaying the deceased’s many kindnesses by laying a cigarette on the coffin lid. “That’s a tailor-made too,” she adds for emphasis.

So it goes without saying that The Insatiable Moon is a portrait drawn from life. Riddell wrote it as a novel and then, over several years, adapted it into the screenplay for the film which an opening title describes as “inspired by Arthur of Ponsonby”.

“Arthur lived in a boarding house that doesn’t exist any more down Shelly Beach Rd,” says Riddell. “He was a lovely guy, a big fella with long hair, who looked a bit like [Tuhoe prophet and activist] Rua Kenana. He was illiterate but very engaging and charismatic, a fluent Maori speaker.

“He used to come into the vicarage sometimes and ask me to tell people that he was the second son of God, so we used to have great conversations. And after one of those sessions I thought: ‘Gee, what if he is the second son of God? How would I know?’ And that was the creative spark for the story.”

To say that it sounds improbable, even banal, is to understate matters. But Riddell makes it work, both by his unforced skill as a writer and the deep humanity of the story.

The same humanity infuses the film, one of the most modest Kiwi flicks in a long time, but one that gets under your skin. A cast to die for includes Rawiri Paratene as Arthur (when people say “Lovely day”, he replies “Thanks. Glad you like it”; Sara Wiseman as Margaret, a social worker whose marital crisis puts her on a collision course with Arthur; a terrific Ian Mune as an unrepentant dero; and show-stealer Greg Johnson, as the cheerfully foul-mouthed and relentlessly good-hearted proprietor of the boarding house that is home to Arthur and the other psych patients. And the story, a winning mix of pathos, humour and, well, wonder, concerns the challenge posed to Arthur’s celestial pedigree when the boarding house is threatened with closure.”

 The official website is here http://www.theinsatiablemoon.com/

Here is the trailer

Pursuing the Knowledge of Wellbeing- event Friday 29 October 2010 Auckland

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 Psychiatric Survivors Inc., the New Zealand Healing Association Inc, GROW,and the Patients Rights Advocacy Waikato organize:
 Pursuing the Knowledge of Wellbeing

 

Friday 29th October 2010 9.00 am to 4.30 pm 

Auckland Horticultural Centre, 990 Great North Rd, Western Springs

All are welcome, you can see registration details on the attached form.Looks to be a interesting day including the following:

 

Generation Rx (Miller K, 2009)A 80 minute film about millions of children who have been effectively forced onto pharmaceutical drugs for commercial rather than scientific reasons, withthe risk of devastating consequences.
SPEAKERS:

Community Action on Suicide Prevention, Education & Research.Maria Bradshaw whose 17 year old son Toran committed suicide 15 days after being prescribed fluoxetine will present research data showing a causal link between psychiatric treatment and suicide and evidence that effective suicide prevention requires a social rather than medical approach.
Mental Wealth, Julian McCusker-Dixon .A Philosophy, an insight, and Welcome In 

 

Living Matrix (directed by Susan Berker, 2009) 100 minutes of exciting individual stories of the inherent capacities of body and mind to heal themselves if allowed and supported to do so. Quantum physics and energy psychology in action confirms thousands of years of observations of ancient healing.

Who Matters Most in Mental Illness? Gary De Forest. Different sides of the same story, aiming for mutually assured survival in the mental health system
 How We Know What We Know About Mental Illness,  Prof Borislav Dacic.If the body is biological and genetic, is mental illness a brain disease or biological and genetic failure in other body systems? Are the mind, soul and spirit important facets of what we believe are mental illnesses? Is the long term drug treatment an efficient and safe treatment in Mental Health? What are the side or direct effects of drugs? Like Minds like Mine or Mind Freedom? We need to talk on these mounting controversies in Mental Health and allow dialogue of different understanding and knowledge in order to get real on mental illness.

More information on 021-206 8759 and on (09) 846-9945 Cost is $40 waged $20 unwaged. 

 

Mental Health Unit ‘failed teen’. New Zealand Herald Sat Oct. 16th

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This article was  in the NZ Herald today, you can see it on their website here written by Chris Barton.

A coroner has strongly criticised the care provided by a specialist youth mental health unit leading up to the suicide of 17-year-old Toran Henry.

Auckland Coroner Murray Jamieson said Marinoto Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services’ care of the teenager “was deficient on occasion and in particular on the day of his death”.

His remarks were included in the findings of the inquest into Toran’s death on March 20, 2008. The report was issued yesterday.

Dr Jamieson was critical that, in the face of escalating developments on the day of Toran’s death, the Waitemata District Health Board’s service left his care in the hands of a relatively inexperienced “key worker” who spoke to Toran by phone.

“Toran stated, that day, that he lost faith in one of his key workers, feeling that she had abused his trust,” said the coroner.

He said the situation would have been better dealt with by immediate consultation with a specialist psychiatrist, who could have taken direct action “such as arranging an urgent home visit together with immediate admission to a secure facility if required”.

There was criticism, too, of the way Toran had been prescribed the anti-depressant drug fluoxetine, better known as Prozac, which is not approved for treating major depressive disorders in children and adolescents in New Zealand. But it can be given to that age group by what is known as “off label” prescribing, which requires informed consent from the patient.

Dr Jamieson said the information given to Toran about the drug was not satisfactory. It was not a single comprehensive document, not up to date, not designed for a person of Toran’s age and did not include clear advice about taking the drug in combination with alcohol or other drugs.

He recommended that Marinoto should review the information provided to adolescents, especially the importance of taking the medication as prescribed.

The coroner was also critical of the last occasion Toran was prescribed fluoxetine, at a cafe near Marinoto early in March 2008, by a registrar in psychiatry who had not met Toran or his mother, Maria Bradshaw, before.

The coroner said the consultation should have been carried out by a specialist psychiatrist “fully apprised of the history and clinical picture at a venue appropriate for such an important clinical encounter”.

Dr Jamieson did not make any finding on whether taking the drug contributed to Toran’s death.

Although the question came up during the inquest, the coroner has not addressed concerns that the drug packets in New Zealand do not carry a “Black Box” warning as required by the Food and Drug Administration in the United States. The warning explicitly states that “anti-depressants increased the risk compared to placebo of suicidal thinking and behaviour in children, adolescents, and young adults in short-term studies of major depressive disorder and other psychiatric disorders”.

Malaga a le Pasifika, the cultural support service of Marinoto, was also criticised for the way it attempted, but failed, to organise a meeting between Toran and his father, Geoffrey Henry, a Cook Islander, whom Toran had not seen since he was 14 months old.

The coroner concluded that the circumstances relevant to Toran’s death were:

* The career plan that Toran had set his heart on in early 2008 had proved impractical.

* Toran had been reminded of the absence and apparent rejection of him by his father.

* His relationship with his mother had been tense.

* His relationship with his girlfriend had recently been unhappy.

* The day before his death he had been humiliated in front of many peers when he was involved in a brief fight with a younger Takapuna Grammar School student.

* His abuse of alcohol clouded his judgment.

Clinical director of Mental Health and Addiction Services at Waitemata Murray Patton said a new fluoxetine information sheet had been developed for adolescents and children.

Marinoto clinical staff have also undertaken training to ensure all service users and families have knowledge of common and serious side-effects of psychiatric medicine and how to monitor for them.

Tragic toll
About 540 people a year take their own lives – many more than last year’s road toll. More than 2500 New Zealanders are admitted to hospital each year through intentional self-harm.

Age range for 2009/2010:
* 10-14….7
* 15-19….53
* 20-24….189
* 25-29….136

DISAPPOINTED MOTHER QUESTIONS CORONERS FINDINGS

This linked article can be found here on NZ herald site and is also written by Chris Barton

Toran Henry’s mother, Maria Bradshaw, is disappointed with the findings into her son’s death.

“Was it worth $70,000 to get a [coroner’s] finding where the only recommendation made was that children should take their medication?”

Mrs Bradshaw is yet to learn whether she will get legal aid to cover some of the cost of her legal counsel at the inquest. She has had to sell her house to cover her costs to date and says she will file a complaint about the inquest.

She says she is particularly concerned that the coroner appeared to dismiss arguments during the inquest that selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) – the class of drugs which includes Prozac – were not associated with suicide. She said the coroner did not clearly lay out the reasons for his findings or why he favoured some evidence over others, particularly about the drug’s side effects on Toran. “I just don’t feel that it has been thorough,” she said.

Mrs Bradshaw finds it difficult to comprehend that the coroner finds no criticisms of anyone at Takapuna Grammar. “When they called the police on the day before Toran died to report the fight outside the school, they didn’t mention to the police Toran was under the care of mental health services.

// They didn’t call me … I would have thought that might have attracted some comment from the coroner because that was another opportunity that this could have been prevented.”

Torans Mother is speaking at a Public Mental Wealth learning day coming up 29th October. I will post details in the next post, contact Psychiatric survivors if you are interested to attend on 021-206 8759 and on (09) 846-9945

Kehua (Ghost Souls) from Transactions and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New Zealand 1868-1961

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After posting about Fay Weldons book, I thought it would be good to explore what a Kehua is in Maori culture. I cam across this interesting article from the Transaction and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New Zealand 1868- 1961

Chapter 37 1904 by Eldson Best

When a Maori dies, the wairua, or dream-ghost, or soul, which during life could leave the body and wander at large when its owner slept, becomes a kehua. “Kehua,” says Best, “are the spirits of the dead which revisit their former haunts of this world and make things unpleasant for the living. Kehua appear to return to earth generally during the night-time—they dread sunlight and the light of fires. Some say the wairua, or ghost of a dead person, remains here as a kehua or atua whakahaehae until the body is buried; it then descends to Hades.”

Kehua are said by some to be invisible, and capable of acting benevolently or in a hostile manner upon men. They can communicate with mortals; they eat and drink, wander about the village; they can see and hear what is going on about them. In fact, these disembodied spirits retain many of the characteristics of their living fellow-men.

Ghosts of the dead are invisible except to people who are asleep, or to priests in a state of trance. Tohungas, who possess clairvoyant powers (matakite or matatuhi), sometimes saw a whole host of ghosts of the dead (kehua) traversing space. Such a company was termed a tira māka or kahui atua, and the object of their visiting this world was to acquaint living persons with the fact that some disaster or death was imminent. Tohungas would drive them away to avert the evil. It was a common thing for spirits of the dead to appear to their living relatives in order to warn them of evil. Should a person dream that he is chased by the ghost of a dead person, and the kehua from the Po (Hades) catches him, that is an evil omen; he may soon take ill and die. When a kehua appears to the wairua (dream-ghost) of a living person it is anthropomorphic, but when it appears at the request of its medium—say, at a spiritualistic seance—it assumes the form of a spider or lizard, &c. It can also make its appearance as a shadow of a sun-ray. Ghosts of the dead were said to have returned to this world in the form of butterflies. In Samoa they are said to return in the form of moths. The Maori ghost, like the Australian, often revisits the spot where his bones are deposited. “Sometimes,” said Beviuk, a New South Wales black, “the murup comes back to this world and looks down into his grave, and may say, ‘Hallo, there is my old’ possum rug; there are my old bones.’ “If a Maori trespassed on a burial-ground the ghosts of those interred there would punish him with disease, and perhaps death. Their presence is said to be made known generally by a whistling sound. A breath of warm air felt while travelling at night is a sign of the near presence of a kehua.

 Irirangi is the term applied to a spirit-voice heard singing without, when at night the people are within their houses: it is an omen of evil import. Shortland says the voice of ancestral ghosts is not like that of mortals, but a kind of sound—half whistle, half whisper. He had a conference with the ghosts of two chiefs who had been several years dead, and was assured that such was always the peculiar voice of atua when they talk with man. Other Europeans have had similar intercourse with Maori ghosts, and one need hardly explain that the mysterious voice was in every case the ventriloquistic utterance of the spirit’s medium. I have already pointed out that the kehua become hungry like ordinary mortals, and Taylor states that they were thought to feed on flies and filth; but they also had the spirit of the kumara and taro (?).

When a Maori dies his wairua (soul) leaves the body, and either remains near the corpse or goes away to the lower world. In either case it can return, and, re-entering the corpse, bring it to life again. If the kehua goes to the nether regions it may be sent back to this world by its relatives, for the purpose of caring for its children who have been left without a guardian owing to the parents’ death, but no soul can return to earth if in Hades it eats of the food of the denizens of that region.

The tohungas have elaborate ceremonies by means of which they restore the soul to a person just dead, but the feat is rarely performed, because the necessary astrological juxtapositions are rare favourable. The ancient Greeks offered the ghost fresh blood, that it might for a time be called back into life and answer questions—a conception which gave birth to the practice of raising the dead and asking oracles of them. By performing the hirihiri divination rite over a corpse the Maoris were enabled to consult the kehua or wairua of the dead person, and gain information as to the cause of its death. I have already referred to the hosts of ancestral ghosts sometimes seen by the matakite or clairvoyant seer: these companies of spirits were called apa hau by the Tuhoe people, and they were represented in the living world by some living relative, who was the medium (kauwaka or kaupapa) through which such spirits communicated with, and acted as guardians of, their living relatives. A single person may be the medium of the kehua of many deceased relatives. Such kehua or wairua do not abide with the medium, but visit him when they have anything to communicate. The medium may be quite a common person, of no standing in the tribe until he becomes a medium.

That is only a small excerpt, read the whole article here on the National Library of New Zealand website.

Kehua! by Fay Weldon

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In the Weekend Herald this morning there is an interview with Fay Weldon. She has written a new book called “Kehua!” Which sounds interesting and entertaining. A fiction, here is a brief review from a site called www.lovereading.co.uk

“Kehua by Fay Weldon
A kehua is a Maori ghost – the wandering dead searching for their ancestral home. Without the proper rituals to send them on their way, kehua are forced to remain on Earth to haunt their relatives. They’re not dangerous, and they even try to help the living, though it’s wise not to listen to them. They tend to get things wrong…In the wake of murder and suicide, a young woman flees New Zealand, hoping to escape the past and find a new life. But the unshriven spirits of the recently departed can’t rest peacefully, and are forced to emigrate with her, crossing oceans to finally settle in – of all places – Muswell Hill, London. Here their shadowy flutterings and murmured advice haunts the young woman and her female bloodline across the decades, across the generations. ‘Run!’ the Kehua whisper. ‘Run, run, run!’

Here is an excerpt from the interview with Fay Weldon from the Weekend Herald NZ.

“Weldon is unsure when she first became aware of the existence of kehua. ” I have a Maori daughter in law and she has never mentioned them,” she says. “I must have read about them somewhere and then they came to mind when I was thinking about the story of the New Zealand family who have come over here and have this impulse to run.

I was wondering what caused that and perhaps it was the spirits of the country, the kehua. I then became interested in the sense of family and belonging, which is very important and strong in Maori Culture. At the beginning, this family have lost that feeling but they come to realise that there is a family that you belong to whether you like it or not, which is quite a compelling and comforting idea.

She compares the kehua to similar phenomena is other mythologies, such as the Scottish kelpies, the Greek furies, and the hungry ghosts of Chinese folklore. “in the novel, they’re the grateful dead, the dybbuks,” says Weldon, who suggests that they may be psychological manifestations of past traumas. “you can give them a name, call them spirits or ghosts, but they really are compulsions, which follow families through generations. All cultures have that. In England they tend to be domestic ghosts in old houses, this house being the house in the book.

Fay Weldons book  Kehua! is out now through Corvus.

 

Did Van Gogh Hear Voices?

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Some say that the reason that Van Gogh cut off his ear was because he was hearing voices. I guess we will never know. However many voice hearers are extremely sensitive and creative people.

Here is a quote I read, written by him, which I think is very apt.

“If you hear a voice within you say “you cannot paint,” then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced.
Vincent Van Gogh “

The fragrance of an Angel and Helpful voices.

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I am currently going through all my Aromatherapy notes and books as I am preparing for my presentation on Aromatherapy for Hearing Voices at our September 18th 2010 seminar ( see our website www.hearingvoices.org.nz)  In mental health circles, seeing or hearing angels is usually considered delusional. Yet in many circles, many sane and respected people report similar occurences and often write about it. The difference of course is that they lead successful lives.

Here is an excerpt from a book called ” The Fragrant Heavens” By Valerie Worwood. I met Valerie when she came to New Zealand many years ago to hold an Aromatherapy workshop. She is a veritable aromatherapy expert and very well regarded in her field. 

 Pg 102

” Some people believe in Angels because they have seen them, even in some cases before their eyes beheld them. Other people believe in angels because they have heard their voices, or smelt their sweet fragrances and known they were near. When these things happen, there is no turning back… you believe in angels…

… I met an angel twenty years ago and so have no doubt they exist. The light and peace that angels emanate is so profoundly different from anything on earth, it s impossible to confuse it with everyday reality. The light I saw was an overwhelming luminescence, shining in rays from every pore of the figure, who was beautiful  in the extreme. The sense of peace that settled upon me was amazing and it was alive in every molecule of my being…

… I know I have been helped many times by angelic beings, like when driving along, one whispered ‘pull over’ in my ear – which allowed me to avoid a collision and turned out to be excellent advice.

On experience I’m particularly grateful for happened on holiday some years ago. A group of us were sitting on a beach which was some distance away. The red flag was up, and we’d been advised that the sea was dangerous that day. With my three-year old playing with friends and their parents nearby, I lay on my front put my head on my arms and drifted off to sleep. I was awakened by a voice that said just one word “Sea”. It was  not a loud voice, nor a particularly insistent one, but it had me on my feet in an instant and flying like the wind to the seashore. I reached the water just as an enormous wave poised itself over my little girl, who stood there watching the watery crest above her, oblivious to the danger. I grabbed her in my arms, pulled her away, and thanked the voice from the bottom of my heart.

I’m inclined to think an angel whispered into my ear, rather than it being intuition, because I have seen a shining being standing in my own living room and that wasn’t intuition! Angels are very physical when they want to be and very etheric when they want to be. They straddle the two universes. This experiencing of them accords with the current theological position which, according to Canon Emeritus of Ely Cathedral, describes angels as ‘spiritual beings intermediate between God and mankind’… Pope John Paul II has stated that angels do exist and that they ‘have a fundamental role to play in unfolding of human events’.

pg 105

…Angels have a fragrance which in my experience at least, precedes their ‘appearance’ , or remains after they ‘disappear’. Perhaps the fragrance was also there when I actually saw the angel, but was ‘cut out’ as my senses focused intently on the vision in front of me. I tried really hard to remember each visual detail, and was mesmerised by what appeared to be wings. Each ‘feather’ seemed to be a center or vortex of energy made up of light – the spine in particular being a source of great light-yet also a route to the infinite, while each delicate strand coming off it was a chain made up of many sparkling lights. Each sparkle on each strand had its own energy field, and together they made the form of a superluminous ‘feather’, which was less a material feather than an arrangement of light in a feather shape. The overall effect was extremely powerful and ‘awe inspiring.

I’ve found the fragrance of angels elusive in the sense that it seems to have no source. It just suddenly appears and suffuses the whole body and mind. I can recall two aromas quite distinctly, neither of which I have encountered before. One was fairly similar to a heavy , deep, rose maroc. The other was a light fragrance that was sweet and floralish, but not just floral, also a resin- imagine frankincense as a flower but without the same aroma. Sometimes I will smell and angel without seeing one, and I know it’s the fragrance of angels because it’s so pervading and fills my nose even to the point that I feel I can’t inhale any longer.

After such powerful aromatic experiences I always have a good look and sniff around to see if there was any other possible source for the phenomenon. I check my clothes for perfume; my essential oil store for any open bottles or spills; I sniff all the plants and flowers; and run through my mind who has been in the house, possibly wearing scent; but no source for the strange scent has ever been found. Others in the house have smelt it too- and the mystery remains long after the fragrance has gone.” 

I think it is important to know that – sane people can hear voices and experience other beings, and tactile sensations and also that there are also good voices. For people who hear only distressing voices this can be a source of comfort.

Anger at police after Aborigine dies in hospital- NZ Herald Aug 5 2010

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This is a sad and disturbing article. A man tries to get help and ends up dead. With no questioning of witnesses? Why not?

The original article can be found on the NZ herald site here

”

Police investigating the death of a mentally ill Aboriginal man in a Queensland hospital failed to interview staff who physically restrained him before he suffered respiratory failure.

An autopsy has established that Lyji Vaggs, 27, suffered asphyxia after being handcuffed, held down and injected with anti-psychotic drugs in Townsville Hospital in April.

But according to the Australian newspaper yesterday, none of the six to eight hospital orderlies and security officers who restrained him have been questioned by detectives.

It has also emerged that the hospital has no CCTV footage of the incident.

Vaggs’ family are dismayed by the way he was treated, and by the police handling of the case. His aunt Gracelyn Smallwood, a leading indigenous activist and an associate professor of nursing, has compared it to the death in custody of Mulrunji Doomadgee on Queensland’s Palm Island, which was followed by a botched police investigation.

//

“When I heard of Lyji’s death, the first thing I did was pray to God that nothing was covered up,” she said.

“We didn’t want key witnesses not interviewed, or security videos suddenly not being available – and what do we get? It is just so disappointing for Aboriginal people seeking justice and answers that this is the result we get all the time.”

According to the Australian, the post mortem examination found that “restraint asphyxia” contributed to the death of Vaggs, a father of three who suffered from schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and depression.

The day before he died, he tried several times to admit himself to hospital, saying he was “hearing voices”, but was allegedly told there were no beds and he should go home and take his medication.

When he became agitated, hospital staff called police, who handcuffed him. While being held face down on the floor, Vaggs became “limp and lifeless”, and although he was revived, he had suffered irreversible brain damage. His life-support machine was switched off the next day.

A police report to the state coroner says no hospital staff have been interviewed apart from the doctor who administered the injections, for “privacy reasons” or because they were “unavailable to be spoken to”.

By Kathy Marks 

 

Should Suicide be reported in the media?

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There has been a lot of discussion about this in the media lately. Should it be reported. Many families would like it to come out in the open. to be reported, so that people can learn more about it. So that families can see the warning signs and learn what they may be able to do to help a loved one , family or friend if it happens.

There was an interesting article in the NZ Herald today about this. Written by a mother of a young man who commited suicide- Sally Fisher. You can see the whole article here on the NZ Herald website

Here is an excerpt: 

“Suicide is a devastating, tangible measurement of the ultimate failure of our mental health services.

I believe that with adequate, equitable services and education, many of these suicides are preventable. A reduction of these figures will reflect an improvement of overall care.

Society rationalises its guilt over these deaths by associating them with negative labels such as drug taking and schizophrenia, although a high proportion of such deaths have no such associations.

All of us have the potential to become suicidal given the wrong set of circumstances, although people have different thresholds as with other illnesses. Ideology drives that these deaths are inevitable and unpredictable yet advances in knowledge contradict this.

As with all illnesses early intervention makes a huge impact on outcome. Mental illness is just the same. Advancements in knowledge and medication make it imperative that this is instituted so that, as has happened with other illnesses such as asthma, the outcomes are markedly improved.

There is a failure to think of mental illness in the same way as other “physical” illnesses. This detracts from rationale management.

The prime example of this is the ideology that suicide is unpredictable. It is as predictable and preventable as a stroke or heart attack, if the warning signs are acknowledged and acted on. This can be achieved by education.

Although there has been progress in the promotion and recognition and community acceptability of mental illnesses the services to manage them have not been put in place.

In particular, the availability of psychological and healing environments in a holistic sense have been reduced, with an increasing emphasis on drug management which may be inappropriate or detrimental.

I believe that suicide should be discussed and reported.”

I have started a thread on on HVN forum would love to hear what you think?

Healthy Choices for Living with Voices- September 18th

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We are pleased to advise that we are holding a seminar to celebrate Hearing Voices day. This year our theme is on Healthy choices. At the Hearing Voices Network we like to encourage Voice hearers to empower themselves. To find out what makes their voices better and what makes them worse.  We have three speakers to share some simple ways to help us to live with voices. To ease some of the challenges faced by people that hear distressing voices and to enhance their wellbeing so they feel stronger and better able to cope. Our research shows that often well voice hearers experience many of the same things as unwell voice hearers.  The difference? Their ability to cope with their experiences. They often have many more coping strategies than distressed voice hearers. Often these strategies combine physical, mental and spiritual strategies. After all we are not just a head. We are complex integrated body systems. To follow are the details of the event. You can also download a flier from our website  www.hearingvoices.org.nz

When we are faced with an obstacle in our lives, often we look for one big step that will help, in reality it is usually many small steps that are required.

The Hearing Voices Network are celebrating

WORLD HEARING HEARING VOICES DAY 2010

                     We are pleased to present an afternoon of        

HEALTHY CHOICES FOR LIVING WITH VOICES

 The Hearing Voices Network have some wonderful speakers to share their knowledge and experience on simple ways we can choose to help ourselves to live and cope with voices

Ayurvedic Medicine                                       
DR PRIYA PUNJABI : is a practitioner in Ayurvedic medicine. She will talk about the Ayurvedic perspective and therapies that may increase wellness for those that hear voices.

Aromatherapy

ADRIENNE GIACON-  is an experienced Aromatherapist- has taught and lectured on Aromatherapy, is the secretary and  faciltated the support group at Te Ata for four years for the HVNANZ. She will share how to use Aromatherapy to help with the many symptoms and issues that Voice hearers often experience.

 Food and Mood
 ADRIENNE GRACE- is trained in nutrition, natural therapies and counselling. She will speak on “Food and mood, drawing on her own experiences and research on how what we eat can affect the way we feel and behave. Adrienne has facilitated many workshops to consumers and mental health providers

 

TASTE OF LIFE COMPETITION

Bring a plate with something nutritional and healthy for everyone to taste and try.  The food with the most votes wins.
1st Prize $50.00, 2nd Prize   $30.00, 3rd Prize $20.00

 VENUE DETAILS:

When: Saturday 18th September 2010         Time:  1.00pm until 4.00pm

Where: Grey Lynn Library Hall. Next to Grey Lynn Library, Great North Rd, AUCKLAND.

Entry:  free, please bring a plate. You may want to enter our competition above.

BOOKINGS & INFO: Call Adrienne at 027 265 0266<!– var prefix = 'ma' + 'il' + 'to'; var path = 'hr' + 'ef' + '='; var addy27684 = 'info' + '@'; addy27684 = addy27684 + 'hearingvoices' + '.' + 'org' + '.' + 'nz'; document.write( '‘ ); document.write( addy27684 ); document.write( ” ); //\n // > // –>  Sponsored by the  ASB Community Trust.      
Please note we require bookings as space is not infinite- within the hall anyway…