Mental health pastoral care and congregational leadership- some reflections (in serial form)

On Mental Wellness and Mission

Last week I attended an “Introduction to mental health in pastoral care” training day. This was a day where new participants to chaplaincy in mental units and prisons are welcomed into their community of practitioners, and many were surprised to see a congregational minister attending. Many were willing to ask me why I was attending their day.

Thankfully, the answer to that question was delivered by the keynote speaker, Peter Janetzki, who spoke to us on “The challenge of mental wellness in contemporary Australia”. Peter is a former teacher and school chaplain who now works as a counsellor and trainer in mental health full-time. Peter gave us some stunning statistics about the mental health issues now facing our nation.

• 1 in 5 Australians will experience mental un-wellness at some stage in their life

• 1 in 16 young Australians is currently experiencing depression

• 1 in 6 young Australians is currently experiencing an anxiety condition

• 1 in 4 young Australians currently has a mental health condition

• Suicide is the biggest killer of young Australians and accounts for the deaths of more young people than car accidents

• The number of deaths by suicide in young Australians is the highest it has been in 10 years

• Evidence suggests 3 in 4 adult mental health conditions emerge by age 24 and half by age 14

 While Mr Janetzki brings his own passion for youth to the fore, these statistics show that mental health is a much larger issue than that which can be managed exclusively within the confines of the professional and acute health system but rather one that needs a whole of community approach. For me, the question then arises of how the church can help to build mental wellbeing. 

Thankfully, the talk proceeded to discuss some positive life choices that we can make that have been clinically shown to improve mental well-being, based upon the work of Dr Roger Walsh. Dr Walsh lists a number of these “Therapeutic Life Changes” and notes that one of the truly amazing things is that making any one of these choices has been shown not only to assist ourselves, but can also affect the behaviour and improve the health of people we know up to the third degree of separation (for example, friends of friend’s friends). 

Over a number of weeks (it may even go to months) I will aim to summarise Dr Walsh’s thoughts on one or two of these helpful practices, describe how this fits within the Christian tradition and how such practices may benefit our lives as individuals and a community that witnesses to the one who “came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” (John 10:10)