Topic Tuesday // Tools for Advocacy // Tues 19th October, 7:00-8:30PM AEDT

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@Daisydreamer wrote:

3. Know the current policies that impact mental health services: Reading policy documents is not everyone’s cup of tea, but they will be your best friend! They contain really important information to help you strengthen your advocacy by backing it up with commitments and direction governments and peak bodies are taking. For example, the Victorian Royal Commission into Mental Health Services produced a list of recommendations for action, and these can be referenced for future initiatives. The Fifth National Mental Health Plan, and local/state based Strategic Plans all contain actions and recommendations committed to by governments. Policy and Strategy can be evidence to support your advocacy

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Is there anywhere to go for help understanding those things? Honestly, I've taken the time to read through some of those things, and often. after chewing through several pages, I find that I have no idea what I just read.

Government jargon is not my friend.

With any future plans my husband says ' I don't know "

@Daisydreamer , @Former-Member

I have run into this problem too @Zoe7

I feel like, having worked in the mental health and disability sectors for a while, this often comes down to low expectations of people with lived experience based on stigma. The assumption is that people with lived experience are always free and their time and expertise is not worth more than a 25$ gift voucher. Which we all know isn't true.

it is indeed very frustrating when organisations are not flexible and do not priortise getting a diverse range of voices in the room.

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@Former-Member wrote:

This also ties into @Daisydreamer 's point about knowing the ways of operating. If you go into a board room and start sharing every detail of your life they may not react well but if you are very delberate and stick to their rules,they actually will be really engaged.

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The flip side is, that if you are putting forth a "way out there" reccommendation, or point of view, you may need to provide an in-depth explaination as to your reasoning. You may need to tell half your life story, so that you can compellingly prove why the "common sense" approach is faulty - because it takes your life story to illustrate it.

This is a tricky one @Shaz51

Something I have found helpful is working with people from a values base when it comes to goal setting. So instead of asking 'what do you want to do' approach it from a perspective of what things do you enjoy? What brings you happiness? What makes life worth living for you? What's something you find beaautiful?

These sorts of broad questions can be a strong foundation for building goals. For example, if someone answers music to one of the questions above this could be a launching point for a discussion about how they might like to engage with music. Would they like to go to concerts? Maybe a barrier is public transport or crowds. So then a short term goal could be getting more confident on public transport and have some coping strategies for crowds all with the focus of eventuallly getting to go to a gig!

Hope that helps 🙂

Yes it is usually that way @Former-Member It is hard enough working and dealing with our MH but then for others to determine everyone with a MI is 'free' all the time is alienating a very large part of the population who have both experience and knowledge first hand. Just today I received an invitation to attend a meeting (during the day) where those that are unemployed are offered $50 to attend - no mention of those of us that work, no allowance if we have time off, no appropriate time for the meeting for us to attend and quite frankly discrimination as a result.

Question 6. If advocacy isn’t successful, what can you do? @Daisydreamer

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@Former-Member wrote:

The assumption is that people with lived experience are always free and their time and expertise is not worth more than a 25$ gift voucher. Which we all know isn't true.

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Personally, I don't put myself through the grief of advocating for $25 gift vouchers.

I do it in hopes of getting my happy ending.

Or, failing that, that I might be able to cut a path for someone else to get theirs.

@Daisydreamer ,

I worked with the family and the student, then helped them write a letter to the school.

The letter detailed:

- The Incident

- Impact of the incident

- Relevant policies and law

- recommendations

- Points for action including professional learning for staff

- times for follow-up meetings

The school immediately took up the recommendations, and there was systematic change within the school to ensure reasonable adjustments are made for students with disability.