New Horizons Antrim hosted a range of events during their Healthy Activity Week –

Monday 14^th April: Antrim Forum Activities

In the morning we were introduced to sports we had never played before; Boccia and New Age Bowling.  Some of us had a natural ability and others began to wonder if we had a straight eye in our heads at all.  The fact that these could be played from a sitting position as well as standing meant that everyone would be able to play.  We played other target games inlcuding skittles and a target board and the competitive spirit began to rear its head during the morning.

Following lunch we started the real team games:

Badminton – even the most uncompetitive amongst us started to get into the spirit of things. Uni-hoc – Wow, if we were competitive in Badminton, you should have seen us during these matches, there were bodies skidding across the floor in an attempt to get the ball, we really took no prisoners.  Our rosy glow turned into serious sweat.

Rounders – brought our afternoon to a close, all remaining reservations were removed as the yells of encouragement echoed around the gym.

We have no idea what the eventual scores were but we all won at some stage during the day and the common consensus was that we had a brilliant day.

The Coaches from Active Communities were great fun, they joined in the activities and made sure we had a full and enjoyable day.

 

Tuesday 15^th April: Away Day to Sentry Hill

Off we set on the mini bus around 10.20 this morning, with a bus full of excited clients.  We reached our destination fairly quickly just before 11 am.  We were greeted by some lovely hand crafted tray bakes and tea/coffee, served up by our very welcoming hosts for the trip.

We then assembled in the conference room to watch a short film around the history of Sentry Hill.  Everyone watched carefully and seemed to take a keen interest in the story.

Next we were divided into 2 groups for the tour of the house.  Our very knowledgeable tour guide, Mervyn, provided a vast amount of historical information about the McKinney family and allowed us to take a look into each of the rooms of the house.

We then walked around the gardens and took time to have lunch and discuss the surroundings.

To finish off our away day, we went to Hazelbank Park in Newtownabbey.  It was a glorious day and we bought 99’s from the ice cream van, lovely! All in all everyone thoroughly enjoyed the day and coupled with the weather, made for an extremely successful trip!

 

Wednesday 16^th April: Centre Based Activities – Relaxation and Games

Today’s activities started gently with an introduction to Tai Chi and the feedback was very positive and requests for future classes were made, AMH New Horizons Antrim may have a few converts to the art of Tai Chi

The afternoon kicked off with Liz playing the part of Noel Edmonds in Deal or No Deal where our contestants battled it out for an Easter Egg, a bit of a step down from the £500,000 but procurement procedures would have been a bit awkward for that.

Three rounds later two star prizes and one booby prize had been won by our excellent contestants carried along by enthusiastic audience participation.  The banker made his regular calls but our contestants were too cool for him.

A Treasure Hunt followed, with our intrepid explorers following cunning clues and compass bearings in search of their prizes.  With serious concentration and an element of cheating, everyone earned their reward.

 

 

Thursday 17^th April: Centre Based Activities – Dance and BBQ

Today we started off with Street Dance.  Everyone was nervous and unsure about taking part but we were eased into the moves gently and before we knew it we were body popping and busting moves that Diversity would have been proud of.

We wound up the morning with what we thought would have been gentle armchair aerobics but turned out to be as vigorous as the real thing.  Everyone had massive smiles on their faces and the feedback was very positive.  The general consensus is that ‘We want more!’

Active Communities were a great asset to our Healthy Activity Week and we will definitely keep them in our Contacts List.

The rain behaved itself long enough during the afternoon to allow us to have the Healthy BBQ.  The culinary delights consisted of homemade burgers, vegetarian kebabs, baked potatoes, salads, corn on the cob and a variety of couscous dishes.  The smells attracted the other tenants from the building and they joined in the celebration.

We must remember to mention our AMH Buzz Off game (circuitry courtesy of Slemish College).  We kept this at Reception for all visitors to test their dexterity and nerve.

Overall we have had a very successful week and we are all ready for a well-earned break over Easter.  We have certainly burned off enough calories to be able to eat whatever goodies the Easter Bunny brings us.

 

 

 

 

The Western Health and Social Care Trust (Western Trust) through its on-going Community Engagement activities in partnership with NIHG welcomed back gardening enthusiasts from Omagh and Fermanagh for the installation of ‘Bogwood’ sculptures from 3000 year old forests sourced in An Creagán Omagh, Co Tyrone.

The ‘Bogwood’ sculptures have recently been installed to add interest along the pathway at the back of the South West Acute Hospital where edible fruit trees have also been planted by as part of this community project.

Clients from New Horizons in Fermanagh took part in the work.

Explaining how the ‘Bogwood’ Sculptures came into fruition Peter Brown, Environmental Artist at An Creagán who facilitated the workshops said: “Bogwood has an inexplicable appeal – knowing that it has been lying deep in the peat for over 3000 years, preserved by the acidic moss as a relic of our once forested landscape makes the process of cleaning, cutting and polishing very special indeed. Participants came from across Omagh and Fermanagh to engage in this process over a period of four weeks and the striking results reflect the personal devotion that each person gave to their work.”

John Donaghy, An Creagán Centre Manager concluded: “We are delighted to be involved in such an important community engagement project which has contributed to the development of the Art Trail at the South West Acute Hospital. We hope patients, staff and visitors will enjoy the bogwood sculptures and the variety of trees and shrubs which have already been planted at the hospital.”

Ballyclare schoolteacher, Hazel Wynn, celebrates with “squirrels” of 7th Larne Scouts and Callum Clark of AMH, on behalf of whom she completed the recent Larne Half Marathon, raising £100.

Mrs Hazel Wynn, a Home Economics teacher at Ballyclare High School, ran the 13-mile race and explained why she took on the challenge;

“I decided to run for Action Mental Health as it is a charity which I believe to be at the forefront of promoting mental health awareness, and providing services to help effectively deal with the challenges that poor mental health can bring. In my role as Health Education Coordinator at the school, and as Squirrel Leader in the 7th Larne Scouts, I am aware of the increasing pressures that are affecting children from a young age.”

Ballyclare High School has implemented a number of strategies focussing on mental health issues among pipils and staff. Recently, the school welcomed Gary Kane of AMH Works, who taught students about the importance of looking after their metnal health.

Mrs Wynn explained why such work is important in schools;

“We have been very fortunate to have been able to incorporate the excellent training sessions provided by AMH Works for both pupils and staff, where the message of taking care of our mental health, personal resilience and ability to cope with stress has been highlighted. The fact that 1 in 5 of us will be affected by mental health issues at some point in our lives has encouraged me to do my little bit. Resources that AMH provides will always be needed to help promote recovery and encourage the ability to lead a healthy and fulfilling life.”

Hazel’s “little bit” is HUGELY appreciated by everyone at AMH. If you would like to add your little bit, and fundraise for us, contact Callum Clark at [email protected] and check out our fundraising events page on Facebook!

Friday 11th April, family friends and supporters of Action Mental Health gathered at AMH New Horizons in Belfast City Centre to celebrate the many achievements of clients in the last year.  Health Committee member Fearghal McKinney MLA presented certificates to clients for a range of OCNs in personal wellbeing, employment and computer skills, and NVQs in catering, retail and customer service.

Fearghal McKinney congratulated staff and clients on their success.

Together For You is an innovative project aimed at delivering mental health and wellbeing services to a range of people across Northern Ireland. The £3 million Big Lottery Fund project is led by Action Mental Health (AMH) in association with Aware Defeat Depression, CAUSE, CRUSE, MindWise, Nexus, Praxis Care, Relate NI and The Rainbow Project.

This is the first time nine leading mental health charities have come together for you to help young and old, men and women, minority groups (BME and LGB&T) and marginalised groups (Prisoners, Young people and NEETS). All the services under Together For You are free, and can be accessed in one place through the new Together For You website (www.togetherforyou.org.uk) which launched today.

Services under Together For You include befriending; bereavement support; counselling services including relationship counselling, CBT and specialist trauma counselling; support for carers, mental health education programmes, LGB&T support and volunteering opportunities.

For further information on the full range of services on offer, visit www.togetherforyou.org.uk or call 028 9032 9150.

AMH New Horizons Fermanagh are Taking Action on Stigma with the launch of their “Basket Case” exhibition in Fermanagh County Museum on Wednesday 26^th March.

An inspirational and thought provoking exhibition influenced by Drumclay Crannog, it hopes to challenge the stigma associated with mental illness and showcase the creative talents of clients at AMH’s New Horizons in Drumcoo.

Supported by the National Lottery through the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, the exhibition showcases basket weaving skills, art, poetry and creative writing, created by clients with the help of local artists and based on the findings from the ancient historical site where archaeologists excavated a wealth of weaving artefacts among others.

Experts hailed the finds as internationally significant, shedding new light on life in medieval Ireland. One of the most interesting aspects for the charity was the revelation of the Brehon Laws, the statutes which governed everyday medieval Irish life, and how progressive they were in their treatment of people with disabilities.

This led the group to think about the stigma that exists in modern society around mental illness, as a barrier to seeking help, and among the many derogatory terms they compiled, “basket case” seemed the most relevant to their project.

As Caroline Ferguson, AMH Service Manager, explained;

“There are so many derogatory and insulting terms which are commonly used to describe someone with mental health issues – looper, psycho, head case, not the full shilling etc. When someone’s mental health deteriorates ,knowing that society will ridicule them like this actually prevents them from reaching out to get help. We have taken the term “basket case” and working with local artists, clients have explored the importance of basket weaving in a Crannog community and they have produced stunning basket work, breath taking artwork in pastels and beautiful poetry. Our exhibition is now open to the public in Enniskillen Museum and I would challenge everyone to come along, enjoy the exhibits and reflect on the language which we use and the impact which it can have on the most vulnerable people in our society.”