Meaningful connections take centre stage on World Mental Health Day

On World Mental Health Day, Mental Health Australia is urging policymakers to recognise that meaningful connections are critical to mental health.

10 October is not just a date on the calendar. It’s an opportunity to spotlight mental health, challenge stigma, and push for real change. This year, Mental Health Australia’s World Mental Health Day campaign focusses on why meaningful connections are so important for good mental health.

“At the heart of our campaign are the powerful voices of people in Australia with lived and living experience of mental ill-health,” said Mental Health Australia CEO, Carolyn Nikoloski.

“Twelve advocates from across the country have shared their personal stories, demonstrating how meaningful connections transformed their mental health journeys and helped them find a path to recovery.”

From Outback Queensland to Australia’s capital, these stories remind us that mental health affects everyone, regardless of income or postcode.

“World Mental Health Day reminds us to connect—to loved ones, our communities, colleagues, and to Country. It’s a call to reach out for support and, just as importantly, to reconnect with ourselves for better mental health,” Ms Nikoloski urged.

This message was reflected to policymakers yesterday at Mental Health Australia’s Mental Health Sector Expo, which was co-hosted with the Parliamentary Friends of Youth Mental Health and the Parliamentary Friends of Mental Health.

The event united over 120 mental health professionals from 45 member organisations at Parliament House, with the Hon. Mark Butler MP, Minister for Health and Aged Care addressing the audience about the vital importance of this year’s theme – the power of meaningful connections – by highlighting the valuable contribution of the mental health sector.

Mr Butler said, “I want to thank all of you for the work that you do. These are really tough times. We’ve gone through an incredibly traumatic period with the pandemic that really impacted people’s mental health…you have the best ideas of how we can do better to support people in mental distress, whether that’s relatively temporary mental distress or whether it’s lifelong relatively severe mental illness.”

As one of the final parliamentary sitting weeks of 2024 unfolds, Australia’s leading mental health organisations showcased their critical work and achievements, calling attention to the mental health services available in local communities across the country.

“This event was an important opportunity for mental health professionals, policymakers, and people with lived and living experience of mental ill-health and their family, carers and supporters to connect and unite in a bipartisan effort to continue building a mental health system that supports every person in Australia,” Ms Nikoloski said.