Accept. Act. Adapt. campaign launch

At St Patrick’s Mental Health Services (SPMHS), we are launching a new campaign to mark World Mental Health Day 2023.

Accept. Act. Adapt. encourages people across Ireland to look towards a future where mental health is accepted without stigma, and where people take action for their mental health and adapt to support good mental health in their daily lives.

Event

As part of this campaign, we hosted a free webinar, Accept. Act. Adapt.: A conversation on mental health, on Thursday, 5 October.

The webinar provides a platform for open conversations around the acceptance of mental health difficulties and coping with stigma associated with mental health. It also offers helpful advice to members of the community to act in order to support their own wellbeing, as well as providing first-hand information on how life can be adapted to support good mental health.

A panel of experts, including people with lived experiences, come together for a conversation on mental health in Ireland for this webinar. It is open to everyone, whether you are experiencing mental health difficulties, supporting someone experiencing mental health difficulties, or simply want to learn more about how to build positive mental health practices into daily life.

You can watch the webinar below.

Exhibition

We also invited members of the community to contribute to and experience an innovative exhibition which aims to build a sense of unity and understanding of mental health.

Everyone has mental health, and this can look different for everyone. With this in mind, we invited self-expression by gathering anonymous thoughts and meaningful advice around mental health and wellbeing from all members of the public; from people with lived experiences of mental health difficulties to people who simply have insights or messages to share.

The exhibition took these words of people in the community and transformed them into moving and impactful visual displays in a projection installation, designed in collaboration with Sofft Productions. Through this emotive installation, we aimed to challenge stigma surrounding mental health, to encourage conversations that matter, and to inspire people to take action to support positive mental health and wellbeing.

The installation ran from Monday, 9 October to Friday, 13 October in The Townhouse on Level 3 of Arnotts in Dublin city centre. 

Advocacy

At SPMHS, we are committed to advocating for the rights of people experiencing mental health difficulties and to educating and empowering members of the community to look after their own mental health.

Speaking about the launch of the Accept. Act. Adapt. campaign, Paul Gilligan, our Chief Executive Officer (CEO), explains why he hopes this campaign will encourage everyone to get involved in supporting and reflecting on their mental health.

 “SPMHS is delighted to launch this important campaign to celebrate World Mental Health Day, and to build on progress made to date in creating a future where everyone is empowered to live a mentally healthy life.”

“Accept. Act. Adapt. is a great opportunity to discuss acceptance and awareness of mental health and to encourage members of the community to take action and seek support when it comes to their mental wellbeing."

"We also hope that the campaign will highlight that, with the right resources and tools in place, everyone can enhance and protect their mental health.”