‘Blooming good’ mental health therapy
Apologies for the cheesy title, any-one who reads this will know that my titles are much more sophisticated and considered and high-brow and stuff but it is from a .
Of particular interest to me were comments from a guy called Gavin who is diagnosed with schizophrenia. His comments reminded me that whilst experiencing the 'symptoms' of a mental health problem is terrifying and horrific, it is often the consequences which accumulate over a number of years that break your spirit.
Me and Gavin reckon that gardening is a great antidote. It provides a wonderful opportunity to regain a sense of control over your surroundings and to feel a proud sense of accomplishment.
But I won't put words in Gavin's mouth and so I hand over to the BBC:
"Since he had his first schizophrenic episode as a young PHD student 20 years ago, Gavin has rarely worked.
He said the Battersea project, run by the charity Thrive, has offered him new opportunities of tackling his mental health problems.
"There is always the opportunity to talk to staff about personal issues.
"But I guess the focus is on the gardening and it being therapeutic.
"Most of the gardeners, like me, look after a patch of garden of their own and you do get a lot of satisfaction in doing this.
"It is a nice place to work and I think doing this has been one of the most useful things that I have done as far as helping my mental health goes.
"I get a sense of achievement from my gardening and most people can feel that, whether it is from growing tomatoes or bulbs."
He added that this sense of achievement was important to people like him whose illness had meant they had often had to drop out of things in the past."
Full article:
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Wednesday, June 27th, 2007 at 2:00 am under