A new online initiative is looking to tackle the worsening state of peopleB次元官网网址檚 mental health and the unaffordability of treating it.

Peer Services Calendar provides free online programming that focuses on a different aspect of mental health each day. Welcome Mondays are devoted to meeting the members of the peer team and learning about mental health recovery. On Inspiration Fridays, people can listen to a guest speaker talk about how they overcame adversity. Other programs include Exploring Wellness, Hope and Recovery Group, Community Connection Day and Next Steps.

B次元官网网址淢any people with mental illness donB次元官网网址檛 know where to even start to get help,B次元官网网址� Hazel Meredith, executive director of Mental Health Recovery Partners (MHRP) South Island, said. MHRP was able to launch the platform with a grant provided by United Way Greater Victoria (UWGV).

B次元官网网址淭he COVID-19 pandemic has amplified the mental health crisis in our community,B次元官网网址� Mark Breslauer, CEO of UWGV, said.

In a province-wide survey released in December, 46 per cent of Islanders reported worsening mental health as a result of the pandemic. Younger populations were especially hard hit with 54 per cent of people between the ages of 18 and 29, 53 per cent of people aged 30 to 39, and 50 per cent of people aged 40 to 49 experiencing deteriorating mental health.

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B次元官网网址淥ur goal is to provide easy access to people with mental illness to peer support and outreach to ensure early intervention, relapse prevention and to build connection and well being,B次元官网网址� Meredith said of the Peer Services Calendar.

She said MHRP has a wait list of 48 people who are in need of extra personal peer support, clinical consultation and advocacy. The hope is that the new online programming will help to reduce that wait list and provide support to people while they wait.

The Peer Services Calendar can be found at .

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