Friends, Family & Carers Forum

[cherryblossom8]

Hi everyone,

I just thought I would share some fantastic support services that are available in Victoria. If you are currently supporting someone with a mental health condition (family, friends, kin, all welcome), you can get free support from peer workers or free counselling, if required. The centres are called 'Mental Health and Wellbeing Connects'. There is no admission or referrals necessary, you can just call and speak to any of the staff there. All staff have lived experience of caring for someone with a mental illness.

There are some welcoming centres in quite a few places around Melbourne:

- Ivanhoe

- Ashburton

- Eltham

- Lilydale

- South Melbourne

- Sunshine

There are other drop-in centres in regional Victoria too (see below). You don't have to go the centres though, you can just choose to have phone consultations or via video-conferencing. 

https://accesshc.org.au/northeast-wellbeing-connect

https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/mental-health-and-wellbeing-connect

[tyme]

Thanks for sharing this resource @cherryblossom8 . That's very helpful.]

[Healandlove]

Thank you @cherryblossom8 .

I guess this is only for people living in Victoria? Since you mentioned zoom I thought maybe people from other states can join?

[cherryblossom8]

@Healandlove 

I believe it’s only for Victorians, but you could call and find out if they have any information about your state. I think most states would be following a similar model. 

[Healandlove]

@cherryblossom8 , thank you 🙏🏻🥰