I have been fortunate enough to be offered a placement working with children and mental health services in Bali. Currently, Indonesia offers support to those with special needs via government-run SLB schools and other privately run foundations, providing facilities within their communities. Sadly, these facilities are often largely under-resourced and teachers and carers are in need of additional support.
Due to a lack of understanding of mental health issues in Bali, many people do not seek the treatment they need. This means a great number of people suffer an illness for long periods of time before receiving medical assistance.
It is my hope to be able to contribute to the much needed support in these communities, This will include involving children and young adults with specific needs in therapeutic activities, as well as a range of other projects such as running sessions in one of Indonesia's inpatient psychiatric facilities and teaching English. I will also be running workshops focusing on alternative treatments for individuals with mental health issues.
Living in a country that is learning more and understanding mental health in a whole new way, I wish to be able to extend this as far as possible, to give every child equal access to the treatment they need to improve their lives. I just need a little support of my own to be able to do this!
Thank you to all those who are kind enough to make donations, it is so greatly appreciated, by me and I'm sure by those that I am going to support.