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A different answer

In AAW issue number 2 we gave you information about the new Respite Ansas service that was being established last September so I thought I would catch up with how the service is developing and supporting people by providing a different answer to their problems. The aim of the service is to provide alternative options to hospital to help people through difficult periods while being able to carry on with their life.

One of the options Respite Ansas provides is complementary therapy treatments that can help in a number of ways such as improving self-esteem and confidence, improving disturbed sleep patterns and alleviating stress. A range of therapies are offered such as Indian Head Massage, Reflexology and Reiki as well as beauty treatments such as a facial or nutritional advice.

So does this really work in terms of supporting people in coping with difficult periods and helping them to stay out of hospital? Well Wendy certainly thinks so. Wendy received a range of treatments at the Avalon Natural Health Centre in Rustington, including reflexology, a facial and a nutritional analysis and treatment. Wendy thinks the practitioners are extremely sympathetic and found the whole experience marvellous, ‘much better than hospital where they just give you lots of drugs’. She felt the reflexology was extremely relaxing and the facial made her feel good about herself through a bit of pampering.

The nutritional treatment will take time to show results but she says she is already feeling much, much better, although she doesn’t feel fully stabilised yet. Wendy's overall verdict is that it will definitely help and she strongly recommends it.

Well it certainly seems to be the right answer for Wendy, leaving her feeling much more positive than a stay in hospital would. Complementary therapy is much more widely recognised now and Respite Ansas has obviously found a great way to support people.

Respite Ansas     sdmha.co.uk/respite.htm

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As Spring gives way to Summer

After the unsettled weather of spring, the sunlight becomes warmer and the countryside begins to teem with life. Walking around the local area you see a landscape which seems a different world to that of only a few months ago. As the daffodils start to fade away the bluebells are opening.

In woodlands the native variety can be found with its delicate single row of flowers. It spreads far and wide under the trees and creates a blue haze, while in gardens the Spanish bluebell is more commonly found, which has many more flowers. When the two species meet, they hybridise, putting the native flower at risk. Another woodland plant to flower in late spring is the rhododendron, which is spectacular in a garden setting, but in the woodlands is not welcomed by foresters as it competes with the native trees.

Conservationists devote much time to combating these invasive species, but for those who live in towns and suburbs such flowers are welcome after the grey days of winter.

Looking upward, familiar summer visitors can be seen – the swift, swallow and house martin. The swift is remarkable not only for its marathon migration, but for its ability to spend practically all its time on the wing. It only lands when feeding its young at the nest: the rest of the time it spends in the air, sleeping and even mating on the wing. The scythe-shaped wings can be instantly recognised as they soar over rooftops catching flies and making their screeching calls.

Swallows and house martins are related and look very similar at first glance, the main difference being the white rump of the house martin. These birds also feed on flies and can be seen swooping low to catch the insects around cattle.

As spring gives way to summer and it begins to feel as if the long warm days will never end, dragonflies can be seen. These amazing creatures can flap their front and back wings independently, making them extremely manoeuvrable. However they can fly only in warm weather, as their wing muscles cannot function properly when cool. This is why they spend a lot of time basking in the sun. Their relatives, the damselflies can be told apart by their habit of resting with their wings folded back along their body.

As the summer advances, the breeding activity of the birds slows down, birdsong quietens down and the countryside is lulled into the long dream that is late summer.

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Energetic fundraising

To raise money for Shoreham and District Mental Health Association’s new premises fund, volunteer Mark Langdale is continuing his sponsored expeditions around the globe. All the money he raises goes directly to the Association. The next destination will be the Great Wall of China in June then in September he will go to the Alpujarras, to climb the highest mountain in mainland Spain.

Previous expeditions to the Himalayas, Mount Kilimanjaro and Peru have raised a total of £6000 so far. Mark also sees his fund-raising work as an opportunity to increase awareness of mental health issues. As well as being a volunteer at The Old School House day centre, Mark also works at Glebelands as a relief support worker. He hopes eventually to undertake expeditions to all of the seven wonders of the modern world.

To sponsor Mark, contact SDMHA on 01273 465150.

Further information about Mark Langdale can be read here

Shoreham and District Mental Health Association
The Old School House
Ham Road
Shoreham-by-Sea
West Sussex
BN43 6PA

Telephone: 01273 465150

Website: www.sdmha.co.uk

Centre Email: schoolhouse100@btconnect.com

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Fishing and fish recipes (one of our readers letters)

“Ever since I was a young lad I have been very lucky in being able to go rod and line fishing. Over the years, I have experimented with different ways of cooking fish, including Sea Bass, and I think I have come up with a tasty recipe. This recipe can be used on other fish because Sea Bass is expensive”.

• Gut and scale the whole fish, cut off the head and tail.
• Finely dice a whole onion and approximately half pound of mushrooms
• Lightly fry the onion and mushrooms (or place inside fish for a firm bite - al dente)
• Lightly score skin of fish 3 or 4 times and drizzle a little olive oil.
• Place mixture inside gut area of fish
• According to taste, sprinkle dried herbs over the fish
• Place fish in silver foil, wrap and put in a substantial dish or tray and place in a hot oven for 40 to 50 minutes, gas mark 5/6 or until thoroughly cooked

I think you will find it a very interesting and mouthwatering
fish-dish

Julian, Shoreham-by-Sea

Barbecued salmon with lime and creamy herb sauce

2 salmon steaks / 55g lime marmalade / quarter tablespoon wine vinegar / quarter teaspoon grated ginger / 2 limes, quartered / Sauce / 90g low-fat Greek or natural yoghurt / 1 teaspoon fresh mint, finely chopped / quarter teaspoon fresh dill, finely chopped

• Combine the marmalade, vinegar and ginger and spread lightly over the salmon fillets.
• Cook the salmon on the b-b-q until browned on both sides and cooked through. Lightly b-b-q the lime at the same time.
• Mix the yoghurt and herbs in a small bowl.
• Serve the salmon with the lime quarters and sauce.

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Lonely times

Being isolated or lonely can be a major factor in depression as well as leading to a loss of confidence and self-esteem. Older people can easily feel isolated, particularly during retirement when suddenly the days can seem long and empty and social networks may have declined through people moving for retirement or through bereavement. It is easy to feel that you don’t know where to meet people or just feel shy and nervous about getting out there and joining groups or activities, but it can transform your life and give you a real boost.

There are lots of clubs or groups out there for older people to join where everyone will make you feel very welcome, as well as lots of volunteering opportunities. The Primary Care Trust, or your local library can provide information about different groups. These range from lunch clubs to dancing and many other things. Churches are also a great place to have a friendly chat, without pressure regarding your beliefs. Many churches have coffee mornings that anyone can go along to.

Lifelong learning is a growing area of adult education, with organisations such as the University of the Third Age running courses for older people locally. Or why not try a yoga or tai chi class to keep fit while meeting new people?

As you start to break the cycle of loneliness and solitude, you may feel adventurous enough to try a day out, or even a holiday. Many coach operators do trips to gardens and places of interest.

So now that the weather is brightening up why not meet some new friends and feel good again.

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Stressbuster goes quizzing

On a cold Sunday evening in February, we set out as a team of three intent on a challenge. All of us had done quizzes before but never at this pub. After settling in with a drink and a bit of a chat, a slightly nervous mood descended as the quizmaster came round. We all felt slightly baffled by the format of the printed sheets he handed out, but our host kindly explained the system to the newcomers. There were six rounds with various themes with an additional picture round. Suddenly, we were off, with the “hold the front page” round.

The first question threw us – “who was the gold medallist who carried the British flag at the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics?” We all could think of gold medallists, but no-one knew the name we were looking for. The medal winning curling team was mentioned, then someone knew the name Rhona and next thing we knew question two was being asked. We knew the answer to that one, it was Richard Branson who had paid tribute to Freddie Laker. Then our sports expert handled the next question, a football one. It began to feel like we were on a roll when someone remembered the surname of Rhona Martin for the first question.

Over-confidence crept in a little as we were to find out later when the answers were announced, but meantime it was on to the next round: “Pot luck” a mixture of general knowledge where we lurched from 100% confidence in knowing what was on the flag of Saudi Arabia to tantalisingly half-knowing the answer to “what was the British title of Sheena Easton’s U.S. hit ‘Morning Train?” So the roller-coaster ride continued with a string of confident answers in the next round, followed by a killer cinema question: “Which four films have been awarded ten or more Oscars?” Titles of great movies came up in abundance but it soon became clear that we really did not know the answers so it would be down to guesswork.

We had reached the half-way mark, and the papers were handed in for marking. We took the chance to get another drink and rest our overworked brains for a few minutes. The tension had eased off and the team was clearly in fairly high spirits, soon to be cut down to size by the quizmaster announcing the answers and eliciting a few groans as well as few cheers of delight as we surprised ourselves with what we did and didn’t know. As expected, the film question was too specialist for us, though we did guess one film right: “Titanic” – but of course everyone would have got that one. Still, our average score was seven out of ten for each round; very respectable although only in the middle of the overall scores.

The questions started flowing thick and fast again, the next round a novel format in which a well-known phrase had to be identified by its initials and a clue. Some inspired guesswork from one of the team produced a good score, and it looked like the team could make it into the top three. The final round proved difficult because in the tension and excitement we did not read the instructions that the initials of the first nine answers spelled out the last answer and so valuable points were lost. Still, the picture round mostly proved a success, apart from identifying the young Jack Straw as Christian Dior, an easy mistake to make! And finally we faced the challenge of a race to name the film “Snow White” from a progressively easier series of clues. We guessed it on the second clue, but our confidence was dropping by now and we lost points by delaying until we were sure.

And so came the final scores and we found we had achieved 52 points out of a possible 80, putting us in a respectable fourth place out of seven. We went out into the cold night with a warm farewell from the quizmaster and with the team pleased with our efforts.

Stressbuster rating: 8/10. If you can take all the highs and lows, it’s a great way to spend the evening.

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We welcome your views and comments on the articles in this newsletter and look forward to dialogue with readers over future issues.

: Health, Wellbeing and Lifestyle is an independent, user-led publication, produced quarterly, and aims to reflect interesting views of society health and well-being, and to raise the profile of mental health issues and the profile of The Corner House Resource Centre which produces this publication. Whilst we aim only to publish articles that do not upset, discriminate or violate in any way other people, we hold the right to change submitted articles slightly to achieve this, and views expressed do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of Shoreham and District Mental Health Association (SDMHA), the Trustee Board of The Corner House Day Centre nor the Editorial Team. We do not undertake any responsibility for contributions and any products or advertisements mentioned do not imply endorsement by SDMHA.

If you need the newsletter in an alternative format, contact:

SDMHA (AAW Newsletter)
The Corner House
45 Southwick Street
Southwick
West Sussex
BN42 4TH

Phone: 01273 871575

THE EDITORIAL TEAM:

Service Users: Simon Boulton, Sally McNally, Wayne Beale
Vocational Worker: Julie Bose / Chair of SDMHA: Denise Carroll

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