It was raw and it was confronting. The Oberon Tigers hosted a workshop at the Oberon Leagues Club on Tuesday, August 11 that was facilitated by the Mental Health Awareness Movement.
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Just over 35 players from the men's and league tag sides, plus officials and family members attended, and all left with a profound shift in their understanding and appreciation of mental health, and how to identify personal behaviour and take steps to not only manage it, but also to be a better support to individuals and families who are not coping.
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Dan Hunt, the founder and CEO of the Mental Health Awareness Movement, who is a former NRL player and 2010 grand final winner with the St George Dragons, was accompanied by Ashton Sims, himself a veteran of a 17-year career with the NRL and English Super League.
For 60 minutes, Dan and Ashton held the audience mesmerised.
Not one person in the room took their focus off the presenters for one minute. It was a revealing and, at times, confronting personal story that was told by both Dan and Ashton, but it resonated with the group emphatically.
The Mental Health Movement platform provides awareness, education, coping strategies, helpful resources and clinical support.
They're also having huge success providing a Mental Health Blueprint to industry and corporate organisations.
The Tigers dedicated last week to mental health awareness and suicide prevention, which culminated with a home game against Bathurst CSU last Saturday.
This will be an annual event on the Tigers' calendar.
Some of the key messages from Dan and Ashton are "it's okay to not be okay" and that a "problem shared is a problem halved".
The Tigers would like to thank Dan and Ashton for their openness and generosity of spirit; they are truly bona fide Tigers.
Oberon Tigers committee members would also like to mention the support from the Oberon Leagues Club and, in particular, Natalie Ryan for looking after us, and also to Bowyer and Livermore for supporting this event.
