The community will have an opportunity to come together, share kai and support one another during Mental Health Awareness Week next month.

Community Mental Health is holding a free event at the Salvation Army on Monday, October 12, from 10am to 2pm.

The event will include a sausage sizzle, baking, hot drinks, music and a white elephant stall with household items.

The theme for this year’s Mental Health Awareness Week, which runs from October 12 to 18, is “Belonging Matters”.

Community Mental Health worker Patricia Bennett said the event was about bringing people together and reminding them that it was okay to reach out for help.

“It’s okay to not be okay,” she said.

A white elephant giveaway will be held, with items collected ahead of the event and given away free to members of the community.

People are invited to donate good-quality unwanted household items, such as towels and linen, crockery, plates, bowls, ornaments, small household items and other useful goods.

Items can be dropped off at 1XX, which is acting as the collection point for the event.

Bennett said the event had been supported by Pouwhakaaro, Emerge Aotearoa, Te Puna Ora o Mataatua, Tūhoe Hauora, Health NZ and Te Tohu o Te Ora o Ngāti Awa over several years, with the organisations supporting it again this year.

The white elephant aspect of the event is about giving unwanted items a new home while helping someone who might need them.

“Sometimes something people want to give away is someone else’s treasure.”

She hopes people in the community will use the week to practise “acts of random kindness” and help make things a little easier for others.

“Just giving an item to someone … it just lights their day up,” she said.

She said Mental Health Awareness Week was also an opportunity to challenge the stigma and discrimination that could come with mental illness and substance-use issues and encourage people to reflect on their own attitudes towards those experiencing mental health difficulties.

Connection was an important part of supporting people through difficult times, particularly those experiencing trauma, loss and grief.

“The opposite to addiction is connection. Don’t judge my past, encourage my future.”

Bennett said listening without judgment and creating genuine connections could make a significant difference to people who were struggling.

Self-love and self-care were also important ingredients in maintaining good mental health. She encourages people to find time for themselves and connect with nature, whether through a bush walk, sitting at the beach or simply taking time away from the noise and chaos of everyday life.

She describes this as Pou Pou Ki Roto – a union with oneself – and said while she believed the answers were within, people sometimes needed others to hold space for them while working through trauma, loss and grief.