Therapist Jo Buchanan, right, and her son Miles, who has battled
By Shaun Inguanzo
WHEN JO Buchanan’s sister showed signs of schizophrenia during the 1970s she admitted she did not know what to do.
Ms Buchanan’s instinctive reaction was to seek help but mental health was at the bottom of the agenda compared to other health streams.
“In those days it was very difficult to get someone diagnosed or to be taken seriously,” the 66-year-old counsellor said.
“It was a big battle just to have her diagnosed and then get her into hospital.”
It was the first, but certainly not the final, encounter, Ms Buchanan had with mental illness.
While she never suffered it, her nephew – who she was caring for in her sister’s absence – also developed schizophrenia and at age 19 committed suicide after refusing to take his medication.
Later, her own son, Miles, a child actor, developed clinical depression and, with it, suicidal tendencies.
“It was extremely difficult being a mother especially with everything that goes with it,” she said.
“He was suicidal, he also disappeared several times and as a parent you are very much on your own. If your son or daughter had cancer you would have friends around you all of the time but with mental illness people don’t understand it and therefore they are afraid of it.”
In line with Star and Eastern Regions Mental Health Association (ERMHA)’s Stop the Stigma campaign, Ms Buchanan said more government dollars were needed to educate the public on mental health in order to stop sufferers, their friends, family and carers from falling into isolation.
But mental health does not win votes, Ms Buchanan said, identifying one of the obstacles in the road to increased mental health awareness.
“I have to say the government is to blame, though, because if more money was poured into research and looking after people suffering a mental illness, and their carers, too, then the situation would be much better,” she said.
Ms Buchanan has published a book titled Wings of Madness in which she describes how she coped as a carer.
She will be selling the book at the ERMHA and Mental Illness Doesn’t Discriminate What About You Community Festival and Walk for Mental Health on Wednesday, 11 October, beginning at Dandenong Park at 11am.
