Bali's is commonly known as the "Isle of the Gods," with its beauty unrivalled, it is well known to be the backdrop of envy-inducing honeymoon pictures. However, all that glitters is not gold. In Bali, there is a distinct lack of understanding about mental health issues and this has consequently resulted in a lack of facilities where people can seek treatment if they so need it. Traditional healers are more commonly consulted than doctors for anything psychological/psychiatric, which means that those who need help are often ill for extended periods before ever seeing a medical professional.

As a result, I have decided for the month of June I will volunteer with Bali's only inpatient psychiatric facility, as well as over twenty other initiatives for at-risk children and people with specific needs. During the placement, I will assist the exceptionally dedicated teams by running creative, interactive and therapeutic activities to provide much needed stimulation and human contact for service users. As I will be supporting a number of mental health/psychiatric initiative in Bali, I hope to also raise awareness here in the UK through my various fundraising efforts. With 1 in 4 people experiencing mental health problems in the UK (Mind, 2018), it is a common fact that our mental health initiatives are under-resourced and under-funded. However, in Bali, where these is a distinct lack of understanding, conditions are far worse.

Thus, I have set up this JustGiving page to collect donations which will contribute towards the placement fees, project resources and other related costs. This placement will focus on mental health, not mental illness, which means the projects aim to promote overall well-being and increase confidence, feelings of accomplishment, self worth and self-esteem. As it is known that prevention is better, and far easier to facilitate, than a cure; especially in developing countries where there is such an obvious care deficit for those with mental health concerns and specific needs. The service users I will be working with will vary in age, background and ability, with the placement having a variety of facets of mental health treatment and prevention such as; education, stigma reduction, creative modalities, inclusion and role modelling.

Through the placement I hope to make a positive impact in the local community to the benefit of service users, as well as being ethical and sustainable. Consequently, this project is sourced by and will run alongside national team members. I will be working full time during the week on a minimum of 6 difference project both independently, and within a team to organise various project activities. These projects can range from:

+ Activity Support within a clinical setting to help individuals who are all at varying stages of their recovery.

+ English for Development which will occur within schools and vocational training institutes to help individuals develop seemingly simple, daily skills, which we take for granted. According to a report conducted by the WHO (2005), skills often neglected in the developing world that are intrinsically linked to mental health include: decision-making, problem-solving, creative and critical thinking, effective communication, interpersonal skills, self-awareness and coping with emotions and stress.

+Children's Development will occur within children development centres, primary schools and after school clubs to provide extracurricular English lessons, with the aim of acting as a role model to increase the children's self-confidence and social skills.

+ Special Education Activity Support: Alongside the psychiatric facility, I will support children with specific needs in a number of government schools for children. With an average of 26% of inpatients who reside in UK psychiatric facilities displaying overlapping additional needs, like autism or a brain injury, children are often a group which become neglected.

+ Community Outreach: These projects will take place in the local community and are requested by community members. This could include running an after school club for kids aged 5 - 18 or facilitating yoga sessions for 60 local residents all over the age of 65!

Thus, if you believe my cause is noble enough, please donate and I will be sure to keep everyone update whilst there - through means of blogs, video diaries and photography.

Ps. If you know anyone suffering from mental health issues and would like to help please consult the links below:

https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/helping-someone-else/

https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/

http://www.together-uk.org/

https://www.centreformentalhealth.org.uk/

https://www.depressionalliance.org/

https://www.bacp.co.uk/search/Therapists

http://www.pandasfoundation.org.uk/