People experiencing anxiety, depression, grief or other mental health challenges are being encouraged to speak up and seek help, as keeping their problems to themselves can add to their emotional burden.
Empower Pacific representative Mika Naduva highlighted this during a World Mental Health Day programme at Marata Settlement in Wailoku.
The event brought together members of the Marata community, health workers, government agencies and other stakeholders.
Naduva says people are often quick to seek medical help when someone has a fever, injury or other physical illness, but the response is often different when someone experiences mental health challenges.
He says the mind can also be affected by the pressures of everyday life, including work stress, family problems, grief and other personal challenges.
Naduva says stigma remains one of the biggest barriers preventing people from seeking support.
He says people need to understand that it is okay not to be okay, and that seeking professional help should never be seen as a sign of weakness.
Naduva says Empower Pacific provides free and confidential counselling for people dealing with anxiety, depression, relationship problems, grief and trauma.
He says the 24-hour helpline support is also available, while the organisation's social workers assist people with family support, welfare assistance and community care.
Empower Pacific also conducts mental health awareness programmes and psychological first aid training in schools, workplaces and rural communities.
Naduva is encouraging people to check on their family members, friends and colleagues, look after their own mental health and seek help whenever they need support.
The World Mental Health Day programme was held in partnership with the Ministry of Health, Empower Pacific, the Ministry of Women, Children and Social Protection, the Fiji Police Force and the local community.
