Deteriorating mental health is not an inevitable part of ageing, says 香港六合彩精准资料 member Helen Kewell, who has published a book on her work with older adults.
Helen is a member of 香港六合彩精准资料鈥檚 Older People Expert Reference Group and is determined to change societal attitudes towards the mental health of older adults.
鈥淭here is a perception among some that age brings with it challenges, and that poor mental health is to be expected,鈥� she said.
鈥淭here鈥檚 a societal acceptance that you are going to be quite down as you progress in life, but I just don鈥檛 accept that. There is so much more we can be doing.
鈥淏ecause of that societal acceptance, the mental health of older adults gets little airtime. It鈥檚 not at the sexy end of mental health.
鈥淏ut 80 is going to be the new 60. Those of us who live now are likely to live longer and talking about the mental health of someone who has 20 or 30 years left to live is really important.鈥�
Lifelong ambition
Helen fulfilled a lifelong ambition of becoming an author when Living Well and Dying Well: tales of counselling older people was published by PCCS Books.
The book examines her counselling of older adults, an area of literature Helen says currently has 鈥渁 very big gaping hole鈥�.
The idea for it developed from her final case study when she graduated as a counsellor. The case study was published in Therapy Today.
鈥淚 always wanted to write but I never had anything to say before,鈥� said Helen who runs a private practice in Sussex and volunteers as a counsellor, supervisor and provides CPD for Cruse Bereavement Care.
鈥淚 didn鈥檛 feel I had a real voice or something to talk about that I was passionate about, until then.
鈥淚t all came together with that case study and the fact I was passionate about it.鈥�
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Living Well and Dying Well developed from an article, 鈥榃aiting for the Southsea Bus鈥� (Therapy Today, May 2017), and Helen says she received guidance on the project from Catherine Jackson, editor of Therapy Today.
The book includes eight case studies, as Helen describes her encounters with the older people with whom she has worked as a counsellor and weaves in her own personal reflections.
It was launched at The Book Shop in East Grinstead 鈥� 鈥渋t was important to me to host it in an independent book shop and it was important it was local鈥� 鈥� and she has been delighted with the reception it has received.
Rewarding
Helen said: 鈥淚 have had people reach from across the country and even from Australia.
鈥淚t鈥檚 unearthed a lot of pockets of this work that are happening all over the place and people that are passionate about it, which has been so rewarding for me.
鈥淚 have also had lovely responses from people who have read it who are not counsellors, who have elderly parents, or work in care homes and feel it gives some perspective to their work.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not just about propping up people because they are older and sending them on their way, it鈥檚 about listening, growth and change, and that has been a really rewarding part of how it鈥檚 been received.鈥�
What advice would she give our members who are also thinking about writing a book?
鈥淒o it!鈥� she said. 鈥淐ounsellors in general are articulate. That鈥檚 our job.
鈥淚鈥檇 say write. Write a lot. Write reflectively about your work, even if you are not going to get that particular bit published. It鈥檚 like a muscle you keep exercising.
鈥淚f you have something you want to say then email editors. There are online magazines like Therapy Minded and Counsellors Caf茅 who are always looking for content and it鈥檚 an accessible place to start getting published.
鈥淎nd read lots. I get the most inspiration from reading other people鈥檚 work.鈥�
Visit our Find a Therapist Directory to find a 香港六合彩精准资料 counsellor or psychotherapist near you.
Living Well and Dying Well: tales of counselling older people by Helen Kewell is from PCCS books.