Mental health day program for young people opens in Canberra, offering alternative therapy

From the age of seven, Josie has struggled with her mental health.

Isolated and bullied at school, she felt like she had no one to turn to.

"I would cry in my room for countless hours," she said.

"I felt that my mum was busy with my autistic brother when I was being bullied at school."

Now 12, Josie at one point became so unwell that she refused to eat and engaged in self-harm "just to feel something".

"We tried to connect with school, but the staff always seemed busy and we were told to keep Josie at home to learn online," her mother Bianca Rossetti said.

"Learning online did not help Josie's anxiety or depression, it actually escalated it and she would have episodes lasting days locked in her room, refusing to eat or even get out of bed and would just cry."

Eventually, Josie became violent towards her family forcing them to seek professional help.

They turned to the ACT's Child and Adolescence Mental Health Team, which Ms Rossetti said was "fantastic".

"They listened to me, acknowledged what I said and started to work with Josie," she said.

Josie spoke on Friday at the opening of a new centre in Canberra, offering a day program for those aged 12-18 who are struggling with their mental health.

Both Josie and her mother were among those who consulted on the design and running of the centre, including choosing the colour scheme and "trying out the furniture".

Josie said that despite the help she received, she wished something like the new program had been available when she was at her worst.

"I would have felt more comfortable... when I first started I was in these really professional spaces, and being in a hospital, you associate it with blood, gore... so it can be worse," she said.

"I feel like I just would have been more comfortable in general."

In her speech at the opening event, Josie said she hoped other young people would find help and support at the centre.

"I hope that the programs are going to be fun and enticing so young people will engage with them and help improve their overall mental health and wellbeing," she said.

The new voluntary program, will offer alternative forms of treatment for young people, including art therapy and cooking classes.

The fit-for-purpose space will operate out of the Centenary Hospital for Women and Children.

"Being based in this brand-new, welcoming space that was designed specifically for this program will mean the program can truly take flight," Minister for Mental Health Emma Davidson said.

"The program, which is run by Canberra Health Services' Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) helps young people remain in the community while experiencing a mental health crisis – while still receiving the support that they need at the right time."

Services for adolescents struggling with mental ill health have been described as lacking in Canberra for years.

Last year, the ABC reported that children as young as 13 were being admitted to adult mental health wards due to a lack of appropriate services.

Clinical Psychologist Nesh Nikolic, who practices in the ACT, said while it was a straight-forward process to refer adults who were acutely unwell to a higher level of care, there was no comparitive program for teenagers, and they would often be sent to hospital instead.

One in 10 mental health patients discharged from hospital in Canberra are leaving worse off than when they entered. Milly Baker is one of them.

"Every day our practice receives many many calls and booking enquiries for young people," Dr Nikolic said.

"There are lots of families that are desperate and in great need to engage their young people, kids, adolescents.

"It's not uncommon for us, when we make an appointment with parents, to hear them crying over the phone. That is almost a daily experience for our staff."

Dr Nikolic welcomed the launch of the day program, and said there was evidence that it could be beneficial to patients.

But he urged the government to ensure it reviewed the program after a set period of time.

"I welcome this sort of program and others, all help is valuable to Canberrans ... it's just important to ensure that there is an allocation of time or review at some point to ensure we can kind of look at it from an evidence-based point of view to see... is it achieving what we want it to?" he said.

Dr Nikolic said the social aspects of the program were important.

Alarming data shows addressing the rising tide of mental ill-health in Australia's young people should be a top priority, Professor Patrick McGorry writes.

"We know that social engagement for young people is highly, highly important," he said.

"If someone is feeling isolated or alone, to be involved in a program where you can go out and express your feelings in a different way or even develop the skill is a positive."

Ms Davidson said those who attended the program would participate in multiple sessions.

"It is repeat visits ... so young people will come in and participate in this program pretty much during school hours on weekdays for a period of time," she said.

"There's also support for their parents and carers and that's really important. When you're working with and young person who's got a mental health condition, involving the people that they're living with who are their support network in their recovery is really important."

Ms Davidson encouraged anyone looking for mental health support to visit the ACT's Mindmap portal to find the right program for their needs.