1. ARETE ONLUS – Advocacy Association for the Empowerment of People suffering from Mood and Anxiety Disorders - Italy 1 THE WAY TO WELLNESS The experience coming from a mood disorder patient association

2. ARETE ONLUS – Advocacy Association for the Empowerment of People suffering from Mood and Anxiety Disorders - Italy 2 ARETE EXPERIENCE ARETE was born in 2004 during the GAMIAN-Europe Convention in Tallin (Estonia). Some Italian patients, acting for years in the field, thought of acting with an innovative approach in Italy:  to grow patients education and consciousness on the mental illness nature  to promote advocacy and empowerment of patients in social e working sphere  to promote self-help groups patients directed

3. ARETE ONLUS – Advocacy Association for the Empowerment of People suffering from Mood and Anxiety Disorders - Italy 3 CRISIS The controversy stems from the following quote from John F. Kennedy, delivered in an Indianapolis speech on April 12, 1959. “When written in Chinese the word crisis is composed of two characters: one represents danger and the other represents opportunity” While there is ambiguity present in any translation, the Mandarin word weiji has proven particularly controversial.

4. ARETE ONLUS – Advocacy Association for the Empowerment of People suffering from Mood and Anxiety Disorders - Italy 4 A NEW BEGINNING  The illness changed our life  A DANGER that can cause terrible damages  In other cases even an OPPORTUNITY to better know ourself to gain a satisfactory way of life

5. ARETE ONLUS – Advocacy Association for the Empowerment of People suffering from Mood and Anxiety Disorders - Italy 5 APPROACHING THE DESEASE ONSET  Acceptance of the disease  Search for a physician  Adherence to drug cures (when needed)  Search for social and/or human help Very well known points in too many cases not practised

6. ARETE ONLUS – Advocacy Association for the Empowerment of People suffering from Mood and Anxiety Disorders - Italy 6 AND THE REST OF LIFE ? There are many resources to understand how to live the onset of a mood disorder. Sometimes more than one episode occurs. How can we live and not only survive with this perspective?

7. ARETE ONLUS – Advocacy Association for the Empowerment of People suffering from Mood and Anxiety Disorders - Italy 7 POSITIVE REFLECTIONS ON THE ILLNESS  A normal life with a good social functioning and satisfactory working position is possible  Negative thinking, sense of despair, fear are in many cases only the result of the illness  Look for the best cures possible, don’t accept compromises on this point

8. ARETE ONLUS – Advocacy Association for the Empowerment of People suffering from Mood and Anxiety Disorders - Italy 8 WHEN THINGS HAD BEEN WRONG FOR A LONG TIME  In many cases we need a long time before reaching a correct diagnosis and a good therapy  This can cause serious difficulties: divorce, discharge at work, loneliness What does the experience of our associates teach us in terms of avoiding damages?

9. ARETE ONLUS – Advocacy Association for the Empowerment of People suffering from Mood and Anxiety Disorders - Italy 9 KNOWLEDGE OF THE ILLNESS  Reading review and booklets  Discussing rationale and effects of therapy with professionals  Compare one’s condition with the other ones’ We aim to accept the illness and to live life at our best

10. ARETE ONLUS – Advocacy Association for the Empowerment of People suffering from Mood and Anxiety Disorders - Italy 10  No important decisions during the acute phase  Before a decision, reflect if the emotional aspects of the disease could affect it  A reliable person help is useful in this situation TAKE DECISIONS

11. ARETE ONLUS – Advocacy Association for the Empowerment of People suffering from Mood and Anxiety Disorders - Italy 11 SELF-HELP GROUPS  source of human solidarity and empathy  source of knowledge of the nature of the illness  source of knowledge of the better places where to receive cures.  helping others help you to grow your self-esteem

12. ARETE ONLUS – Advocacy Association for the Empowerment of People suffering from Mood and Anxiety Disorders - Italy 12 KNOW YOURSELF  Analyse your mood and behaviour A mood diary with taken medicines could be useful  Avoid to think entering vicious circles  Learn to increase your self-esteem Use objective measures to evaluate your activities Do your best acting on these activities Force yourself to appreciate your successes

13. ARETE ONLUS – Advocacy Association for the Empowerment of People suffering from Mood and Anxiety Disorders - Italy 13 PHYSICAL EXERCISE ADVANTAGES  Your body reacts better to stresses  A better mood granted by endogenous substances  An pleasant body increases self-esteem  Occasion for social relations (join a team)  More...

14. ARETE ONLUS – Advocacy Association for the Empowerment of People suffering from Mood and Anxiety Disorders - Italy 14 FOOD  Sometime mood and eat disorders are associated  There is the wrong belief that medicines can cause fatness ONLY CALORIES CAN CAUSE FATNESS  I want to reach a goal → I have a regular eating  A pleasant physical aspect can help good social relations

15. ARETE ONLUS – Advocacy Association for the Empowerment of People suffering from Mood and Anxiety Disorders - Italy 15 SLEEP  No healthy life is achievable without a good sleep  Particularly true for people with a mood disorder  No matter how much stress you bear YOU MUST SLEEP  Look for your tricks to relax  If needed use drugs under your doctor control

16. ARETE ONLUS – Advocacy Association for the Empowerment of People suffering from Mood and Anxiety Disorders - Italy 16 FEELINGS AND RELATIONSHIPS After a long period of social retirement we need to recover feelings and relationships we lacked during the acute phase of illness  Pragmatic approach (different for each person) have no excessive hurry in restoring relationships overcome the shame deriving from the illness take an usual behaviour, after five minutes your illness will be forgotten by the person you are speaking with

17. ARETE ONLUS – Advocacy Association for the Empowerment of People suffering from Mood and Anxiety Disorders - Italy 17 NEW EXPERIENCES The illness changes your feelings and your way of watching at life  Explore this new reality  Try to open to others After an acute episode some breakdowns occur. It is difficult to restore them. Sometime a new start is better than suffering pursuing the past.

18. ARETE ONLUS – Advocacy Association for the Empowerment of People suffering from Mood and Anxiety Disorders - Italy 18 A FEEDBACK APPROACH In our self-help groups we share our experiences and week by week we see the results of the different personal approaches  Discuss with releable person of your experience  Force yourself to understand the deep reasons of your acting

19. ARETE ONLUS – Advocacy Association for the Empowerment of People suffering from Mood and Anxiety Disorders - Italy 19 THE CONSCIOUSNESS Persons are not puppets They have to play a central role in their rehabilitation The knowledge of their disorder strongly reduces human and social costs of the illness

20. ARETE ONLUS – Advocacy Association for the Empowerment of People suffering from Mood and Anxiety Disorders - Italy 20 AN ARETE SELF-HELP GROUP

21. ARETE ONLUS – Advocacy Association for the Empowerment of People suffering from Mood and Anxiety Disorders - Italy 21 ARETE HEAD OFFICE via Maspero, 20 - I 21100 VARESE - ITALY Tel: +39 335 1026265 - Fax: +39 0332 834078 email: secretary@depressionet.eu website: www.depressionet.eu