Mental health illnesses can interfere with or make doing any of the following difficult:
• taking care of yourself and/or family
• participating in paid or unpaid work
• enjoying your leisure time, e.g. hobbies, sports, spending time with friends
You may find that you need support to maintain your independence and your satisfaction with everyday activities. Working as part of a mental health multi-disciplinary team, occupational therapists can provide you with this support.
Working with your occupational therapist, you will develop personal goals. To achieve these goals your occupational therapist will help you to engage your strengths and to explore any factors that may prevent you from reaching your goals. Sometimes your occupational therapist will see you individually – other times you may find it more beneficial to work as part of a group.
Occupational therapy can help you to take a recovery approach to your mental illness. This involves considering how your illness affects your ability to engage in self-care, leisure and work. Everybody is different and you may also find that your ability may even change from day to day. Occupational therapy can help you to design an unique plan to meet your needs. Whether you are a student, homemaker, parent and/or worker, an OT can help you to develop strategies to deal with these changes and to still lead a fulfilling life.
