ROUND TWO.
20 Hours for 20Talk (round two)
I’m doing 20 Hours for 20Talk again this year. That’s twenty hours in a 2x2m square with no talking, no phone, no books and no tarot cards (they actually put that in the guide).
Last year it was surprisingly easy for me. I’m curious whether it’ll be easy the second time round, or whether my brain has something new up its sleeve.
What I didn’t expect was how connected I’d feel to everyone in that room without saying a word. You’d catch someone’s eye across the squares, or get a little smile from the person next to you, and that was enough. There’s a real reverence in the room. It honestly feels like church, like sitting vigil, everyone keeping watch together in the quiet, and as a pastor’s kid I know that feeling in my bones.
This year I’m sitting for my ex, who died by suicide during COVID. She’s on my mind constantly. I didn’t know her when she was younger, but I can’t stop wondering if things might have been different if something like 20Talk had been around for our generation all those years ago.
The World Health Organization has projected that by 2030, depression will be the leading cause of disease burden worldwide, ahead of heart disease. I don’t think nearly enough is being done. Getting mental health support in this country isn’t easy enough and it isn’t affordable enough, which is criminal. If they’re not going to fix that, then the least we can do is make sure young people are equipped early, so they’re as ready as they can be as they get older.
20Talk is trying to do exactly that. They run free Mental Health Maintenance courses for 18 to 30 year olds, teaching them to look after their mental health before they hit crisis point. $120 puts one young person through a full day of that training.
If you can chip in anything, I’d be so grateful. And if you can’t, sharing this helps heaps too.
Love you my friend! Thank you for doing this - it matters and makes a difference!