Central Australia Update in August: What Has Been Happening at MIFANT

From young people crowding around a stall at the Alice Springs Youth Conference, to sheet masks and a boiling kettle at our Tennant Creek office, and families sitting outdoors with the BRADAAG team talking about what keeps them strong, August was a month of turning up where people already are. Our team spent the month across Central Australia, meeting young people, families and partner services on their own ground.

Alice Springs Youth Conference

Our team joined youth service providers from across Alice Springs for a full day of community connection, sector networking, and direct conversations with young people at the Alice Springs Youth Conference.

We had a stall set up throughout the day, and young people came by to find out about MiTrack and the support available to them in Alice Springs. Flyers and service information were shared with other providers to help strengthen referral pathways across the sector, and it was a chance to sit down with other organisations and learn more about what is on offer for young people across the region. Having so many services together in one room made those conversations easy.

For a young person, finding the right support usually depends on someone they already trust knowing where to point them. Days like this make that pointing easier. The pizza lunch went down well, and a performance by Yung Mulla brought plenty of energy to the afternoon. Thank you to the conference organisers for having us, and we look forward to being back next year.

Pamper Day in Tennant Creek

Our Tennant Creek team hosted a Pamper Day, the women settled in for facials with sheet masks, fresh nails set under the gel lamp, and hand massages, with a cuppa and biscuits in between. Taking a couple of hours to unwind, catch up with each other, and be looked after is a form of mental health support in its own right, and it is one that is easy to say yes to. Accessing mental health support in regional Northern Territory can often be complex, and an afternoon like this takes the pressure off people having to navigate the system on their own.

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Thank you to the Barkly Region Alcohol and Drug Abuse Advisory Group (BRADAAG) and the Tennant Creek Women's Refuge outreach team for bringing clients along and providing transport.

Wellbeing Workshop with BRADAAG

Our team also spent a day with BRADAAG in Tennant Creek, delivering a wellbeing workshop with the families they support.

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Participants worked through activities exploring their strengths, their families, and their hopes for the future, then sat together outdoors sharing their different life journeys, experiences, and what keeps them strong. Naming the strengths a family already holds is just as important for mental wellbeing as any new skill, and hearing each other's stories out in the open made for an easy, honest afternoon.

A big thank you to the BRADAAG team for such a welcoming space. We look forward to returning to Tennant Creek for more sessions this September, starting with Sister2Sister at Mary Ann Dam on Monday 21 September.

Get in Touch

If you are a young person, parent, carer, or educator who wants to learn more about the mental health resources available throughout Central Australia, our team is here to help.

Visit www.mifant.org.au/central-australia-programs or call us on 1800 985 944 or (08) 8948 1051.