Ratoath man who created mental health movement encourages people to reach out during lockdown

A Ratoath man who started an online movement to break the stigma around mental health is encouraging people to “pick up the phone" and reach out for help during lockdown.

Michael Gibson (44) who has suffered from depression since the age of 11 set up “The Lemonade Kart” in 2019 originally to share his story in the hope of encouraging others to speak out and seek help but says he never could have imagined how much the online resource would be needed two years later.

The website features advice, tips videos and shared stories on coping with depression, anxiety and other issues although Michael is keen to point out he is not a professional.

With such stringent restrictions in place, the dad of three says people’s mental health is being put to the test like never before but there are ways to cope. He said:

“The numbers reported on daily basis are really starting to get people down and people know if they go onto my page I’m not going to be talking about covid I’m not going to be talking about what you can’t do; the focus should always be on what can I do.

“Don’t be setting unrealistic targets for yourself like getting a degree in lockdown, you want to do things where you can actually feel like I’ve accomplished something whether that be bake a cake or learn a new recipe. There are loads of ideas on the website and routines you can follow.”

Reaching out and finding ways to talk to others is the key to not feeling isolated according to Michael.

“You don’t need to see someone face to face to talk to them. You can pick up the phone and text somebody or do a zoom call.

“The biggest piece of advice would be you know who you haven’t heard from or haven’t spoken to in while who is in your circle and if you haven’t heard from them in a while there might be a reason.

“During the first lockdown it was like everyone was on holidays, now people are starting to see there is a repercussion to this, whether that repercussion is financial or is going to detrimental to their health, mental or physical, what I’m encouraging now is a holistic approach, look after your head, look after your body.

“I’ve always wanted it to be a place where there is no stigma attached to mental health issues or mental fitness as I’ve always called it, where people can feel like they are among others who might be feeling the same.

“People will contact me out of the blue telling me about their situations. I always say I’m not a professional, I’m not someone who can give advice but what I can do is say when I experienced that situation this is what I did and if they can take some sort of an idea out of that then that’s the win.

The Ratoath man was inspired to share his story with others after suffering with his own demons from a young age.

"I had everyone fooled for so long and pretended that there was nothing wrong, I was one of the best actors you'd ever meet. I'd go into work and put on the performance of a lifetime. Then I'd go home, take that mask off, get into bed and pull the duvet over my head. I just wanted to close myself off to the world. It was so bad that I would actually feel physically sick. It was completely debilitating. "

“I didn’t fully understand it myself when I was at my worst time, I didn’t realise that the more mindful I became of what was going on, the more that I could break down each scenario and think this is what I need to do to, this is the best approach to try and tackle this issue.”

Find The Lemonade Kart on Facebook