Begoña and Belén arrive at the Plaza Nueva dressed in a bright orange T-shirt and ready to walk to Armentia hand in hand for mental healthlike the dozens and dozens of people waiting for the departure with blue and red balloons.
They come accompanied by some 40 fathers, mothers and schoolchildren from the Iturribero mountain group of the Durana ikastola.
mark the path
“We have helped lead the way, we come to accompany the participants and to support this solidarity initiative which we think is very good for making mental health problems visible and raising money,” they say. It is the fifth edition in which they collaborate in the walk organized by Asafes.
Hand in hand for mental health is he motto under which this year the solidarity walk of the Álava association of relatives and people with mental illness takes place, in which DIARIO DE NOTICIAS DE ÁLAVA collaborates.
Help and claim
The objective: “Give visibility to the association and raise awareness among the population about mental health problems. “Asafes is here to support and also to demand resources from institutions to serve the 600 families of Álava that make up the group.”says Leire, an Asafes worker.
The atmosphere is lively in the Plaza Nueva, as the orange tide takes its exit position.
Still There are many people who, at the last minute, whether as a couple, family, with friends, on pedals, with dogs and with children’s chairs, come to the registration post to sign up..
“The feeling is that we are doing very well, that we are going to surpass the participation of other years, a sign that the walk is consolidated”Leire congratulates.
After the pandemic
Considers that the pandemic has contributed to making mental health problems visible, that affect a high percentage of the population.
“Above all, they have become normalized among young people, who “They are more aware of the illness and do not tend to hide as much, they are more willing to be helped,” says Leire.
“Let’s say that Mental illness is being destigmatized, although there is still a long way to go; That’s why we are here.”he emphasizes.
until the saint
The 5 kilometer route starts to the saint, to return from Armentia to the place of departure, where the music is already playing and the children’s activities and the prize draw begin: bicycle, Alavés and Baskonia shirt, food, photography session. backpack, basket of sustainable products, pottery sessions, headphonesetc.
María and Oihane enjoy the road. Both believe that the initiative has popular support, but that there should still be more people, since the initiative deserves it.
María, 32 years old, knows it well. “I come because I have a family member from the group and also for my studies of “Social integration”he explains.
Oihane is a psychologist, 33 years old. “Mental illness is becoming normal among those under 30 or 40 years old, but not from that age onwards, Older people tell you: If what I have is not so much, there are other more serious illnesses.”he points out.
Cala in youth
In this sense, “the message is getting through to young people and, after the pandemic, people have sought more help; however, “Social networks do not contribute positively, since young people feel that to be happy, their lives have to be ideal, like those seen behind the mobile screen, they compare themselves with those people.”
At work
This year, the event highlights the need to prioritize mental health at work: working conditions, stress management, social inclusion, empowerment, etc.
Depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, Alzheimer’s, bipolar disorder, social phobia, post-traumatic stress, obsessive-compulsive disorder… One in four people suffers from a mental illness. However, More than half of sick people do not receive treatment or seek help.
Low job insertion
Before starting the walk, the president of Asafes, Elena Ortiz de Zárate, takes the floor to emphasize the importance of “joining forces and coming together in the fight for mental health, focusing, on this occasion, on the work environment“, says.
The low labor insertion of people with mental health problems stands out. “It is a barrier. The disease with the highest unemployment rate”, point.