Though progress is slowly being made to normalise the stigma around mental health, for most twenty-something-year-olds it can still be an impossible-seeming challenge to find a place that really gets it.
Despite higher levels of funding and awareness, suicide remains the leading cause of death for young people aged 15 – 44. Yep, a very scary statistic, but what exactly needs to change? And why is the current help in place not getting through to our younger generations?
20Talk is looking to fill those gaps and bring the conversation right to young adults where they feel comfortable engaging in it. They’re for young people, by young people, and they understand the ins and outs of creating a safe space for people in their twenties to discuss and explore their mental health.
Founders Leighton and Lockie are just your average everyday guys, and after two of their friends lost their battle with mental health in 2018 they decided it was time to dive deeper.
The faces behind it all
Lockie O’Donoghue
“Up until 2021, I had been a qualified painter and worked in the office for a large building company doing scheduling and estimating – something that I did not feel at all fulfilled or satisfied with.
I would devote every spare afternoon and weekend to 20Talk, and when the dual workload got too much something had to give. Leighton and I decided to throw in our full time, well paying, and safe careers to go spend our days promoting and progressing 20Talk without any pay.
It took us almost 2 years to find enough support from some Perth businesses and families to start paying ourselves for just a day or two a week. It’s enough to pay the bills at least, and the satisfaction from the work we do is worth more than money could ever mean.”
Leighton Bradfield
“From a young age, I was always working in small start-up businesses – always looking for a new way to sell something or connect with new customers. This led me to push myself at school and university to try and fit in with what I thought was society’s mold of success, making money in finance and property. During my education, I had battles with depression and substance abuse and finally realised that something needed to be done about how young people relate to their mental health.
Starting out in my parent’s living room, a group of young men decided to create a mental health platform that focuses on educating young people in a language they understand. Since then, we have had our high and low moments, sometimes working months on end with no pay. What Lockie and I both know is that we are committed to seeing this to the very end. We believe all young adults deserve to have access to education that helps them improve their mental health. “
From living room meeting beginnings
Starting off as a small group of twenty-year-olds meeting fortnightly in a living room, 20Talk has now delivered over 45 peer support workshops, held large-scale mental health gigs at bars and pubs, and has two of the youngest Mental Health First Aid Instructors in Australia – and this is all just the start for them.
They’re leveraging the insane power of social media, and have amassed a strong community following over the last few years by sharing powerful stories from everyday people right out of their fully operational recording studio in Fremantle.
They provide daily content and training to an audience of over 20,000 young adults, both physically and online, and have been able to successfully engage them in the big convos with their unique approach: conversations delivered by young people to young people in a language they can relate to and understand.
Their multi-channel approach across media and events is one of a kind, and a breath of fresh air in an otherwise unvarying mental health support world where the same approach is clearly not reaching the younger majorities.
What they need from you
Picture a world where young adults are educated to understand their mental health the same way they do their normal health.
Attracting funding to reach an extended audience with their lifesaving engagements is 20Talk’s biggest goal in 2022, and they need our help to get there.
They are seeking donations to help scale their Mental Health First Aid program and online Mental Health Awareness Campaigns, which will allow them to train and reach millions of young Aussies and provide lifesaving education.
These guys are big on making a difference, and since they’re pretty early on in their journey they need all the support they can get – because who doesn’t love an underdog?
Images: @sstephaniejayne for FORTH Magazine
If you or someone you know is struggling, take a look at 20Talk’s recommended services and helplines.
