Lantern

Lantern is an innovative, community based not-for-profit with more than 20 years’ experience helping people recover from mental illness.  Lantern’s vision is to enable people to create a future beyond mental illness.

Lantern was established in 1992 to improve services and support for people with disabilities arising from mental illness.

In industry terms, we provide Psychosocial Disability Rehabilitation Service (PDRS). The programs focus on wellbeing, social interaction, therapeutic support, outreach, accommodation, community education and awareness, accredited training and employment.  Most of these services are offered free and people attend voluntarily.

Working daily with the adults affected by mental health, we know:

  • Anxiety and depression are common. Almost one in two adults experience a mental illness at some time
  • Recovery from mental illness is a personal journey
  • The earlier people get help, the sooner recovery begins
  • Like physical health maintenance, emotional health maintenance keeps you on track in life
  • That mental health (individual and Australian statistics) won’t improve if it’s swept under the carpet

Lantern and Blossomproject

Like adults, when a young woman gets early help, she can get back on track quickly with minimal life impact.   The ages 16 – 25 years are the time when young women are forming their view of the world and their place in it. They are seeking answers to feelings and how they fit into life.  The choices they make now are critical.

If a young women who is feeling sad or worried reaches out early and finds suitable help, she can get back on track quickly. However, there is little early help for young women that encourages them to seek help, so symptoms grow and potential erodes.

Lantern knew it had the skills and experience that could bridge the gap for young women.  So, without funding, but with solid determination to make a difference we built a program based on everything we know that helps young women stay on track in education and life. We called it Blossomproject and trialled it successfully in 2011 in Bayside, Victoria.

Blossomproject is now moving forward into schools, TAFES and Universities to help build positive futures for young women. Blossomproject’s vision is growing futures.

Read about how young women experience Blossomproject.